Charlotte's Web (2006)

I meant to go see this film at some point but it wasn't until a special family screening at a nearby movie theater that I got the chance. I grew up with the animated Hanna-Barbera version on video and that film is still better than this one. While there is nothing wrong with this live action "Charlotte's Web", I felt it was little too reminiscent of "Babe". Little children will love this movie though. The spirit of the film is sweet but the drama of the original story is somewhat lost.

One little thing that bugs me about this adaptation is Charlotte's introduction. The surprise reveal of the voice being a spider was lost because of the little glimpse of Charlotte a few scenes early. The central features of the animated film from 1973 were the songs of the Sherman brothers and the casting of the main characters. This version has an all-star voice cast as its hook and while that has a tendency to not work in filmmaking, it did this time. All the voice cast members were paired quite nicely with their characters. First of all, Dakota Fanning was the only choice for Fern. She brings spunkiness to the passionate character. I would hope that she can break out of child acting and all signs at this point say yes. When it comes to the three main animal characters, they were also well casted but I am still partial to Debbie Reynolds, Paul Lynde and Henry Gibson. The filmmakers were obviously trying to make Wilbur as appealing as Babe. The movie was filmed in Australia just like "Babe" was and even Wilbur's voice as performed by Dominic Scott Kay sounds quite like Christine Cavanaugh's. One thing this movie did perfectly was to keep Wilbur cute throughout the whole film as he grew up. Even the animated film had trouble with that. The computer animation was well done with some characters like Charlotte and Templeton but not at other times like when Wilbur is computer animated. The realistic design of Charlotte was quite noteworthy. Her almond shaped eyes are her most appealing characteristic. Julia Roberts' voice fits the character well but she is not as sweet as I would have liked. Templeton also was a well-designed CG character. I believed him as a realistic character alongside the other farm animals. Steve Buscemi was the perfect actor to bring this character to life once again and I was grateful that his vocal performance differs from his work on "Monsters Inc.". Some other examples of perfect casting include Kathy Bates and Reba McEntire as cows. The only animal that Robert Redford should ever provide a voice for is a horse, no questions. It was also nice to have Oprah and John Cleese in the film. In terms of the casting of the supporting human characters, I loved that Siobhan Fallon Hogan plays Mrs. Zuckerman. Every scene of Dr. Dorian's is in is wonderful. Beau Bridges becomes Fern's advocate and his scene concerning Charlotte's web is well written and performed. I enjoy a few other aspects of this show. From a screenwriting standpoint, some things were done right. We know whether Zuckerman is thinking about keeping Wilbur or not. It is made clear that Wilbur's chances of survival rest with him winning at the fair. One of the most memorable parts of the book is the swing in the barn and the filmmakers include it where as Hanna-Barbera did not. The design of this film is very attractive and that is noteworthy for such a story as this. In terms of the editing, I enjoy the humorous cut from Wilbur being held by Fern to the bacon being cooked on the stove by her mother. Concerning humor, the running gag with the scarecrow and the crows was excellent. Templeton also provides some nice humor for the little kids. The heart of the story was lacking though such as when Charlotte is approaching the end of her life. If genuine drama worked in the book and in the animated film then why not in live action? I think the filmmakers were a little too apprehensive and down played the sadness. When you consider movies like "Bambi", "Dumbo", "WALL-E" and "Up" however, we can see that drama can work in a kid’s movie.

This movie is great for little children who have not read the book but then again, they should read the book. The live action "Charlotte's Web" was a good movie but a little too similar to another film about a little live action piglet that defied the odds. The heart and sadness I longed for was not as strong as I was hoping for. Still, the filmmakers did not make a dud with this version.

3 Stars