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Review Uploaded
09/30/02

1 hr. 35 mins.
Starring: Evan Rachel Wood, David Gallagher, Michael Angarano, Vivica A. Fox, Danielle Churchran
Director: Blair Treu

Frank's film tip: Blair Treu's "Little Secrets" are marginally worth telling in this lukewarm coming-of age teen drama

Director Blair Treu’s teen drama Little Secrets wants to be earnest in its observations about being truthful and holding confidences. Although this saccharine-coated tale set against middle-class American values is a noble and wholesome concept, Little Secrets cannot help from being mildly paltry and predictable in its premise about the intricate resilience of youth and the interpretation of virtue as a learning lesson in life. Treu concocts an idealistic adolescent fable about being tactful and keeping aware of one’s inner feelings but somehow the delivery feels shamelessly hammy at times. Despite the obvious inclination of this film’s afterschool special-prone moralistic tendencies, Little Secrets is flimsy but occasionally uplifting in its heartwarming disposition.

The bubbly protagonist in the center of Treu’s film is 14-year old Emily (Evan Rachel Wood from ABC-TV’s recently cancelled but critically acclaimed family drama Once and Again), a talented violinist wrapped up in a mini-body version of Dr. Laura Schleisinger. Apparently Emily has a thriving side business (called the “Secret Keeper”) as the neighborhood go-to adviser for her conflicted peers. The arrangement is such that Emily gets paid to hear the kids spill their guts on whatever they feel like confessing to her. In many ways this counseling booth method is very therapeutic for all concerned. After all, it allows the pesky tykes to confide in “one of their own” while avoiding the fear factor of their parents and other older authority types. Plus, this practice indirectly empowers Emily and gives her a sense of direction and reassurance in the ability to cope with her own personal issues. However, is this just another example of the doctor willing to dish out the medicine that she also should be taking?

Suffice to say that anyone and their pet goat could see why the seemingly self-assured Emily feels so compelled in dispensing out remedies to the local youngsters. Could it be a front for her own masking of whatever secretive problem that nags her? Hmmm…it seems that our golden long-haired teenybopper version of Dear Abby has a painful secret of her own, mainly having to do with her feeling so inadequate in her own family. It appears that Emily’s parents are too preoccupied with their family-related agenda to realize that their daughter has issues of her own that need tending to. True, Emily is a skilled and gifted musician with incredible promise and she has a sense of ambition that no one can deny. But she still needs more emotional reinforcement that her familial group is simply not supplying her.

Little Secrets would have resonated more effectively if it didn’t tuck itself so much in the squeaky-clean piffle of its convictions. Treu does try as a responsible filmmaker to walk a fine line in delivering messages of hope regarding his youthful leading lady’s hidden angst. But Treu is too busy tip-toeing around this fluff piece that annoyingly sends out all these teen-oriented signals about “don’t do this” or “don’t do that” therefore neglecting the real drama about a young girl who is searching for herself through transparent over-achieving means. Everything feels so trite from the inner pain of Emily’s manicured but tortured soul to the self-absorbed and indifferent actions of her clueless folks.

As an amazing young actress, Wood is able to express the trials and tribulations of a three-dimensional teenager juggling a plate full of self-doubt, gracefulness, turmoil, sadness, charm and courageousness. Wood certainly exhibited this range on a weekly basis when she was starring in her aforementioned and now-defunct television show Once and Again. And she certainly was one of the better elements as Al Pacino’s supportive daughter in the stale showbiz satire Simone. And Wood is effectively moving in Little Secrets as well but the material doesn’t cater to her overall depth as a cunning and complex cutie in need of some much-needed redemption. The supporting players are decent and help along this sugary exposition for the most part, including the pest Philip (Michael Angarano) as the admirer of Emily who has long harbored a crush on the violin-playing vixen.

Little Secrets, for the most part, is a cozy slice-of-life and coming-of-age kiddie flick that has its clunky inspirational moments although they tend to wallow in callow mode. At least it’s a viable alternative to the usually predominate brainless super-charged kids fare that’s thrown on the big screen as a promotional piece for the latest fast food placement product being endorsed. And for that, Treu’s cinematic “little secret” is worth telling out loud.

Frank rates this film: ** 1/2 stars (out of 4 stars)