Released April 18th, 2003
Director: Andrew Davis
Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight, Patricia Arquette, Shia LaBeouf, Tim Blake Nelson, Khleo Thomas, Jacob Smith, Byron Cotton, Brenden Jefferson, Miguel Castro, Siobhan Fallon, Max Kasch, Henry Winkler, Nathan Davis, Scott Plank
Premise: Based on the award-winning book by Louis Sachar, "Holes" is a funny and poignant coming-of-age adventure. It tells the story of Stanley Yelnats (LaBeouf) - an unusual young hero, dogged by back luck stemming from an ancient family curse. Perpetually in the wrong place at the wrong time, Stanley is unfairly sentenced to months of detention at Camp Green Lake for a crime he didn't commit. There, he and his campmates - Squid, Armpit, ZigZag, Magnet, X-Ray, and Zero - are forced by the menacing warden (Weaver) and her right-hand men Mr. Sir (Voight) and Mr. Pendanski (Nelson) to dig holes in order to built character. Nobody knows the real reason they're digging all these holes, but Stanley soon begins to question why the Warden is so interested in anything "special" the boys find. Stanley and his campmates must stick together and keep one step ahead of the Warden and her henchmen as they plot a daring escape from the camp to solve the mystery and break the Yelnats family curse.
Around this time of the year, most studios try to dump moderate films that have a relatively small budget right before the beginning of the summer season. But Disney hopes to make somewhat a big profit with their film version of the famous children's book, Holes. Though the commercials on television make it seem like the book Holes is a hugely famous book, there are many out there that have never even heard of it. The marketing for the film has targeted many demographics in hopes of bringing in a huge audience but Disney is not taking any chances so they have brought in stars like Sigorny Weaver and Jon Voight to help the tweener flick. But all this work and hopefully make this film another Remember the Titans for Walt Disney Pictures or will it fail like Piglet's Big Movie?
The story focuses on Stanley Yelnats the Fourth, who gets in trouble with law after he is accused of stealing a pair of baseball shoes from a famous baseball player that was given to raise money for the poor. Stanley's grandfather blames it on the family curse which was started by Stanley's great grandfather who forgot to carry an old fortune teller up a mountain to let her gain more strength after he had taken a pig from her in an attempt to marry a young woman in his local village. Stanley is sent by the court to Camp Greenlake for eighteen months. Unfortunately this is no paradise trip for him. The lake dried up over a hundred years ago and the Warden forces the little troublemakers to dig holes everyday in the desert. But in this terrible situation, Stanley hopes to break the family curse and make a life for himself. The story of Holes is very well done. There is enough slapstick humor to keep the young children entertained but enough story twists and tense moments to not bore the adults.
The cast of Holes is amazing considering that many of them are unknowns to the movie-going audience. Shia LaBeouf, who can be seen on the Disney Channel series Even Stevens, is probably the most impressive member of the cast. He has a lot of emotion that is used well in this film. LaBeouf should be able to become a big star if he continues to act in films like this. Jon Voight is fabulous in this film as the somewhat scary Mr. Sir. He is best known for his dramatic acting in films like Enemy of the State and Pearl Harbor but he has a great comic timing in this feature that most have not seen before. Sigorny Weaver is good as the Warden but you don't see her character until relatively half-way through the film and even when you do see her, you don't get as much character development as the other members of the cast. Henry Winkler, who is best known for Happy Days, makes a funny, if not brief, appearance as Stanley's father in the film. Winkler should receive a lead in a comedy soon but until then let's hope he appears in roles in this.
Overall, Holes is probably the most teenage orientated film from Walt Disney Pictures in quite some time and will be the last one until Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl opens in July. One must note that this is not your typical Mickey Mouse films with several foul language words being used within the course of the film. But this doesn't mean that is bad. There are very few things to say badly about the film Holes, but there are some. For one, the time length is a perfect at two hours but does seem to be a little too much for a film intended for younger children. Also, the story, though very well done, does seem a big dragged out in parts which can slow down the film a bit. Lastly, not as many characters get to act outside of the usual slapstick gags which can disappoint some. Outside of those small squabbles, Holes is probably the best film out in theaters since Phone Booth. The film is very well done that should appeal to everyone in the family. Note that film does contain a lot of references to death, acts of killing, and bad language that may not be suitable to small children. Just a word of warning to those that are expecting the normal Disney treatment.
My Rating: **** out of 5 (Grade: B+)
Director: Andrew Davis
Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight, Patricia Arquette, Shia LaBeouf, Tim Blake Nelson, Khleo Thomas, Jacob Smith, Byron Cotton, Brenden Jefferson, Miguel Castro, Siobhan Fallon, Max Kasch, Henry Winkler, Nathan Davis, Scott Plank
Premise: Based on the award-winning book by Louis Sachar, "Holes" is a funny and poignant coming-of-age adventure. It tells the story of Stanley Yelnats (LaBeouf) - an unusual young hero, dogged by back luck stemming from an ancient family curse. Perpetually in the wrong place at the wrong time, Stanley is unfairly sentenced to months of detention at Camp Green Lake for a crime he didn't commit. There, he and his campmates - Squid, Armpit, ZigZag, Magnet, X-Ray, and Zero - are forced by the menacing warden (Weaver) and her right-hand men Mr. Sir (Voight) and Mr. Pendanski (Nelson) to dig holes in order to built character. Nobody knows the real reason they're digging all these holes, but Stanley soon begins to question why the Warden is so interested in anything "special" the boys find. Stanley and his campmates must stick together and keep one step ahead of the Warden and her henchmen as they plot a daring escape from the camp to solve the mystery and break the Yelnats family curse.
Around this time of the year, most studios try to dump moderate films that have a relatively small budget right before the beginning of the summer season. But Disney hopes to make somewhat a big profit with their film version of the famous children's book, Holes. Though the commercials on television make it seem like the book Holes is a hugely famous book, there are many out there that have never even heard of it. The marketing for the film has targeted many demographics in hopes of bringing in a huge audience but Disney is not taking any chances so they have brought in stars like Sigorny Weaver and Jon Voight to help the tweener flick. But all this work and hopefully make this film another Remember the Titans for Walt Disney Pictures or will it fail like Piglet's Big Movie?
The story focuses on Stanley Yelnats the Fourth, who gets in trouble with law after he is accused of stealing a pair of baseball shoes from a famous baseball player that was given to raise money for the poor. Stanley's grandfather blames it on the family curse which was started by Stanley's great grandfather who forgot to carry an old fortune teller up a mountain to let her gain more strength after he had taken a pig from her in an attempt to marry a young woman in his local village. Stanley is sent by the court to Camp Greenlake for eighteen months. Unfortunately this is no paradise trip for him. The lake dried up over a hundred years ago and the Warden forces the little troublemakers to dig holes everyday in the desert. But in this terrible situation, Stanley hopes to break the family curse and make a life for himself. The story of Holes is very well done. There is enough slapstick humor to keep the young children entertained but enough story twists and tense moments to not bore the adults.
The cast of Holes is amazing considering that many of them are unknowns to the movie-going audience. Shia LaBeouf, who can be seen on the Disney Channel series Even Stevens, is probably the most impressive member of the cast. He has a lot of emotion that is used well in this film. LaBeouf should be able to become a big star if he continues to act in films like this. Jon Voight is fabulous in this film as the somewhat scary Mr. Sir. He is best known for his dramatic acting in films like Enemy of the State and Pearl Harbor but he has a great comic timing in this feature that most have not seen before. Sigorny Weaver is good as the Warden but you don't see her character until relatively half-way through the film and even when you do see her, you don't get as much character development as the other members of the cast. Henry Winkler, who is best known for Happy Days, makes a funny, if not brief, appearance as Stanley's father in the film. Winkler should receive a lead in a comedy soon but until then let's hope he appears in roles in this.
Overall, Holes is probably the most teenage orientated film from Walt Disney Pictures in quite some time and will be the last one until Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl opens in July. One must note that this is not your typical Mickey Mouse films with several foul language words being used within the course of the film. But this doesn't mean that is bad. There are very few things to say badly about the film Holes, but there are some. For one, the time length is a perfect at two hours but does seem to be a little too much for a film intended for younger children. Also, the story, though very well done, does seem a big dragged out in parts which can slow down the film a bit. Lastly, not as many characters get to act outside of the usual slapstick gags which can disappoint some. Outside of those small squabbles, Holes is probably the best film out in theaters since Phone Booth. The film is very well done that should appeal to everyone in the family. Note that film does contain a lot of references to death, acts of killing, and bad language that may not be suitable to small children. Just a word of warning to those that are expecting the normal Disney treatment.
My Rating: **** out of 5 (Grade: B+)