IMDb > An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009) (V)

An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009) (V) More at IMDbPro »

Overview

User Rating:
5.8/10   404 votes »
Your Rating:
Saving vote...
Deleting vote...
/10   (delete | history)
Sorry, there was a problem
MOVIEmeter: ?
No change in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Martha Coolidge
Writers:
Christine Coyle Johnson (screenplay)
Julie Prendiville Roux (screenplay)
(more)
Contact:
View company contact information for An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
5 January 2009 (USA) See more »
Genre:
Drama | Family See more »
Plot:
A fourth grader and her friends deal with bullying from a more popular girl in their class. Full summary » | Add synopsis »
Plot Keywords:
See more »
Awards:
2 nominations See more »
NewsDesk:
(2 articles)
DGA Recognizes TV Directors
 (From Collider.com. 8 January 2010, 5:00 PM, PST)
'Glee,' 'Mad Men,' 'Modern Family' garner Directors Guild nominations
 (From Zap2It - From Inside the Box. 8 January 2010, 1:38 PM, PST)
User Reviews:
Angst in a Rainbow of Colors See more (1 total) »

Cast

  (in credits order)

Sammi Hanratty ... Chrissa Maxwell

Annabeth Gish ... Meg Maxwell

Timothy Bottoms ... Paul Maxwell

Michael Learned ... Nana Louise Hanlon
Austin Thomas ... Tyler Maxwell

Adair Tishler ... Tara James

Ariela Barer ... Sonali Matthews

Kaitlyn Dever ... Gwen Thompson
Shelby Harmon ... Jayden Johnson

Don Franklin ... Mr. Beck

Joanne Baron ... Mrs. Ziminsky
Christian Pikes ... Joel

Jennifer Tilly ... Mrs. Rundell

Jennifer Parsons ... Janine Thompson

Kaylin Stewart ... Alexandra
rest of cast listed alphabetically:

Trevor Brunsink ... Lifeguard

Grace Rolek ... Additional voice
Ashley Ausburn ... Swimmer (uncredited)

David J Law ... Swim Meet Official (uncredited)

Preston Strother ... Student (uncredited)

Tyler Strother ... Student (uncredited)
Create a character page for: ?

Directed by
Martha Coolidge 
 
Writing credits
(in alphabetical order)
Mary Casanova  novel
Christine Coyle Johnson  screenplay
Julie Prendiville Roux  screenplay

Produced by
Mark Amin .... executive producer
Mark Amin .... producer
Ellen L. Brothers .... producer
Martha Coolidge .... executive producer
Albert T. Dickerson III .... co-producer
David Higgins .... producer
Andrew Reimer .... producer
Cami Winikoff .... producer
 
Original Music by
Jennie Muskett 
 
Cinematography by
Johnny E. Jensen 
 
Film Editing by
Elba Sanchez-Short 
 
Casting by
Aleta Chappelle 
 
Production Design by
James H. Spencer 
 
Set Decoration by
Amy Vuckovich 
 
Costume Design by
Van Broughton Ramsey 
 
Makeup Department
Elena Arroy .... makeup artist
Laura Calvo .... makeup artist
Jennifer Mann .... key makeup artist
Kerry Mendenhall .... hair stylist
Soo-Jin Yoon .... key hair stylist
 
Production Management
Albert T. Dickerson III .... unit production manager
James Masi .... post supervisor
 
Art Department
Brian Ferguson .... leadman
Jennifer Raftery .... property master
Rose Shawhan .... set dresser
 
Sound Department
Jon Ailetcher .... production sound mixer
Joe Dzuban .... sound re-recording mixer
Joe Dzuban .... supervising sound editor
Justin Dzuban .... dialogue editor
Josh Eckberg .... sound recordist
Fred Johnston .... boom operator
Diane Marshall .... foley artist
Glenn T. Morgan .... supervising sound editor
Myron Nettinga .... sound re-recording mixer
Mike Sanchez .... utility sound
Tami Treadwell .... adr recordist
Joseph Tsai .... sound effects editor
Brett Voss .... foley mixer
 
Stunts
Jayson Dumenigo .... stunt rigger
Eric Linden .... stunt rigger
Heidi Pascoe .... stunt coordinator
Justin T. Woods .... stunt rigger
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Chris Garlington .... best boy grip
Shane D. Kelly .... gaffer
Satoshi Yamazaki .... grip
 
Casting Department
Patty Majorczak-Connolly .... adr voice casting
Jeffrey M. Paal .... extras casting
Mark Sussman .... adr voice casting
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Betsey Potter .... costume supervisor
 
Editorial Department
Marcella Serrano .... first assistant editor
 
Music Department
Joel C. High .... music supervisor
 
Other crew
Amy Banks .... first assistant accountant
Sarah Clifford .... animal supplier
Sarah Clifford .... mini llama wrangler
Yasmine Gazelle .... production assistant (as Yasmine Temraz)
Judy Hannay .... production assistant
Blaine G. Houserman .... production accountant
Ari Joffe .... set production assistant
Jerica Lieberman .... assistant to director
Jerica Lieberman .... production assistant
Lorenzo Manetti .... assistant production coordinator
Lee Marshall .... production office assistant
Joel Meyer-England .... set intern
Kari Montgomery .... script supervisor
Heidi Brook Myers .... adr loop group
Sarah Quale .... accounting clerk
Laura Sherman .... production coordinator
Laura C. Sherman .... production coordinator
Patricia Warren .... script coordinator
Amy Banks .... payroll accountant (uncredited)
 

Production CompaniesDistributorsOther Companies
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
See more »
Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parents
Runtime:
91 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.78 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital
Certification:
Norway:10 (TV rating)
Filming Locations:
Los Angeles, California, USA
Company:
Home Box Office (HBO)See more »

Did You Know?

Trivia:
In the story, Chrissa Maxwell was a fourth-grader. Sammi Hanratty, who plays Chrissa, was in seventh grade at the time of filming.See more »
Movie Connections:
Follows Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008)See more »

FAQ

How can I audition for American Girl 2014?
See more »

User Reviews

   (Review this title)
8 out of 10 people found the following review useful.
Angst in a Rainbow of Colors, 15 January 2009
Author: nevadaluke from United States

Chrissa review 1/15/2009 11:19:01 AM

It's not a happy time for Chrissa Maxwell when she moves with her mother, father and older brother to the Minnesota home of her grandmother (Michael Learned). The fourth-grader left behind her bosom buddies back in Iowa, and her family is relocating in the wake of her grandfather's passing.

Intent on starting out on the right foot, Chrissa (Sammi Hanratty) promptly runs afoul of a clutch of Alpha Female bullies who pile on the abuse and push the hapless newcomer to the brink of dropping out in favor of home-schooling. But with a little help from her wise grandmother and a perceptive art teacher (Jennifer Tilly), she learns to stare down her adversaries, claim her place as a member of the student body, and provide a role model for bullying victims of all stripes.

"American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong" is a thoroughly earnest drama that squeezes the protagonist through a painful gamut of pre-adolescent conflicts, engineered primarily by Tara, the bully in chief played with wicked relish by the very capable Adair Tishler.

Young viewers will have little problem soaking up every drop of pathos projected by Miss Hanratty and by an even more sympathetic co-victim, a little homeless girl played to the hilt by Kaitlyn Dever.

Just a few things worth pointing out: Dealing with the subject of bullying apparently prompted the decision here not to make light of anything. Thus, the main problem with "Chrissa" is that there are almost no light moments. Good story-tellers know that humor is one of the best ways to relieve tension for viewers. Other than a spitting llama and a quirky characterization by the trouper Miss Tilly, there's not much to chuckle about in this movie. Miss Hanratty is convincing in various degrees of angst, but the movie may leave youngsters a bit exhausted by the time the theme is realized on camera: that is, standing up to bullies opens the door to friendship.

Another problem is the puzzling lack of motivation shown for Tara. Apparently she is insecure but we don't get much insight into what drives her to be Mean Girl No. 1 in this classroom. But then, maybe an exceptionally pretty, somewhat haughty little girl doesn't need any other reason to be mean.

As with other movies in the "American Girl" series, the subtext is in product placement. Here, it's a fashion show of contemporary looks. The cast is costumed in closets full of attractive dresses, sweaters, skirts, tops, headbands, swimwear – not to mention tights in a rainbow of colors.

This movie will no doubt give many young viewers a lot of exciting ideas for the next time they go shopping for their dolls and themselves.

Was the above review useful to you?
See more (1 total) »

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
(spoiler) Bullying randers1-1
To be bullied? gerfalcon
Has it already been released? j-nicholson86
See more »

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Muriel's Wedding The Rainbow The Glass House Thirteen Disturbing Behavior
IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
 IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
News articles IMDb Drama section IMDb USA section

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Edit page' button will take you through a step-by-step process.