Phoebe In Wonderland [DVD]

Child actors. The two words at one time were a contradiction. Mind-blowing how things have moved on. Think back to the absolutely cringe-inducing, teeth-grinding, hardly-bear-to-look horror of one-time child performers, how they made us squirm - Freddie Bartholomew, Shirley Temple, Mickey Rooney, Margaret O'Brien, and a legion of others too unremarkable to mention. In the majority of cases, what came across was a young person trying desperately to show us how 'grown-up' they were. And failing. Because we know what being an adult is all about, and these starry-eyed moppets clearly couldn't envision that, much less define it. (We perhaps had to wait for Stephen Spielberg to show us the true potential of children in film - "Close Encounters", "E.T.".)

A child actor playing a child, though........ That's something else, that can be something incredible. And although one might stop short at describing 'Phoebe in Wonderland' as the most incredible film, it has no less than three extraordinary female performances, and central to it all is the child of Elle Fanning. I have never seen such an amazing performance from a child actor. I can imagine it could be difficult for Elle to top this for a while, but on this showing her future looks rosey.

To be sure, though, it's a rivetting film for those that get caught up in its spell. It was written and directed by someone who clearly has enormous understanding of children - Daniel Barnz, though I never heard of him before and may never hear of him again, but his script must have come from the very depths of his soul. His journey into the mind of Phoebe, Tourette's-influenced or otherwise, required a far greater skill than I could muster. Phoebe's fixations manifest themselves in the form of Alice, whose part she is compelled to perform at the school play and around whom she conjurs her own magical world. It would be considered inconceivable to Charles Dodgson when he wrote 'Alice in Wonderland' that his eponymous heroine would breed such a vast array of imitators in every possible form in every decade since. Phoebe has to be one of the most creative of those manifestations, and Elle's characterisation, for a ten-year-old, is the most impressive thing I've seen from any actor in a long time.

One scene alone, Phoebe and mother Felicity Huffman in a tortured, crying, embracing outpouring, just brings tears of recognition for anyone who has raised a young girl going through the anxieties of growing before the mother is aware of how to deal with it. That was extraordinary and I shed a tear for the two of them.

Huffman, who so perfectly portrayed the transsexual in 2005's 'TransAmerica', has to be one of the top handful of American screen actresses today, and here she is ably supported by Bill Pullman, himself now something of a specialist of the slightly-off-the-wall, vaguely quirky yet soundly dependable cohort role. Finally there is Patricia Clarkson, whose character here we are never entirely sure is more inside 'Alice in Wonderland' than out of it, whose every move is calculated with a kind of mythic overtone and who fills us in every scene with an air of wonder that something magical is about to happen. She too, is moving into today's top echelon of female actors, and proving - if we needed proof - that pretty looks aren't where the best film-makers are diverted nowadays, thank goodness.

This is not a film I commend to everyone. Many will lose interest short of the half-way mark. It is, though, a film that leaves its impressions long after the credits close. Impressions of two fine female performances and one utterly stunning child. All I thought was, "Wow!"

Phoebe in Wonderland [DVD] [2007] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

A very moving film with some just gorgeous acting, with Elle Fanning showing all of her sister's ability to be "Aged 10 going on 30". Without giving too much away, Elle portrays in a very touching and believable manner a little girl who has a growing realisation that something is wrong with her, and she creates a character with an emotional depth greater than many so-called A-listers manage. If your idea of a film is action and sex, go elsewhere, but if what you like is really, really good acting and the portrayal of real emotions, then watch this little gem of a film.

When it's good, it's terrific, including an amazing performance by a very young Elle Fanning as a
mentally troubled 8 year old, and good work by Felicity Huffman, and the always wonderful
Patricia Clarkson.

On the other hand, the very talented Campbell Scott is reduced to playing a one note joke, and
the tone of the film is all over the place; odd quirky comedy one moment, a child contemplating
suicide the next.

But the real problems are when the film's Lifetime network roots show through (Lifetime is a US
cable TV network that often specializes in the slightly sappy), and suddenly there's that warm,
fuzzy, phony feeling that being a kid with severe emotional problems isn't all that bad,
and everything will be just fine. That undermines the film's valiant attempts to really get inside a
struggling kid's head.

None-the-less, in a world of cookie-cutter filmmaking, the film gets real points for trying, and
about 80% of the time, this is a very good, and very original film.