CHARLOTTE'S WEB

WILBUR
“Hey you wanna play?”
TEMPLETON
[The rat blinks incredulously] “For so many reasons . . . no. See I don’t play. I gnaw, I spy, I eat,
I hide. Me in a nutshell.”
WILBUR
“Couldn’t you just stay and chat?”
TEMPLETON
“Chat? Gnaw, spy, eat, hide. Nope. Chat ain’t on the list.”
Charlotte’s Web (2006)

CHARLOTTE’S WEB, the Walden Media/Nickelodeon big screen adaptation of the most beloved of children’s stories, is a beautifully rendered movie that is sure to appeal to even the most cynical of literary critics and children alike. With the verdant rolling hills of Victoria, Australia doubling for Somerset County Maine, the movie boasts a timeless idyllic quality. Clothing, cars are of a mid-century vintage and the screenplay is thankfully devoid of references to pop culture. With the exception of the obligatory flatulent cows and a “Horse’s derriere,” joke, CW is a very warm and family friendly film and for the most part remains faithful to the 1952 novel by E. B. White. I read somewhere that Gary Winick’s (13 Going On 30) mantra all during filming was: “Don’t screw it up.” I think Gary largely succeeded.

     Templeton RULES! The two crows Brooks and Elwyn voiced by Thomas Hayden Church and André Benjamin unexpectedly steal the show as a pair of quarrelsome black-birds. I was apprehensive about the inclusion of these characters since they do not appear in the book. However, the business with the scarecrow in the cornfield was funny. I thought the watercolors in the beginning and end credits evoked some of the charm of original illustrator Garth Williams. The voice work for the most part was first rate; standouts include the narcissistic Templeton the Rat voiced to perfection by Steve Buscemi. John Cleese as the acerbic sheep Samuel, and Sam Sheppard’s narration strikes exactly the right tone. Unfortunately, Julia Roberts in the pivotal role of Charlotte is miscast. Robert’s voice work fell flat and lacked that intangible indefinable quality of wisdom, faithfulness, and a selfless love that we all know Charlotte must posses. I will admit that the CG generated close ups of Charlotte were unnerving at first, but you get used to them. They made her all fuzzy, and gave her big expressive “alien” eyes and anthropomphized her mouthparts so they were not too disgusting.

     Then of course, there was Dakota . . . after a fourteen month absents from the big screen, Dakota returns once again to entertain us at the movies. Dakota’s Fern is a headstrong tomboy who loves animals and has a compassionate heart and an innate sense of justice. Her best scenes are in the opening act, but the screenwriter and director gave her something to do throughout. Her performance was endearing. The “shhhing” of Wilbur while he was hiding in the school desk was positively, maternal. The subtle sub-plot of Fern’s transformation from a rough-and-tumble denim-clad farm girl to a fresh-faced lemon dressed young lady smitten with puppy-love was not too much of a diversion from White’s original story and it did provide Fanning with a few extra sceens. It was funny, hard, and odd to watch Dakota, having seen her virtually continuously these past few days walking the red carpet and making the rounds of the talk-show circuit. CW was filmed almost a year and a half ago, Dakota has grown up so much since then. It’s hard to let go. To watch them grow up, watching CW for me was a bittersweet experience knowing that I was watching Dakota’s last performance as a child.

     I was very glad that the proposed epilogue was cut from the film. There was supposed to be a scene filmed with Elle Fanning as Fern’s granddaughter and an 80-year-old Fern and her childhood sweetheart husband Henry, (still wearing his green fishing hat), re-telling the story of Wilbur and Charlotte. Instead, the movie ends, as does the book. (I always say you can’t re-write Dickens or White for that matter). “It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer, Charlotte was both.”