Smile (B- or 2.5/4 stars)
Here's to cruising down Blockbuster Video's aisles and taking a chance. 'Smile' is an inspirational drama written & directed by Jeffrey Kramer. Katie (Mika Boorem) is a spoiled brat. Growing up as a teen is hard, but it's made harder by rebelling against authority, parents, & various other relationships. In order to expunging her angst, she volunteers with the Doctor's Gift Program. She goes to China and meets Lin (Yi Ding). A sweet, quiet girl of underprivileged means, Lin has a deformity that discourages her from unveiling her face. But a mutual friendship between Katie & Lin helps them both to view life in a new way. There's no intelligible way for me to critique this mediocre, all-too-earnest film other than saying ... it touched me.
Both share the same birthday, yet, their life situations couldn't be more different. Until this volunteer program, all Katie had to worry about was how to deal with her sexually impatient boyfriend. On the contrary, Lin (and her loving father) has almost no money and lives in a shack. Lin leads a secluded life of fear, doubt & shame. Her father hopes that his daughter's life will change for the better. I'm sure he couldn't have guessed that Katie would be the one to do it. Katie is deeply touched by the work done overseas. It's once she finds Lin that she knows she's found an extraordinary connection; a kindred spirit. Katie's the only one who can bring a 'smile' to Lin's unfortunate face. Thanks to the Gift Program, one girl is humbled, & the other comes out of her shell; a life-changing experience for both.
Based on (and funded by) the work of the Operation Smile charity, this movie is not one to be missed. There's enough bleakness throughout the movie, but its overall uplifting feeling resonates long after it's over. The scenes shot in Shanghai are beautiful. It's extremely low key (almost Hallmarkian). Its budget is minimal. There's no need for strenuous direction, no huge plot, or twists, or amazing script, or Oscar-caliber acting. Perhaps I wasn't expecting to be moved. Maybe I was just in the right mood for this 'type' of film, at the time. It admirably appears that everyone in the film believes in the charity (Beau Bridges, Linda Hamilton, Cheri Oteri, Sean Astin, etc.). 'Smile' is just a well-meaning morality film which shows that the smallest selfless effort could result in huge humanitarian results.
Both share the same birthday, yet, their life situations couldn't be more different. Until this volunteer program, all Katie had to worry about was how to deal with her sexually impatient boyfriend. On the contrary, Lin (and her loving father) has almost no money and lives in a shack. Lin leads a secluded life of fear, doubt & shame. Her father hopes that his daughter's life will change for the better. I'm sure he couldn't have guessed that Katie would be the one to do it. Katie is deeply touched by the work done overseas. It's once she finds Lin that she knows she's found an extraordinary connection; a kindred spirit. Katie's the only one who can bring a 'smile' to Lin's unfortunate face. Thanks to the Gift Program, one girl is humbled, & the other comes out of her shell; a life-changing experience for both.
Based on (and funded by) the work of the Operation Smile charity, this movie is not one to be missed. There's enough bleakness throughout the movie, but its overall uplifting feeling resonates long after it's over. The scenes shot in Shanghai are beautiful. It's extremely low key (almost Hallmarkian). Its budget is minimal. There's no need for strenuous direction, no huge plot, or twists, or amazing script, or Oscar-caliber acting. Perhaps I wasn't expecting to be moved. Maybe I was just in the right mood for this 'type' of film, at the time. It admirably appears that everyone in the film believes in the charity (Beau Bridges, Linda Hamilton, Cheri Oteri, Sean Astin, etc.). 'Smile' is just a well-meaning morality film which shows that the smallest selfless effort could result in huge humanitarian results.