|
‘Fried Worms’ gross life lesson, perfect for kids |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Written by Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune
|
|
Wednesday, 23 August 2006 |
|
|
|
|
 HOW TO EAT FRIED WORMS
3 stars (out of 5)
Cast: Luke Benward, Adam Hicks, Hallie Kate Eisenberg, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Tom Cavanaugh.
Director: Bob Dolman.
Running time: 1 hour 25 minutes.
Industry rating: PG for mild bullying and some crude humor.
You can have your worms in an omelet, or whipped into a smoothie.
You can fry’em in lard, dip ’em in hot sauce or toast ’em with a magnifying glass.
Pop them in the microwave, or down them sashimi style, no flames required.
But eat them you will, or you’ll be wearing them in your pants at school the following Monday.
“How to Eat Fried Worms” could be the ultimate 11-year-old boy’s movie, a little cruel, a little gross and a lot funny. It’s not highbrow comedy. But then, 11-year-old boys are not exactly “Masterpiece Theatre” material.
The movie based on Thomas Rockwell’s book is about Billy, played by the adequate-and-no-more Luke Benward, a new kid at school who runs afoul of the fearsome bully Joe Guire (Adam Hicks, not particularly fearsome). Joe has a “death ring” he punches his victims with, one that won’t kill them right away, “but in the eighth grade, so no one can prove it.”
When Joe and his flunkies fill Billy’s thermos with worms, Billy tries to stand up for himself. Yeah, I eat worms all the time, he says.
No, ya don’t, says Joe.
Do too.
Not.
Do.
A challenge. Joe decrees that Billy must down 10 worms the following Saturday, with witnesses, and not throw up. If he doesn’t, its worms in his pants at school. Billy, not much of a negotiator, fires back that if he does eat the worms, Joe has to stuff his pants.
Problem: Billy has the weakest stomach in fifth grade. His booger-factory brother Woody (Ty Panitz, simply hilarious) can make him queasy. He gets car sick. And air sick. And, you get the picture.
Billy’s allies in this are the picked-on tall girl, Urk (played by veteran child actress Hallie Kate Eisenberg) and assorted other victims of Joe’s bullying.
Writer-director Bob Dolman (“The Banger Sisters”) keeps the pace lively and the movie sprightly as he bounces from worm-dish to worm farm, with animated interludes between courses.
But the movie is limited by its story, its themes and its cast.
It doesn’t have much to do with Urk, who is plainly more mature, smarter and deserving of better friends than Billy, who lets the same peer pressure that he’s fighting persuade him to shun her. Walden Media, the producers of this as well as “Because of Winn-Dixie,” “Hoot” and “Chronicles of Narnia,” is striving to make good movies for kids. But they seem to have a knack for hiring cheap, low-skilled child actors. The grownups (Tom Cavanaugh is dad, Kimberly Williams-Paisley is Mom) are barely in the background, though there’s a nice parallel story about dad facing his own “new kid” issues at work.
Lots of positive messages in between the worm-burns, about not just vanquishing a bully but trying to win him over, about confronting your fears, about prepping for an appearance on “Fear Factor.”
“Fried Worms” is a “Hoot” with more laughs, funny enough, so long as you don’t consider the worm’s point of view.
“I wonder what he’s thinking,” one little creep muses as a worm sizzles in the microwave.
Careful, sonny. That’s vegetarian talk.
| Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register. |
|
|  | "Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy's first law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one, and only truth." | |
|  | We're not that bright, even though in our own little world, we're geniuses. We like 80s hair bands and one-hit wonders, but among us we have respectable tastes, too. Metallica, Iron Maiden, U2. Pursuit of all things trivial is a lifestyle, not just a game. We like some sports, love other sports, and can find something to say about anything. We watch TV and movies and we've read a book or two, even a few classics (Yes, Classic Comics count!)
We call it insight, you call it what you will. | |
|  | Felix Wong is an outdoor enthusiast living in Fort Collins. A mechanical engineer by day, he is especially passionate about bicycling, running, and backpacking. | |
|  | Hola Amigos! I'm Sandra. I like to believe that people are 70 percent good and 30 percent dumb. I'm stickin to that story. Reading this blog might make you want to be good, but probably just dumb. | |
|  | Donovan Henderson is editor of NEXTnc. | |
|  | Here at Nextnc we have some characters. Get a sneak peak behind the curtain and find out what amusing antics our staffers get themselves into on a weekly basis. | |
|  | What is up FoCo?
I am a recent college graduate of Minnesota State University Moorhead. After recieving my B.A. in English and Mass Communications this past August I moved down to Colorado.
I enjoy long walks on the beach, candlelight dinners, and heavy metal. My hobbies include reading and writing, music, movies, and getting drunk. Some of my favorite contemporary authors include Bret Easton Ellis, Chuck Palahniuk, and Kurt Vonnegut. My top movies are anything directed by Kubrick. I enjoy listening to anything that rocks.
Right now I am just trying to get to know Colorado and FoCo better. Mostly in order to find the best drink specials on each day that ends in Y. So if you know where I can get a cheap drunk on, let me know!
--Drew | |
|  | Life's little morsels of inspiration, observation and encouragement seen through the eyes of the Nextnc reporter.
| |
|  | Ms. Giles currently lives in Colorado where she stars in her own private reality show. She writes aphoristic accounts of her life, taken completely out of context, and embellished with characters and situations disguised to resemble something close to interesting. | |
|  | over and out | |
| | My name is Michelle Turley and I'm 28 years old. I live in Severance with my hubbie, Brandon. We have 2 dogs and a cat. We enjoy camping, four-wheeling, and just being in the mountains. I like to cook, clean (go figure), flea market, and play poker. I have so much to say about poker... | |
|
|
