Perhaps it is a sign of my immaturity or perhaps I just like any movie with a good story but once I had checked the back of this DVD and seen the whole premise revolves around a boy who farts a lot then I was well and truly hooked!
Most kids movies have a sort of cloying message to them, stuff about being yourself or being nice to others etc and the sentimentality gets ladled on with gay abandon. It's the rare kids movie that manages to entertain both kids and adults without being overly schmaltzy. Given that our hero here has an unfortunate tendency towards explosive flatulence, it's no surprise that we manage to avoid being clubbed over the head with any 'message'.
The kid in question here is Patrick Smash whose unique gift makes itself known early on in his life and has a catastrophic effect on the poor lad. His dad leaves and his mum turns to drink. When he gets to school he is bullied mercilessly and has only one friend, a ginger kid with no sense of smell. It's this friend that realises Patrick's special ability could be utilised and with his brains and Patrick's farting ability a plan to rescue some stranded astronauts is launched.
Most kids movies have a sort of cloying message to them, stuff about being yourself or being nice to others etc and the sentimentality gets ladled on with gay abandon. It's the rare kids movie that manages to entertain both kids and adults without being overly schmaltzy. Given that our hero here has an unfortunate tendency towards explosive flatulence, it's no surprise that we manage to avoid being clubbed over the head with any 'message'.
The kid in question here is Patrick Smash whose unique gift makes itself known early on in his life and has a catastrophic effect on the poor lad. His dad leaves and his mum turns to drink. When he gets to school he is bullied mercilessly and has only one friend, a ginger kid with no sense of smell. It's this friend that realises Patrick's special ability could be utilised and with his brains and Patrick's farting ability a plan to rescue some stranded astronauts is launched.
That's the plot in a nutshell but along the way Patrick at first alienates everyone with his noxious harris but in the end, all he wants is friends and family to love him and to achieve his dream fog oing into space. We find ourselves really rooting for Patrick and when he finally does make it into outer space and we see that huge smile on his face, it's hard not to shed a tear. As has been mentioned on here before, most child actors make you want to punch the screen in annoyance but all of the kids involved here do a bang up job. Special praise goes to Rupert Grint who plays Patricks best (only) friend. He was in what is probably the best known movie series of all time in Harry Potter but here, after a few minutes, you utterly forget that and really buy into his and Patricks friendship. The adults involved, including Stephen Fry and Simon Callow also seem to have a great time and the whole feel of the movie is one of anarchic fun.
I bought this movie yesterday in a remaindered stock sale in my local library. I paid a quid for it and watched it as soon as I got home. It's now leapt right up my favorite movies list. Can't really praise it any higher than that.
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