Want a good family film to spend quality time with your loved ones? Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin’s newly released movie, Nim’s Island, is packed full of adventure that’s sure to be loved by the whole family. With actors such as Abigail Breslin, Jodie Foster and Gerard Butler, an adventure begins for a young girl named Nim and her father, who live on a remote and undiscovered island. The beginning scene depicts Nim’s childhood past and the legacy of her mother’s death which leaves Nim’s father a single parent. As Nim and her father search for an island that her mother found right before her death, Nim’s father attempts to raise his 11-year old daughter. Once Nim and her father discover the long-lost island, they begin to make it their home, even taking in pets such as a seal, lizard and pelican. Nim’s Island portrays an alternate life, as she lives on an island, is home schooled, and has some very unusual pets. As one of Nim’s hobbies, reading novels of Alex Rover, played by Jodie Foster, allows Nim to escape into the novel. Approximately 10 minutes into the film, Nim begins to read her newest novel,which was dropped off by the supply ship. As she begins to read she becomes sucked into the novel, reading about a man named Alex Rover who is taken prisoner and has to fight for his life, as men try to kill him using swords. Regardless of this slightly violent scene, the film focuses upon morals of courage and good character, taught to Nim by her father.
Soon, the audience is introduced to the writer Alex Rover (Foster), who suffers from agoraphobia and doesn’t leave her house, who later in the movie overcomes her fear to help save Nim. One scene that may be a bit frightening for young ones comes in about 25 minutes or so into the movie, as Nim convinces her father to let her stay on the island as he goes to collect samples of protozoa for an experiment. Once he leaves, a storm hits as he is out in the open sea and almost sinks the boat. The same storm hits the island where Nim is all alone. Adding to this scene, an instance appears where sharks surround the father’s boat, leaving him defenseless and in danger. Language within the movie is very kid-friendly with a very few instances of adult content.
Almost 40 minutes into the film, the word “damned” is used. The ending of the film is memorable, as it ties in the lives of Nim, her father and Alex Rover, not to spoil the ending. Overall the film was definitely worth seeing and left that “feel good” sensation with the viewers. No matter the age, Nim’s Island would be an appropriate movie choice, even for parents.