EssenceStory Well Deserved Praise

Ameriatch One of the best films i have seen

HottWwjdIam There is just so much movie here. For some it may be too much. But in the same secretly sarcastic way most telemarketers say the phrase, the title of this one is particularly apt.

Sarita Rafferty There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Chrysanthepop 'Little Secrets' is one of those 'sweet' movies that appeals mostly to early teens. The story idea of a young secret keeper is quite amusing and the secret keeper's quest to adulthood is portrayed in an okay way (though very clichéd). Evan Rachel Wood is very pretty and her acting is also what contributes to the film's positive side. She's the reason why I watched it till the end instead of switching to something else (as mushy teen flicks of this decade do not hold much appeal to me). Vivica A. Fox delivers a restrained performance and Michael Angarano is alright. The rest of the cast are adequate. On the flip side, 'Little Secrets' is no classic and it will vanish into oblivion among other teen flicks releasing every year. The direction is okay as Treu stays focused on Emily's story but at the same time he introduces too many themes that are tackled in a very sugarcoated and half-baked manner. Overall, it's a decent flick with a good performance by a confident young actress.

aimless-46 David Lynch's "Blue Velvet" starts with some great images: ideal suburbia - kids crossing the street, firemen waving as they go down the road on their truck, and a man watering his garden. Then the guy has a stroke and collapses. We are then treated to the best shot of the film: his dog playfully jumping around the squirting hose he continues to hold as a toddler ambles toward him. Then the camera moves down for a macro shot of the insect world in his lawn, introducing the film's theme that there is a secret and much nastier world just below the surface of "Norman Rockwell" suburbia.In "Little Secrets", Emily runs a business which keeps all the neighborhood secrets in a safe place for a fee. It takes Lynch's dark theme and turns it into a lesson about friendship and trust. Apparently this thematic content is the reason the film was given a PG rating, although it is hard to imagine that anyone would think this film required "parental guidance".The film features a decent performance from Evan Rachel Wood (Emily), although there is nothing here that would lead anyone to think she was capable of her breakout performance in "Thirteen". Michael Angarano (Phillip) is fantastic opposite Wood and they have a nice chemistry. David Gallagher does a good job in a small role that is unnecessarily tacked onto the story, presumably to capitalize on his "7th Heaven" popularly. Blair Treu, the film's director, should have recognized in mid-production that a better resolution would have been the pairing of Emily and Phillip rather than Emily and David. It was an easy fix, minor rewrites and re-shooting a couple scenes to make Phillip the same age as Emily, they certainly look the same age. Gallagher's drawing power did not save the production commercially (it tanked big time at the box office) so they ruined the ending for nothing.The director of photography used a lot of great crane shots and creative camera angles but overall the the shots should have been tighter (i.e. closer shots of the faces and eyes). One exception was Caitlin E. J. Meyer (Isabelle) who the camera loves and who steals her scenes as the nine-year old younger sister of Emily's best friend. Isabelle has the movie's best line "Life is complicated when you look like Claudia Schiffer".This is a very original premise, a well-conceived and rather profound story. It has one especially great scene when the web of secrets starts to crumble. First Emily is angry at David because he was caught drinking which was his secret, making David angry at Phillip for telling Emily his secret, which makes Phillip angry at Emily for telling David that he had told her David's secret.

Garry1209 It was just fantastic one of the cutest movies i have seen. First of all the persons who don't like this movie aren't seeing the movie from 14 yr old point of view. A very good children movie, love the acting of Evan Rachel Wood(Emily). Her acting while playing violin was the best and Liked the music as well. Michael Angarano(Filip)also was very good. Well i have read comments of some on this movie saying David Gallagher (David) should have not got together with (Emily). I would say the director was right in getting David with Emily instead of Filip. as Emily was shown being attracted to David from the start. I like the scene where Emily sees Filip doing the job of Secret keeper, the dialogues were good in that scene. well i liked the kid who keeps the kittens. A very Satisfying movie.

griz44 Little Secrets, 2001, PG, **+ out of **** Starring: Evan Rachel Wood, Michael Angarano, David Gallagher and Vivica A. Fox The plot: A 14-year old violinist charges her friends 50 cents for keeping her secrets.It is real that this film gave me 100% delight! Sure, it ran in 366 screens. That's 123 more than "Thirteen". The good thing is: Evan Rachel Wood (Once and Again) plays Emily Lindstrom. She plays the violin in the movie. She also tells secrets to kids and teens. I'm sure the best thing about "Little Secrets" is the reason Evan was the lead star at that. At an estimated $5 million, this film comments to kids about broken merchandise. If you are pleased about Evan Rachel Wood, this is one great indie that hits the spot. It is true that back in September 2003, Evan promoted the movie on WAM! at the tender age of 15! How nice! And one best thing about keeping secrets is: Express yourself with the kindness of strangers! I know one of the best things that keep me in the mood for is this: Evan doesn't play the violin in real life! And one more thing that really is a gem is: Disney Channel will be airing this movie!