Alice Upside Down (2007)

Still mourning the death of her mother a few years back, Alice McKinley finds her life seriously disrupted when her father Ben buys a store and moves her and her older brother Lester to a ... See full summary »

Director:

Sandy Tung

Writers:

Meghan Heritage (screenplay), Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (book)

Stars:

Alyson Stoner, Luke Perry, Lucas Grabeel

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alyson Stoner	...	Alice McKinley
Luke Perry	...	Ben McKinley
Lucas Grabeel	...	Lester McKinley
Penny Marshall	...	Mrs. Plotkin
Ashley Eckstein	...	Miss Cole (as Ashley Drane)
Parker McKenna Posey	...	Elizabeth
Dylan McLaughlin	...	Patrick
Bridgit Mendler	...	Pamela
Ann Dowd	...	Aunt Sally
Jilanne Marie Klaus	...	Kelly (as Jilanne Klaus)
Jona Xiao	...	Loretta
Boris Kodjoe	...	Mr. Edgecombe
Monica Parks	...	Mrs. Price
Lindsey Trout	...	Salesgirl
Alexandria Basso	...	Marilyn

Storyline

Still mourning the death of her mother a few years back, Alice McKinley finds her life seriously disrupted when her father Ben buys a store and moves her and her older brother Lester to a new town. In the painful throes of adolescence, Alice has a rough time adjusting to her new school, especially after she gets the stern Mrs. Plotkin as her core teacher. Feeling shy and isolated, Alice frequently escapes into a vivid fantasy life that occasionally gets her into hot water. But with a little unexpected help from Mrs. Plotkin, Alice learns not to judge by appearances or jump to conclusions. More importantly, she confronts her father over his inability to accept their loss and move on into the future.

---

Plot Keywords:

school | f rated | teen angst | children | kid | 

---

Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Family

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site

Country:

France USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 October 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Alice

Filming Locations:

St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alice Productions,Open Pictures

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the background of Alice's dream sequence of walking into school, you can see a bust of William McKinley.

---

Soundtracks

Free Spirit
Performed by Alyson Stoner and Bridgit Mendler
Written by Margie Hauser, Dale Rosenbloom, and Eliot Sloan
Produced by Eliot Sloan

User Reviews

Mainly for kids

This is a little too lightweight to be of interest to most adults, but for what it is, it's done pretty well. Sure there are serious topics here, but they are not explored in any great depth or with any signs of real pain and suffering, so would be quite suitable for a younger audience, or for all the family to share in.

Stoner is very cute here but she does look and act her real age (14) when she is supposed to be playing an 11 year old. That's a big age gap at that time of life, and for me her performance just doesn't work at that level, but that's not really to the detriment of the film as a whole. She is not the most talented actress by a long chalk, but she has a certain charm on screen that many young stars lack, and it is easily sufficient to carry a light movie like this.

Grabeel is good and there is ample support from all the kids. Perry is Perry. Marshall is probably the best of the bunch, experience obviously telling. All in all the performances are competent and the characters sufficiently well rounded to make them interesting, even if the plot itself is a little weak.

Few flaws here then, but don't expect to be wowed. One for a rainy day in with the kids.