A Plumm Summer

NEW YORK (CNS) -- "A Plumm Summer" (Home Team/Fairplay) is a gentle, winning coming-of-age tale -- based on real events -- set in rural Montana in 1968.

Five-year-old Rocky Plumm (Owen Pearce) is so obsessed with local children's television puppet Froggy Doo, the star of his human sidekick Happy Herb's (Henry Winkler) daily show, that his older brother, Elliott (Chris J. Kelly), has had to draw a line down the middle of their room to create a frog-free zone. So when Froggy Doo is kidnapped just before making a live appearance, Rocky is devastated.

Fancying himself a Hardy Boys-like sleuth, Elliott sets out to solve the crime with the help of his new girlfriend, Haley (Morgan Flynn), and they manage to stay one step ahead of the two inept FBI agents (Peter Scolari and Rick Overton) who've been assigned to the case.

Back home, Elliott offers his long-suffering mother, Roxie (Lisa Guerrero), support as she contends with the alcoholism of his neglectful father, Mick (William Baldwin). Elliott is convinced (wrongly, as it turns out) that Mick favors Rocky, because Elliott's birth ruined Mick's promising boxing career.

When Mick is arrested after a barroom brawl, Roxie resolves to leave him and leave town with the children, frustrating Elliott, who has yet to solve the case, and forcing him to confront the prospect of permanent separation from Haley.

Director Caroline Zelder's nostalgic first feature, narrated by Jeff Daniels, gleams with innocence and affection, and takes full advantage of its magnificent setting. Kelly is consistently sympathetic even as his character ranges through the frequent mood swings of adolescence, and Winkler is very much at home as the avuncular entertainer.

The film contains a scene of domestic discord, an instance of mildly scatological humor and a few crass words. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.

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Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops