JUDY MOODY AND THE NOT BUMMER SUMMER

SYNOPSIS:
Twelve year old Judy Moody (Jordana Beatty) is hoping to have the best summer holiday ever with her best friends Rocky (Garrett Ryan) and Amy (Taylar Hender). But her heart sinks when she discovers they have other plans: Rocky is going to a circus camp and Amy is off to Borneo with her mother. Judy feels badly done by being stuck at home with her annoying little brother Stink (Parris Mosteller) and no-one to hang out with except for her second-best friend Frank Pearl (Preston Bailey), but then things get even worse. Judy's parents announce they have to go to California and Judy and Stink are to stay behind with free-spirited Aunt Opal (Heather Graham). Could the summer she hoped would be the best ever end up becoming the worst?

Review by Louise Keller:
A kaleidoscope of bright colours, the best thing about this chirpy comedy for tweens is 12 year old Australian actress Jordana Beatty, whose energy and enthusiasm as the bubbly Judy Moody with the shock of unruly red hair, is contagious. Adapted from Megan McDonald's best selling books (and like Diary of a Wimpy Kid), Judy Moody's adventures rely on everyday occurrences, perceived by the imaginative tween whose expectations of life soar and flop faster than the rollercoaster on which she becomes covered in blue fairy-floss puke. Youngsters will respond favourably to the boundless optimism and brightness of Judy Moody's world, although it's a shame the filmmakers have opted for an exaggerated caricature-ridden film, resulting in one that is overly frenetic and hyperactive.

According to the predictions of Judy Moody's Magic-8 ball, the upcoming summer holidays will be the best ever. But when Judy discovers best friends Rocky (Garrett Ryan) and Amy (Taylar Hender) have exotic other plans (circus camp and a trip to Borneo), the reality of being stuck at home with her Big-Foot obsessed little brother Stink (Mosteller) and tag-along second-best friend Frank (Bailey) is outright depressing. The final straw arrives when her parents go to California leaving Judy and Stink with eccentric, free-spirited Aunt Opal (Graham).

Everything in Judy's life is a candy-like whirlwind of rainbow colours. But it's one thing for a third grader to be brattishly hyperactive, spitting out words like 'snoresville', 'thrilladelic' and 'toadally cool', but when Graham jumps on the scene with tresses like a Barbie doll and dressed like a packet of coloured life savers, the caricature meter goes into overdrive as garbage tin lids are decorated and she creates art from everything. Her offbeat ideas appeal to the kids, however, prompting lively adventures and ensuring Judy's summer is a hummer.
Published first in the Sun-Herald