Bookworm

Very unusual movie with Elijah Wood (Hobbit) as a very bad magician father hoping to redeem himself to his estranged daughter while her mother is recovering in the hospital from an electrical shock accident. Nell Fisher (Mildred) is obsessed with proving a unique panther is roaming around the jungles and hopes to win 50000 dollars for proof of its existence. So the two of them, father and daughter go out on a journey to get a video of the elusive creature. The dialog is a bit strange, and Strawn Wise the father (Wood) is not to good at anything especially bravery. So it's kind of an offbeat redemption story of sorts. Nothing questionable, no nudity or violence, some rather stupid parts , but all in all it's an "ok" story and film. More for younger kids so don't expect much for adults. Enjoy.

One of those film oddities where, at the halfway point, you get an entirely different second movie. The first movie, which fills the first 50 minutes, is a genuinely interesting father-daughter roadtrip romp, with the daughter (Fisher) gettting the best lines: (dialog) "Am I still dreaming .. or did a 42 year old man really just wake up an 11 year old girl to tell her that he heard a creepy sound in the night?" Wood, late in his career, still has star power and the vibe between the two is solid. Then the tone changes and, much to the chagrin of the N. Z. Dept. Of Tourism, a friendly couple encountered while camping turns out to be anything but. The two halves of the film do not match, and the sour notes of the second half suck all the joy out of the first half. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))

I love wilderness adventure films, but I hadn't gotten too much of an idea of the plot before I watched it. The child actor was fine but came off as annoying. I'm glad the dad character gave her some comeuppance. The strange couple and illusionist side of the story intrigued me whereas the father-daughter relationship failed to engage me. And I gotta say, whys everyone dissing on the couple? I genuinely thought they were quite funny. The directors did a good job at capturing typical married west coast-ers. Sometimes I felt like this movie was borderline copying Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Oh, and the panther, forgot about that. Yeah, that was more of a subplot in the movie. In the end, though, it was pretty heartfelt and some fine family entertainment.

NZ dramedy "Bookworm" (from director Ant Timpson & writer Toby Harvard) starts strong but collapses BADLY. When nerdy, arrogant 11yr old (note to film-makers: obnoxious kids are NOT charming) Nell Fisher's mum has an accident her biological magician dad Elijah Wood jets from the US to care for her - despite not having met her before (and only knowing her mum for two hours 12yrs prior). Even less plausibly they then head off to find a mythical panther in the remote wilderness... where even LESS plausibly they 'bond' (especially after meeting Michael Smiley & Vanessa Stacey). It's not funny, it's not poignant, it is a confused & messy turd - flush it far away.

I really wanted to like this, but nothing in this movie fits quite right. The child actress tries so hard, but her acting feels forced. The quirkiness of the whole premise doesn't resonate with the audience, unfortunately.

If they had incorporated more elements related to the title-like her being an actual bookworm-it might have created some meaningful connections and depth. Sadly, there's nothing here to tie the title to the story in any real way.

I'm not sure what the budget was, but it seems like most of it went into the panther CGI. Elijah is, well, Elijah-but even his performance doesn't add much value to the production. None of the characters are particularly likable or funny enough to carry the film. Overall, it's a disappointing watch.