I took Joey and Lena to see the Nancy Drew movie this afternoon.
Were you a fan of Nancy Drew? Boy, I sure was. In fact, the first chapter book I ever read was The Whispering Statue. I was lucky enough to have an older neighbor girl give me a big box of books she’d outgrown, a box that included umpteen Nancy Drews, some Trixie Beldens, and even a Bobbsey Twins or two. I devoured ‘em all. To this day there are certain words and phrases that still remind me of Nancy Drew: bungalow, titian, hunch (as in I have a hunch), sleuth, and of course “come to.”
On the way to the theater I briefed my kids on Nancy Drew. I told them about Carson, Hannah Gruen, Bess & George, Ned Nickerson, etc. (Yeah, Mom, whatever.) And I’m pleased to tell you, the movie did not disappoint. It was great. The plot was so Nancy Drew-ish. A “haunted” house with a secret room. A hidden will. A small child. Nancy “coming to” after being knocked out by the heavy. Twists and turns…
There was just one problem. Nancy looked so young! I realized that even though I’m forty and Nancy is forever seventeen, I still think of her as much older than me. I believe I was about 6 when I read The Whispering Statue; at that time, high school teenagers might as well have been grandparents.
Anyway, the movie was a lot of fun. Best of all were the titles & credits, which used line drawings in the style of the original books. Very cute. An afternoon well-spent.
14 Comments
I wish I had a child old enough to take to see this!
I also associate “titian” with Nancy Drew, along with “plump” (for her friend Bess(?) and “boyish” (for her friend George).
Ha ha, Suzanne! Part of my “briefing” included the fact that George was a tomboy and Bess was pleasingly plump.
Thank you for the review! I can’t wait to see it.
OMG! There is a Nancy Drew movie?? I’ve only just come to terms with the concept that Bridge to Terabithia exists, and I’m steeling myself to go and see it…
OMG pt 2…the TV movie show is about to review the new Nancy Drew movie. Weird co-incidences of the day.
I always thought of the Nancy Drew mysteries as my big sister’s books so I completely sympathize with the “seventeen-yr-olds are grown-ups” feeling.
I’ve been eying this one as something I might want to waste an afternoon taking my girls to. Now, I just might have to. If only to bring back memories of all those Nancy Drew books I read and loved. Thanks for the push…
Oh, I loved my Nancy Drew’s, too, when I was little! I would totally go see this movie myself even though my kids are too little. I definitely associate “plump” and “titian” with those books. I even tried to write to Carolyn Keene when I was little and got a very nice and personal typed (not from a printer) letter from the New York publisher (it was the early 80s!) explaining about the pen name and the Stratemeyer family. Oh, well. I loved Nancy just the same.
Cant remember how I came upon your blog - but it was definitely something to do with Patrick O’Brian. You have only 10 entries on the man? Not enough, for all love! You will never hear me complain of too much POB.
One thing that surprised me so much about the Canon was the fact that it was so filled with a delightful and wicked sense of humor. I had always been interested in tall sailing ships and was always looking for books on the subject, but the ones I came across were dry and uninformative. I picked up M&C expecting more of the same, and instead got a heart-thumping crush on a slightly goofy and very determined naval captain. The movie sealed the deal for me.
As for Nancy Drew, my daughter went to go see this with her grandmother and loved it! She had been reading the Drew books for some time and is having fun revisting the books she has. I am tempted to take her again to see it for myself.
Welcome, Sharon! I agree ten POB entries isn’t nearly enough, but I keep imagining people rolling their eyes (”there she goes again”) whenever I bring up the topic, the creatures. I keep telling ‘em the books only seem to be about naval battles; actually they’re about music, friendship, and manners. With, as you say, lots of sly humor thrown in. And tell me you don’t have an equally heart-thumping crush on a certain pale-eyed polyglot lubber of a surgeon…
And all y’all, if you go see the ND movie I hope you’ll post about it, or come back here and leave another comment. :)
I see the dear Dr. Maturin as a fellow inquisitive, with whom I would enjoy a hearty rummage through the natural world as much as I would enjoy a glass of wine with him. Does Captain Aubrey say that the good Doctor spends too much time gazing at a bird’s nest? That’s because I let him, whilst I examine the way water flows over rocks in a stream. I led him there! I know, I know…wanton hussy that I am…
No wonder the Captain will never ask me to dance.
Heh, Sharon, you’re a deep old file. ;)
I too, read (more than) a few Nancy Drew / Hardy Boy mysteries. I can’t now remember if it occured to me then, but the way teens matched wits with adults–and won (always)!–seems part of their charm.
Of course, that’s central to children’s literature, isn’t it? That the underdog kid(s) win somehow–and the powerful, mean stepmother/witch is melted/smooshed by a mill stone/hauled away in cuffs, with always some last words along the lines of “I would have gotten away with it if it hadn’t been for those darn kids!”
But another thought: though I haven’t seen the ND movie (I think that outing happened while I was grading finals) it sounds like yet another well-done movie adaptation of a book. I remember when the Little House on the Prarie TV show began, being outraged by the ‘liberties’ taken with adapting it. (Sorry–I can’t remember what they were now.) I’m glad the movie-mogul powers-that-be are seeing more $$$ in careful, accurate adaptations. There’s a sort of integrity and respect in such productions–even if it is driven by $$$.
And to bring politics into it: I surfed over to ‘Bookworm’ from my political blogs so such adaptations’ integrity is a welcome relief to what our national leaders daily demonstrate.
What a different world it would be if political leaders had to demonstrate an awareness of integrity in some related manner: compare and contrast two book-to-movie adaptations, explaining how each showed respect for the original works. Or maybe, in addition to answering debate questions, doing an interpretive dance showing their understanding of a work of literature, and truthfully conveying its meaning (it’s hard to lie with body language, yes?). Would we let them choose which book to perform, or would it be assigned/drawn from a hat?
Okay, maybe the last idea isn’t quite what we need to see in our leaders–but it seems a good place to stop for now.
–Hubby
I didn’t warm to the trailers and so was a bit worried that they’d made a hash of the adaptation. So it’s a great relief to hear that the movie stands up for a Nancy Drew fan of roughly my vintage! It’s going back on my list of movies to see this summer…