Child genius in a working-class environment goes off to college under the auspices of a nonpareil female mentor, which brings forth resentment and maybe some jealousy in the kid's single mom. Seemingly slight drama is full of dead-on touches of youthful heartache which can resonate deeply with anyone who has experienced childhood disappointment (such as a birthday party no one attends). Fred Tate isn't a happy, sunny kid--he's "pensive"--and he's almost always a fish-out-of-water. Director Jodie Foster (who also stars as Tate's mother) does a good job of guiding us through all the complicated emotions inherent in this story, but intentionally veers off track at the end, giving us a really happy ending that feels like a cheat. Foster may have added it for the benefit of the audience as an emotional release, but I didn't buy it. Despite this fault--and a somewhat wayward section at the university which seems designed to show off Harry Connick Jr.'s sass and musical talent--the film has a velvety kind of vulnerability which is quite touching. Foster as an actress does a good job (although her character's trashy mouth gets tiresome), but Dianne Wiest is unable to come up with anything surprising as Fred's mentor (who, too easily, is shown to be brilliant but lonesome herself). ** from ****
Review of Little Man Tate
