This film was exactly the type of film I guessed it would be from the trailer , a very simple family drama and there is nothing wrong with that , in fact I do like that sort of films for time to time. The story is pretty straightforward a kid living alone with his environmentalist father has to learn to go back to civilization once his dad dies of an infection of the leg. The kid goes into a jail for children were he makes his very first friends , bust out with them , fight the creepy sergeant who's always after him and learn to let go of the burden his late father had inflected upon him. All in all this film is pretty much 50 per cent drama and 50 per cent kids film, seriously , if it would have had the Disney logo attached to it , it would have been a perfect fit for the studio.The film is absolutely harmless.It shy away from how serious this peculiar subject could have been to favor more of a kids adventure format. There are scenes that are quite far fetched and the villain of the piece (Played by Ron Howard's brother) feels like he came out straight from a cartoon. At no time during that film I felt that something bad would happen to young Alabama and I just sat and enjoyed watching his journey unfold. It's not Oscar worthy by any stretch of the imagination, it's just a cute little film that you would have fun watching on a rainy day with your kids (whom I believe would love it). There are nice little touches like John Goodman (Always great to see him),the character of Kitt who's quite endearing and the young Jimmy Bennett who does a decent job as Alabama even if it's not as strong of a performance as the one he has given in "Trucker" ( By the way if you are really looking for a real serious drama who pulls no punches I would recommend this film instead). All I can say is I liked it , I don't think anyone who will watch this film will dislike it because there is nothing to dislike. The only problem I have with the film is the last 5 minutes is a bit much on the corny side and feels like it was taken from an episode of "The Waltons" but at the same time it fits the rest of the film. My Verdict : Kid friendly Drama that entertain without offering anything major to think about for adult viewers.Your kids (especially boys , will probably love it for it's adventure element) 6 out of 10.
Review of Alabama Moon
