Review of Ramona and Beezus (2010) by Tim M — 22 Nov 2010

It may not be what it was aiming for, but Ramona and Beezus finds a great balance between what children find entertaining and what older viewers will enjoy. It might have been a bit of a gamble to center an entire movie on a child, but somehow Joey King is able to charm her way into the hearts of the viewers, but she wouldn't have been able to do so without her supporting cast.

In Ramona and Beezus, Ramona (Joey King) is a nine year-old with a vivid imagination and boundless energy, whose attempts to help end in cute disasters. She continues to do her best and be just like her perfect older sister Beezus (Selena Gomez), who meanwhile is trying to get her crush Henry (Hutch Dano) to go out with her. When the girls' father Robert (John Corbett) loses his job, she must find a way to for him to find work before the bank takes their house. Meanwhile, when Ramona's aunt Bea (Ginnifer Goodwin) is hit on by old flame Hobart (Josh Duhamel), Ramona tries to make sure that she isn't "reeled in.".

Ramona and Beezus doesn't feature one central plot, or even focus on any plot for that matter, but that's one of the reasons why it's so charming. It has a simplicity that works perfectly for this kind of G-rated fun. It won't win you over completely, but it's harmless fun and it'll keep you entertained for the most part. I think that they could have done better with the overall delivery, but I'm not complaining.

They might have put the name of Selena Gomez's character in the title, but this is definitely Joey King's movie. Almost every single scene is focused on her, and the story is mainly viewed through the eyes of King, but somehow they get that to work. I was a bit skeptical of where the heart would come in in this movie, and thought that it would just be for kids, but they were able to juggle that and King's character antics. It may not be the best performance that I've seen from a child, but it definitely was better than most. She was very natural. If I didn't know any better, she wasn't even trying and was just playing herself.

I'm a bit disappointed to see Selena Gomez stuck in these type of stories, and by that I mean that she as an actress is very Disney Channel. The unfortunate part is that she may continue to be type casted like this, but as far as being type casted in this one, I think that it actually worked out. I didn't think that I would ever say this, but Selena Gomez was indeed the right choice. She was perfect for this type of role and movie. I think that she could have been better, but she did a mediocre job, which is better than she should have with what she was given.

After seeing John Corbett in Sex and the City 2, I was relieved to see him in a much more easy going role. He was a great choice for this, because this movie really needed a strong fatherly performance, and he fit the bill just fine. I could tell that he was trying his best with his character, and I could see his love for the kids and all. I wasn't blown away, but good for him.

Ramona and Beezus might make it obvious that it had been scripted long before shooting, but in the end it is heartwarming enough to make up for many of its cliches.