My review was written in January 1992 after watching the movie at a Manhattan screening room.
Good intentions ar3en't enough to put across "Alan & Naomi", a lifeless film about the rites of passage of two Jewish children in 1944 Brooklyn. Claustrophobic feature will play much better on TV following the theatrical run.
Lukas Haas, his voice literally breaking from scene to scene, does yeoman work here but is stuck in a do-gooder role as a 14-year-old forced by his parents to befriend a virtually catatonic neighbor girl Naomi (lovely French actress Vanessa Zaoui), who was traumatized when the Nazis killed her father.
Slow-paced opening reels show Haas patiently trying to break her out of her spell, though he would much rather be out playing stickball with chums like Irish kid Kevin Connolly.
With the aid of his ventriloquist's dummy, he gets through to her as Zaoui talks through her beloved doll. Film loses much of its built-up credibility when Naomi is suddenly "normal", after Haas gets her to talk directly to him rather than through the dolls.
In similar sensitive films about breaking through to someone, like the classics "Miracle Worker" and "David & Lisa", high drama and interesting detail usually bring the viewer inside. Unfortunately, scripter Jordan Horowitz and debuting director Sterling Van Wagenen fail to come up with great moments, and the dialogue is stilted.
Climax in a boiler room where Zaoui is framed by a roaring furnace is an extremely heavy-handed allusion to the Holocaust which she's escaped from to America. Sad ending does not carry the intended emotional force.
Cast is overly theatrical, though Connolly's natural performance in support is faultless. Haas does well in his monologues but is constantly forced to rise above the material. Picture was shot just before his "Rambling Rose" assignment.
TV star Michael Gross and Amy Aquino are affecting as Haas' parents, but kindly neighbor Zohra Lampert lays it on a bit thick with her heavy accent and mannerisms. Precocious Zaoui does a good job within the limits of her gimmick role and should have no trouble graduating to adult parts.
The former DEG studio in Wilmington, North Carolina is too fresh-scrubbed looking to double for vintage Brooklyn, and film's technical credits are modest. Giving it a big boost is the flavorful big-band score by Dick Hyman.
Good intentions ar3en't enough to put across "Alan & Naomi", a lifeless film about the rites of passage of two Jewish children in 1944 Brooklyn. Claustrophobic feature will play much better on TV following the theatrical run.
Lukas Haas, his voice literally breaking from scene to scene, does yeoman work here but is stuck in a do-gooder role as a 14-year-old forced by his parents to befriend a virtually catatonic neighbor girl Naomi (lovely French actress Vanessa Zaoui), who was traumatized when the Nazis killed her father.
Slow-paced opening reels show Haas patiently trying to break her out of her spell, though he would much rather be out playing stickball with chums like Irish kid Kevin Connolly.
With the aid of his ventriloquist's dummy, he gets through to her as Zaoui talks through her beloved doll. Film loses much of its built-up credibility when Naomi is suddenly "normal", after Haas gets her to talk directly to him rather than through the dolls.
In similar sensitive films about breaking through to someone, like the classics "Miracle Worker" and "David & Lisa", high drama and interesting detail usually bring the viewer inside. Unfortunately, scripter Jordan Horowitz and debuting director Sterling Van Wagenen fail to come up with great moments, and the dialogue is stilted.
Climax in a boiler room where Zaoui is framed by a roaring furnace is an extremely heavy-handed allusion to the Holocaust which she's escaped from to America. Sad ending does not carry the intended emotional force.
Cast is overly theatrical, though Connolly's natural performance in support is faultless. Haas does well in his monologues but is constantly forced to rise above the material. Picture was shot just before his "Rambling Rose" assignment.
TV star Michael Gross and Amy Aquino are affecting as Haas' parents, but kindly neighbor Zohra Lampert lays it on a bit thick with her heavy accent and mannerisms. Precocious Zaoui does a good job within the limits of her gimmick role and should have no trouble graduating to adult parts.
The former DEG studio in Wilmington, North Carolina is too fresh-scrubbed looking to double for vintage Brooklyn, and film's technical credits are modest. Giving it a big boost is the flavorful big-band score by Dick Hyman.