Tooth Fairy (2010)

I don't know what's with the poor IMDb score but I found this movie to be super cute. I don't know what people expect. It was humorous and quite adorable. This is a feel good movie that teaches kids to reach for the stars and follow their dreams. Good message. It is a little incongruous that such a strong man would play in a role basically feminine and this adds to the hilarity. I almost didn't recognize Ashley Judd. she looks a little different but maybe it's just cuz she is older. Don't listen to the bad reviews if your expectations are a movie that kids will enjoy. They sure make you write enough just to leave a review. It's definitely worth watching if you have kids.

This basically serves as a vehicle for Dwayne Johnson and a formula family film-it succeeds reasonably in both areas. Johnson plays an aging minor league hockey player who ruins a lady's kid's fantasies of the tooth fairy and gets sentenced to a week's sentence as-you guessed it-a tooth fairy! He also takes a hockey phenom under his wings on the hockey rink.As a family film, it basically succeeds. I liked the scenes of "The Rock" with Ashley Judd and the kids-those were cute. I also loved the scenes of him in "tooth fairy land"-those were hilarious! So were the scenes of him interacting with his "case worker." Julie Andrews was good as the "head tooth fairy," and I liked Billy Crystal in it. This was mostly aimed at kids.**1/2 out of ****

There's quite a lot to like in this fun comedy, but I'm an adult who usually goes for Tarantino or Fellini. There's also quite a lot that is a bit painful. One liners playing on the word 'tooth' for starters!There's some inspired casting - not just the Rock but Stephen Merchant and Julie Andrews. It was Merchant, all 6'7" (his character has him as 6'9"!) ganglyness of him as Dwayne Johnson's (The Tooth Fairy) fairy probation officer that kept me watching. Andrews, as the Fairy Godmother (the boss of the Tooth service) is a nice touch.Johnson, in bright blue tutu, tights and wings looks ridiculous, of course and sends it up well. Kids will find his miniaturisation and other grotesque special effects funny and engaging.I'm not usually in a habit of watching kid's films (I have none to share it with) but as it was on Sky Movies, thought I'd give it a try. It's generally likable, most kids will enjoy it, but you won't find me buying it on DVD.

Okay, Dwayne Johnson cannot act. He looked tense, uncomfortable, and cannot deliver humour with any sense of timing. Thank goodness for Ashley Judd and Julie Andrews who can act and deliver their lines with some sense of being involved, especially the latter who could be in any pantomime and make it work. The kids do well too especially Chase Ellison.The film's redeeming feature is its story, about what happens when you stop believing and tell the rest of the world to stop too. Perhaps this attempted fable is a bit too hard on the accelerator when it comes to the "what if" punchline, but it does have a charm if you enter the spirit of it. The outcomes are entirely over the top but consistent with pantomime tales, which tend to pan out that way too.What spoils the film is its apparent confusion as to target audience which may be why the casting of the main lead was a pretty poor choice. So not a film to go out of your way to see or pay out good money to rent or own.