A Plumm Summer

Elliott Plumm (Chris Masoglia) and his younger brother, Rocky (Owen Pearce) live in knock-out gorgeous Montana in the early sixties. Their father, Mick (William Baldwin) drinks too much and never seems to have time for Elliott, seeming to prefer kindergartner Rocky. Mother Roxie (Laura Guerrero) is an attentive mother but she is getting fed up with Mick and his antics. More importantly, Elliott is shy and resents having to share a room with his little brother, even going so far as to dividing their room with a marker on the floor. Only Rocky is carefree, for he is young and enamored with the local television star-magician (Henry Winkler) and his darling frog marionette Froggy-Do. Changes occur. First, the Plumms get new neighbors, a single father and his daughter, who casts her eye on Elliott. Then, someone actually frog-naps Froggy-Do and the show can't go on, as the magic man won't go solo without his beloved sidekick. Can Elliott find Froggy-Do for the town and his brother Rocky? This film, set in knockout gorgeous Montana, has a light-hearted cover and a cute, cute puppet. But, beneath the story are serious issues, like divorce, alcoholism, and mental instability. So, in my view, not for every family. That said, the cast, costumes, script, direction, and all other amenities are quite fine. If you are searching for a family flick that might get the loved ones into an actual conversation, this would be one to try. But, if you are seeking a film that is sweetness and light, look for Beethoven's Big Break or, truly, any of the Beethoven movies.

My definition of a family movie is one that has as much in it for the adults of the family as it has for the youngsters. By that measure this is NOT a family movie. It is a kids' movie, and only younger kids at that. As kids movies go, there is probably a lot for them to enjoy. Any adult enjoyment will come from watching their kids enjoy it, not from the movie itself - and that's despite the fact that there are a lot of well known actors here and that this is based on a true story. There are certainly some scenes and themes in this that are aimed at adults. Sadly, they are kind of swamped by the silly scenes. Unfortunately, generally speaking, the plot is a bit too puerile, unsubtle, poorly acted and far fetched to appeal to adults. Turn this on with the kids and then go read a good book.

My, oh my, never am I so pleasantly surprised to watch this movie! The title is unassuming, and because there is lack of publicity about this movie in my country (it wasn't shown in the local cinemas), I thought this is one of those straight to DVDs which usually meant that the movie is not good.

My, oh my, this movie rocks! Based on true story, the Elliot brothers helped the FBI to capture the person who did the frognapping. Funny moments ensued as the brothers, and the inefficient FBIs worked their way to nab the suspect.

Both the Elliot brothers, and the girl who plays as the new girl in town are very real. They have the chemistry that one might think that they are already in the industry for a long time.

The performance of Elliot and her small brother are wonderful, they quarrel and made remarks with each other, but when others disturbed one of them, the other stand up and defended.

This movie is for everyone, young and old. It has tonnes of moral values and it is has that feel-good factor that many films churned out of Hollywood seems to lack.

In a nutshell, I recommend this movie anytime. Just sit back, relax, and have some chips with it.

I just watched this on DVD, and here's my question: why can't there be more movies like this? I take my kids to Blockbuster every weekend to find something to watch. First off, there isn't really anything in the 'kids' section. It's either pre-school or teen. Hardly any in the middle. Why is that? My boys are 7 and 9. Where are the movies for those kids? There are some, yes, and we've watched them all. Many times. But it's such a small selection. So i was happy to see something new on the shelf. My son Tommy said, "Look dad, there's one we haven't seen!" like he'd just seen a flying saucer. So we took it home and watched two times over the weekend. My wife and I ended up watching it with them and loved it. Great, fun, life lessons, adventurous. It had everything. It inspired the boys the way the Hardy Boys inspired me as a kid. So I'm taking the time out of my day to make this comment. I think it's worth it to get the word out, because I know there are a lot more parents like us. And kudos to Henry Winkler and William Baldwin for raising the bar.

A Plumm Summer is a sweet little indie film pulled off perfectly. There are some big names in the supporting cast who are all note-perfect, most notably Peter Scolari and Henry Winkler. Billy Baldwin also puts in a very good turn for the first time in quite a while. Newcomers Chris Massoglia and Owen Pearce couldn't be any cuter and more adorable as the brothers/stars of the film. Massoglia (credited as "Chris J. Kelly") is particularly outstanding considering it's his first jump from TV to film - you really like him and feel for his character. To me, A Plumm Summer hearkens back to 6:00 on Sunday when the family would gather around the TV with dinners in hand to watch the Wonderful World of Disney's weekly fare. This is like that... but better quality than most of what Walt served up. There's some real heart to this effort thanks to genuine drama that hits a message without becoming overwrought with itself. The mystery element to the story is none too deep or complex, but it doesn't need to be; it's just the vehicle that introduces some very likable characters and lets us get to know them. There's a laugh or two along the way and everything is generally light-hearted and fun. It's a good family film that entertains as well as confronts a serious note or two along the way. It won't change the landscape of movie-making, but it's awfully nice to see that somebody will still make a sweet, innocent film like this. Kudos to the folks responsible for doing that. A very endearing, charming, family film worth anyone's time.