Swindle

Honestly this movie is really good? Like, it's targeted toward kids, but even an adult can enjoy it. Yes, it has plenty of stupid moments, but you can just laugh those off and still enjoy it. Props to nick for this one

Swindle was surprisingly not that bad. The acting was great. Especially seeing how the actors/actresses could play different roles from the other Nick shows they are on. Noah Munck was perfect as being the bully, Noah Crawford and Chris O'Neal shined as the best friends. It's an interesting story that keeps you wanting more. Each event is fun and a blast. It's not my favorite movie but it's definitely something I would watch again.

As a film, the way it is, is pretty good. I don't know how different it is from the book adaption but it's not bad. Some movies will be very different from their book version but they're still faithful to the story which is what the movie still does. The actors do a good job. Noah Munck plays a great bully, I always thought so. I wish he could've had more to do. Noah Crawford and Chris O'Neal play good best friends, which was also visible in the former show, How to Rock. Jennette McCurdy, as Savannah, has to pale in comparison to herself (see her in Law & Order, Strong Medicine, Judging Amy, Medium, Ben & Kate, etc) which makes her end up being comical when Savannah has to be someone other than herself. Savannah was originally a dog whisperer, which came in handy in the book, I guess to distract the guard dogs. In the movie, she's meant to distract Swindell and the man he was originally going to sell the baseball card to. It's nice seeing Ariana Grande play the popular girl who's also a gymnast. And as the popular girl, she's surprisingly likable. It's too bad though that she doesn't literally kick butt though. And Ciara Bravo plays a great tech sidekick. The chemistry between all the actors is just perfect and I love how they work together and work off each other. I will say though that it's probably not a good idea to start the movie near the end and go back to the beginning but I digress. Aside from that, I love how the movie starts, moves along, and ends. It's an intense and fun film to watch.

Lately, it seems Nickelodeon has been going downhill from the releases of their new series', but when I saw them advertising for one of my favorite books I read in elementary school, I thought "Great. Now they're going to make a mockery out of this book." Surprisingly, that didn't happen. It flowed out smooth enough to take in the movie without too many judgements, but it didn't completely elude my judging. There were 2 things I didn't care for in this TV movie. One being it verged from the original story a bit. I kept waiting for the part when Ben would reveal his narcolepsy, but that never happened. Aside from that, I was disappointed that the final heist never happened in Swindel's house, instead in a hotel lobby. Nick definitely took away the most suspenseful part. The second thing I did not care for were Noah and Jennette's characters. Savannah was meant to be the animal lover and the dog whisperer. Instead she was an actress with really no part. Ariana's character wasn't even "Pitch", instead she simply went by "Amanda" (Which wasn't even her real name in the book). However, though Nick left out some of the scenes I was hoping to see, they did a pretty decent job and is easily re-watchable.

Decent watch, might watch again, and can recommend, but go watch "The Perfect Score" before this.

A lot of young actors, 3 of which I recognized at all, but couldn't place without looking at the credits, and wouldn't you know it Ariana Grande used to be an actor. She does a decent job, along with the rest of the cast.

Fred Ewanuick was my favorite as he usually plays such a nice guy, it was refreshing to see him handle a villain role,if poorly written. A similar problem to "Big Fat Liar", you have to really be delicate with what a villain does or the heroes do to a villain in a kids targeted movie.

Ultimately, I would suggest "The Perfect Score" or "Big Fat Liar" over this, but it's not a bad watch.