Holes Reviews

I really liked the book, it was a well written one and easy to read and understand. This film adaptation does have some flaws but it was much better than I expected it to be. The film looks very beautiful, the photography is excellent throughout, even in the flashbacks, and the music was great. The screenplay is fairly faithful to the book, and is consistently engaging. The performances from everybody involved are very good, Shia LeBoeuf I actually found quite likable in this movie, and Tim Blake Nelson is fun to watch too. Patricia Arquette is given little to do, and while her character was necessary, I just felt that they could have cast somebody else that fitted the character a tad better, though I liked her chemistry with Sam the onion man, wonderfully played by Psych star Dule Hill. Sigourney Weaver looks beautiful, and seems to be relishing her role as the warden, but my favourite is Jon Voigt. He was absolutely hilarious as Mr Sir. My only other complaint of the movie, other than Patricia Arquette was some slow moments in the middle half, where little of interest happens. On the whole, it is an enjoyable and engaging film. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I don't know why exactly but, somehow, I had some rather high expectations before watching this flick. Eventually, it wasn't bad but I can't say I was blown away by the whole thing either. Basically, the major appeal was to see Shia LaBeouf before he made it big with ‘Indiana Jones 4’ and the ‘Transformers’ franchise. And indeed, LaBeouf definitely displayed some potential and delivered a convincing performance. On the other hand, I thought that Sigourney Weaver's performance was a little too over the top for me but I guess it has to do with the tone which remained rather sweet since it was a family feature. Furthermore, I thought that the story was not really fascinating whatsoever but, still, it was entertaining enough. I don’t know, in my opinion, I think the whole thing really had some potential and it could have been better if it would have been a little bit darker. Since it is a Disney production, of course, there was a fairly good chance that this production wouldn’t be too risky and would be really faithful to rules of the genre. To conclude, in spite of its flaws, it remains a decent and well made family feature and it is worth a look but keep your expectations low.

The early mole digs the deepest hole.

I wasn't actually planning on seeing this film, but since it was the only decent-looking movie on the television, I decided to watch it anyway. At first the fact that a group of boys were digging for something unknown seemed a bit out there, but as the film progressed, I found myself enjoying the film.
Stanley Yelnats IV (La Beouf) has been sent to a teen detention camp called Camp Green Lake, after he was caught with the prized sneakers of a popular athlete. Once there, he encounters Warden Walker (Weaver), and her two weird guards, Mr. Sir (Voight) and Dr. Pedanski (Blake Nelson). Stanley is surprised to learn that all he has to do for the remainder of his stay in the detention camp is dig holes - lots of them. When Stanley finds a lipstick tube with the letters "KB" etched on them, Warden Walker becomes even more excited and urges the boys to dig even more holes. After one of Stanley's "digmates" tries to pass off a control knob as another find, Warden Walker loses it and tells the boys that they will have no more bath privileges until the end of the week. As the film progresses, we find the main reason why Warden Walker has been ordering the boys to dig: her ancestor, Trout Walker (Plank) fell in love with the town's beautiful schoolteacher, Kathryn Barlow (Arquette). However, she fell in love with Sam (Hill), a Black American who had fixed her schoolhouse for a few jars of her famous peach jam. Trout burned the schoolhouse and shot Sam, causing Kathryn to become a notorious bank robber, known as "Kissin Kate Barlow", on the account that she always left a kiss mark on the cheeks of her victims. When Trout cornered Kate in the once lush lake of their town (which had dried up since the death of Sam) and demanded to know where she buried the money she stole, Kathryn killed herself by letting the poisonous yellow lizard bite her on the arm. Trout and his descendants - in this case, Warden Walker - have been digging holes ever since, trying to find the money.
I liked the concept, and the way they tied the flashbacks to the story wasn't messy, and it definitely explained why the main activity in the film (digging holes) was being done. The actors were all great, and the teen actors actually showed more than a hint of potential, especially La Beouf. A fun family film, and the names assigned to the teenage boys were hilarious. Comic, serious, and comic again. This film is one roller coaster ride, and it goes to show that Disney isn't just about the musicals.