Akeelah and the Bee (2006)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Doug Atchison

Writer (WGA):

Doug Atchison (written by)

Release Date:

28 April 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family

Tagline:

Changing the world... one word at a time.

Plot:

A young girl from South Los Angeles tries to make it to the National Spelling Bee.

Plot Keywords:

Spelling | Spelling Bee | Principal | School Principal | Middle School

Awards:

8 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Keke Palmer	...	Akeelah
Laurence Fishburne	...	Dr. Larabee
Angela Bassett	...	Tanya
Curtis Armstrong	...	Mr. Welch
J.R. Villarreal	...	Javier
Sean Michael	...	Dylan (as Sean Michael Afable)
Sahara Garey	...	Georgia
Lee Thompson Young	...	Devon
Julito McCullum	...	Terrence
Erica Hubbard	...	Kiana
Eddie Steeples	...	Derrick-T
Dalia Phillips	...	Ms. Cross
Tzi Ma	...	Mr. Chiu
Jeris Poindexter	...	Steve (as Jeris Lee Poindexter)
Sara Niemietz	...	Polly

MPAA:

Rated PG for some language.

Runtime:

USA:112 min | Argentina:112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG | UK:12A | Singapore:PG | Ireland:PG | Canada:G (Ontario) | Argentina:Atp | Finland:K-3 | Australia:PG | UK:PG (re-rating) (2007)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Spelling Bee Productions Inc.

Trivia:

The quote that Dr. Larabee has Akeelah read from a plaque on his wall is an excerpt from "A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of a Course in Miracles" by Marianne Williamson.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Javier is giving the play-by-play for the Scrabble game at his birthday party, after the word "funnel" is played, he says "Akeelah is in the lead by 12 points." The "12" is noticeably overdubbed; Javier's lips appear to be saying "seven."

Quotes:

Akeelah: [quoting Marianne Williamson] Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
Dr. Larabee: Does that mean anything to you?
Akeelah: I don't know.
Dr. Larabee: It's written in plain English. What does it mean?
Akeelah: That I'm not supposed to be afraid?
[...]

Movie Connections:

References "The Powerpuff Girls" (1998)

Soundtrack:

Day by Day

Inspiring and necessary

I went to an advance screening and found "Akeelah" to be so much more than I expected. I sat in the theater dabbing tears from eyes throughout the showing. The emotional weight, story-telling approach and female perspective in "Akeelah" is much like that of POETIC JUSTICE (also set in South Central, LA).

"Akeelah" has GREAT cast performances. As a mentor to Akeelah, Laurence Fishburne continuously reminded me of his nurturing position in BOYZ N THE HOOD - I thought of FINDING FORRESTER and THE MAN WITHOUT A FACE as well. Fishburne looks spectacular with Angela Bassett who knows all the right expressions and vocal tones to have the powerful realism she does in her role as a fearful parent in South Central. Keke Palmer, she is definitely on the rise... pretty girl too. Several strong subplots come about in the first half of "Akeelah." They deal with the painful past of Dr. Larabee (Fishburne), lack of time and attention from Akeelah's overworked mother (Bassett), a teetering relationship between Akeelah and her best friend Georgia (Sahara Garey), and the problems of one of Akeelah's brothers who spends his time out late on the streets of South Central.

Apart from the dramatic mood of "Akeelah," there's an excellent amount of comedy. Many of the jokes are in the things that aren't said but seen (watch the father of Akeelah's major opponent). The most hilarious part of the film, IMO, involves the loyalty of Akeelah's friend Javier (J.R. Villarreal) - you'll know the scene when you see it.

From a more objective standpoint, I felt that many of the scene cuts/transitions in "Akeelah" weren't too clean. I forget all about it though when I reflect on the emotional montages that center around Akeelah, her family and the people of her community. If you remember the standout poem ("our deepest fear...") recited in COACH CARTER, you might feel that "Akeelah" twice makes trite use of it. However, different lines of the poem are read this time around. The pacing of "Akeelah" is good, especially when it comes to how Akeelah learns and advances in the National Spelling Bee. "Akeelah" makes the competition look and feel suspenseful at times, but more importantly, it focuses on the rewards found by those who believe in themselves. Kids in the theater I went to were spelling aloud from the very first scene.

The ending -- I won't spoil it -- combines the pieces of humor, triumph and sadness in "Akeelah" in one of the most beautiful finishes I've ever seen, felt and heard from a movie. You MUST go see AKEELAH AND THE BEE!! You'll leave the theater highly inspired by the best word given in the film ("L-O-V-E").