A movie like Holes
is a rare gem; a family movie that will actually be enjoyed by
the entire family. For decades, now, Walt Disney Pictures and
a few other studios have been bringing us films that will be
enjoyed by children, but are agonizing for adults to sit
through. Holes is proof that they are able of
doing differently. With such amusing and appealing material, I
can confidently recommend this film to everyone, including
adults that don’t have children of their own. With so many
overblown sequels, as well as ugly and atrocious originals,
looming the screens of multiplexes right now, I don’t know why
anyone wouldn’t give Holes a shot. It is one of
the most adventurous, charming, and sweetly funny films I have
seen in a very long time.
The men
in Stanley Yelnats the fourth’s (Shia LaBeouf’s) family have
always had bad luck. His father, Stanley Yelnats the third
(Henry Winkler), is an inventor struggling to create an
error-proof invention. He’s currently working on finding a
cure for feet odor, but all it’s gotten him so far is a dozen
angry neighbors, who are fuming at him for the many smells of
stinky shoe funguses that are a part of his “experiment,”
brewing into the air of the apartment complex.
Stanley the fourth’s
grandfather, Stanley Yelnats Jr. (Nathan Davis), hit it rich
in the stock market, but then was robbed by Kissin’ Kate
Barlow when traveling with his money, through the desert. He
was left amidst endless sands, stranded, and broke—even though
he still somehow survived it all. Why are all of these men
cursed with bad luck? Because of Stanley Yelnats the first,
the youngest
Stanley’s no-good, dirty
rotten, pig-stealing Great Grandfather. He determined the fate
of the family, after seeing a powerful fortune teller named
Madame Zeroni (Eartha Kitt).
The bad
luck curse cast its spell on
Stanley the fourth when a
pair of sneakers came upon his shoulders (literally), after
falling off of a freeway overpass, when walking home. The
police had obviously been looking for these sneakers, and when
they found him carrying them, he was arrested. They were
Clyde 'Sweet Feet'
Livingston’s (Rick Fox’s). He was one
of the best baseball players around, and had donated his shoes
to an auction, that’s proceeds would go to a homeless shelter.
Stanley plead not guilty to
the accusation, but was wrongly found guilty by a judge, and
sentenced to a year at “Camp
Green
Lake,” a
correctional facility for teenage boys. Here,
Stanley would begin one of
the biggest adventures of his life.
Camp
Green
Lake
is in the middle of the desert;
with no water sources around it for miles (one of the reasons
why none of the campers run away). Each day at the camp, the
boys that have been sentenced there for correctional purposes,
must dig holes in the hot sun; into the sands of the desert.
These holes must be five feet deep and five feet wide. The
rest of the day is dedicated to free-relaxation time, although
digging these holes takes at least a few hours, even for most
gifted of diggers. But, if the boys find something buried in
the sand, they are to report it to Mr. Sir (Jon Voight) or Mr.
Pendanski (Tim Blake Nelson). They will, then, show their
finds to the Warden of the camp, Louise Walker (Sigourney
Weaver). If the Warden likes what they’ve found, they get the
day off. Before long, and after the Warden of the camp accepts
a worn-down tube of lipstick that Stanley found buried in the
sand, and not a fossil that he uncovered, he figures that the
Warden is looking for something, in specific. After he
befriends one of the other kids staying at the camp, named
“Zero” (Khleo Thomas), the mystery begins to unravel.
Not only
does Holes showcase some excellent performances
by newcomers (particularly LaBeouf and Thomas), but its cast
is also consumed by a slur of veterans to the industry. Voight
is hysterical in his role, and brings a great comedic-relief
to the film. Every scene his character, Mr. Sir, was in, I
laughed at least once. Nelson is also very funny as the
“doctor” of the camp, and he’s as strong here as he was in
O Brother Where Art Thou? and The Good
Girl. Weaver is great as the Warden, and when sharing the
spotlight with Nelson or Voight, is very charismatic. Patricia
Arquette, whose character is a trip and a half to explain,
delivers probably the best dramatic performance of the entire
film. She sets an excellent counter median to Voight’s comedy,
through the flashbacks, in which her character appears in.
I won’t
be surprised, at all, if Holes is nominated for a
couple Academy Awards. The direction is perfect; Andrew
Davis’s interpretation of the book is a winner. The
screenplay, which Louis Sachar adapted from his own novel, is
error free. Holes is fun in the purest of forms,
and every member of the family will enjoy it, equally. When I
think about the best movies of the year so far, Holes
is definitely close to the front of the pack. It will not
disappoint.
-Danny, Bucket Reviews