Penelope directed by Mark Palansky

Palansky, Mark (Director). Penelope. Perfs. Christina Ricci, James McAvoy, Catherine O'Hara, and Reese Witherspoon. Universal City, CA: Summit Entertainment, 2008. 90 minutes. $19.99 UPC 025195037952

Viewers Annotation: Penelope is like any other girl, except that she was born with a pig snout for a nose. All she wants is to break her curse, and hopefully find true love.
Plot Summary: After a curse falls on the Wilhelm family, Penelope's parents end up the only Wilhelms to have a daughter. Because of the old family curse, Penelope is born with a pig snout for a nose. Fearing the humiliation it would bring their daughter, and themselves, they hide her in their mansion during her childhood. When she is a teenager they begin to find suitors for Penelope in hopes of breaking her curse. Once they glimpse Penelope, however, they run away leaving Penelope with out hope. One day a young man named Max comes to meet the infamous Penelope, under the influence of an aristocrat and a reporter, and is not scared away by her pig nose. When Max eventually breaks her heart like the rest, Penelope sets out on her own and ends up finding herself. She makes true friends along the way and soon realizes that she must love herself before she can hope to break the curse.
Critical Evaluation: This film is a clever modern day fairy tale. The quirky characters and dialogue keep the viewer interested in what happens to Penelope. The appearance of many established actors make this a great film, however the soundtrack and costume design create the whimsical fairy tale. It truly is Beauty and the Beast for the modern day. Although this is a PG film, and very family friendly, it will appeal to any hopeless romantic. At the heart of the story is the ability to love one's self, even when no one else seems to, which is a lesson all teenagers should take to heart. definite must watch for a light hearted distraction.
Information about the Director and Actors: Mark Palansky
Genre: Fairy Tale
Age Level: PG, All ages
Curriculum Ties: Discuss fairy tales and the use of old fairy tales to convey modern situations. Also discuss the differences of movies from their books. Compare selections from the book to the movie.
Book talking ideas: Talk about the book and the benefits of reading the book before watching a movie based on it. Read a chapter of the book and play that scene from the movie.
Challenge Issues: No challenge issues.
Why I included it: I included Penelope because there are so many raunchy romances out there, often pushing cute light-hearted romances to the wayside. With so many great actors like James McAvoy, Reese Witherspoon, Catherine O'Hara, Christina Ricci, Peter Dinklage and a minor appearance by Russell Brand, it is a great film that was overlooked in theatres. For the hopeless romantics, Penelope is an essential film.