Dumplin'

I was surprised by the fresh humor, finally a new take on Beauty pageants! Beautifully done, funny and loving the Dolly theme. Away with magazines telling us what is beautiful and not!! 👌

Is the movie an Oscar contender? No, but who cares. The movie has a great message and it's fun. I enjoyed the movie from beginning to end. All you naysayers and haters, get some joy in your life and be entertained without tearing down. It's a movie for teens to learn the value of understanding who you are and living your best you. Something us 40 somethings need to be remind of too!

Dolly Parton's wonderful songs (and her distinct voice) are the highlight of this film. That said, "Dumplin'" film feels like a low-risk, tv special, played at 8 pm. The script is overly-sentimental, and while the themes are worthy, the delivery felt flat.

Several characters who deserved to be fleshed out got the short-shrift. I'd like to see a more layered narrative of the lives of drag queens, apart from their entertainment value, but this film missed the mark. Even "Bo", the teenage hunk was reduced to a cardboard figure, imbued with cliched sound bites. Kathy Najimy (a fine actor) was given a perfunctory role, filled with animated actions.

If you want to see Aniston deliver a riveting portrayal, see the film "CAKE". Sadly, she is not believable in this role. Although "Patti Cake$ was not a great film, I enjoyed the performance of MacDonald more in that project. While "Dumplin" was not altogether terrible (most of the actors gave it their best), the script is in sore need of refinement and enriched characterizations.

The movie is a good, heartlifting movie with good music and enjoyable characters. Unfortunately it leaves out a lot of major characters and a lot of the book plot. If you haven't read the book you will like it even more, irregardless it is worth the watch.

7/10 - body positive YA book adaption lives up to the hype