Vegas showgirl Lorraine Franklin (Nancy Travis) is killed in a car crash leaving her son Albert (Haley Joel Osment) alone in the world. Her foster sister Harriet Franklin (Whoopi Goldberg) in New Jersey reluctantly accepts the responsibility. The imaginative child creates an imaginary French magician friend named Bogus (Gérard Depardieu).
This is pre-Sixth Sense Haley. Norman Jewison is the director. He's trying marry the childish whimsy of an imaginary character with the dark tragedy of a mother's death and pour a healthy serving of sentimentality over the whole dish. Harriet's personal problem is also problematic. In a way, she's trying to make the story about her when it needs to be a story about the boy. There is an awkward clash of tones in this movie. She's a weirder character. Albert is a brat and Harriet is too angry. Neither are that appealing. The humor is lost in this odd tasting stew. The clash of tones do not work.
This is pre-Sixth Sense Haley. Norman Jewison is the director. He's trying marry the childish whimsy of an imaginary character with the dark tragedy of a mother's death and pour a healthy serving of sentimentality over the whole dish. Harriet's personal problem is also problematic. In a way, she's trying to make the story about her when it needs to be a story about the boy. There is an awkward clash of tones in this movie. She's a weirder character. Albert is a brat and Harriet is too angry. Neither are that appealing. The humor is lost in this odd tasting stew. The clash of tones do not work.