I must take exception to chrismcreynolds scathing review of this utterly charming family film. Here we have two elderly people so wrapped in their private grief and dogmatic Calvinistic beliefs that they are unable to welcome their grandchildren into their hearts. People who are blinded by their own dogmatism often make ill advised, even stupid decisions - "uncredible" (sic) was, I believe, the reviewer's choice of words - and it is exactly this rigidity of thought and action that is the central thread of the story.
I don't recall being the slightest bit confused over plot elements, nor have my children expressed any difficulty in understanding the story - it's one of their favorite movies, as it is mine. The neighbor's baby was taken to the beach by his brother who was supposed to be babysitting and who had been forbidden by his parents to go to the beach alone. The little boys decided to look after the baby without telling anybody because they thought it must be orphaned, like they themselves, and they were convinced the baby had been abandoned. They also absolutely believed their grandfather, whom they greatly feared, might hurt it so they decided to hide it.
To account for such a complete divergence in opinions about this charming film I think that the reviewer clearly prefers movies of an entirely different genre and setting. Certainly it is, in almost every way imaginable, the pole reverse of "The Bernie Mac Show"! Set in rural Nova Scotia at the beginning of the last century "The Little Kidnappers" is a beautiful story that touches on aspects of community inter-reliance, familial love, romance, religion and redemption that are timeless in their power and simplicity.
I don't recall being the slightest bit confused over plot elements, nor have my children expressed any difficulty in understanding the story - it's one of their favorite movies, as it is mine. The neighbor's baby was taken to the beach by his brother who was supposed to be babysitting and who had been forbidden by his parents to go to the beach alone. The little boys decided to look after the baby without telling anybody because they thought it must be orphaned, like they themselves, and they were convinced the baby had been abandoned. They also absolutely believed their grandfather, whom they greatly feared, might hurt it so they decided to hide it.
To account for such a complete divergence in opinions about this charming film I think that the reviewer clearly prefers movies of an entirely different genre and setting. Certainly it is, in almost every way imaginable, the pole reverse of "The Bernie Mac Show"! Set in rural Nova Scotia at the beginning of the last century "The Little Kidnappers" is a beautiful story that touches on aspects of community inter-reliance, familial love, romance, religion and redemption that are timeless in their power and simplicity.