The Odd Life of Timothy Green (DVD REVIEW)
The Odd Life of Timothy Green
DVD
Review by Kam Williams
Childless
Couple’s Prayers Answered in Enchanting Fairytale
Jim (Joel
Edgerton) and Cindy Green (Jennifer Garner) are very happily-married except for
not having any kids. After being informed by Cindy’s gynecologist (Rhoda Griffis),
that she can’t conceive, they scribble down all the qualities they’d hoped to
pass on to the child they’ll never have, starting with her good heart and his
honesty to a fault.
Then,
they bury the wish list in a box in the backyard right before a torrential
rainfall arrives. To their astonishment a real live boy sprouts up in their
garden overnight who, other than having leaves growing out of his legs, seems
to be perfectly normal.
What’s
more, 10 year-old Timothy (CJ Adams) not only exhibits the positive traits
desired by Cindy and Jim, but he refers to them as “Mom” and “Dad” without any
prompting. While the Greens are certainly inclined to welcome their miraculous
blessing with open arms, they are still hard-pressed to explain the sudden
addition to the family to skeptical relatives and friends.
For
sensitive Timothy, the adjustment is rather rocky, too, between being teased by
bullies at school for wearing long socks, and being rejected at home for not
being manly enough by his macho grandfather, Jim, Sr. (David Morse). He even
frustrates his mom when she’s fired by her boss (Dianne Wiest) on account of
his compulsive frankness.
At
least the little lost soul does find a kindred spirit in Joni (Odeya Rush), a
shy classmate hiding a painful secret of her own. The harder a time Timothy has
trying to measure up to the world’s expectations, the more he retreats to a
magical oasis of solitude he shares with this newfound friend.
Directed
by Peter Hedges (Pieces of April), The Odd Life of Timothy Green is an
enchanting fairytale designed for young and old alike. Credit a combination of
seamless special effects and a talented cast for making it easy for the
audience to suspend disbelief in the face of a supernatural storyline with an
implausible premise.
Once
that hurdle is scaled, a most-satisfying payoff which tugs on the heartstrings
awaits anyone willing to invest in this instant Disney classic.
Excellent
(4 stars)
Rated PG for mature themes and mild epithets.
Running time: 105
minutes
Distributor: Walt
Disney Studios Home Entertainment
2-Disc Combo Pack
Extras: Deleted scenes; director’s audio commentary; ‘This Gift’ music video by
Glen Hansard; Glen Hansard: Behind ‘This Gift’; Documentary: Family Roots:
Bringing The Odd Life of Timothy Green to the Screen; and more.
To see a trailer for The Odd Life of Timothy Green,
visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMSkbH0LuTc
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