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Movies / On DVD / Harriet the Spy
Harriet the Spy

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Harriet the Spy (1996)

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38 %
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Reviews Counted:26

Fresh:10

Rotten:16

Average Rating:4.8/10

Runtime: 1 hr 42 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Synopsis: The film adaptation of Louise Fitzhugh's bestselling children's novel, about Harriet, an independent, intelligent girl whose aspiration to become a writer ultimately lands her in some very hot... The film adaptation of Louise Fitzhugh's bestselling children's novel, about Harriet, an independent, intelligent girl whose aspiration to become a writer ultimately lands her in some very hot water... Encouraged by her sharp nanny, Harriet secretly begins writing about her observations of the world around her. This includes VERY candid (and often uncomplimentary) things about her schoolmates and buddies, including her two best friends. But Harriet's life is turned upside-down when classmates find her treasured notebook and read it aloud for everyone to hear. Feeling insulted and betrayed, the kids then retaliate against Harriet in the cruelest of ways. The young writer, now hated, isolated and embarrassed, must find a way to rebound from this unenviable situation. [More]

Starring: Michelle Trachtenberg, Rosie O'Donnell, Vanessa Lee Chester, Gregory Edward Smith

Starring: Michelle Trachtenberg, Rosie O'Donnell, Vanessa Lee Chester, Gregory Edward Smith, Eartha Kitt

Director: Bronwen Hughes

Director: Bronwen Hughes
Story: Louise Fitzhugh
Screenwriter: Douglas Petrie, Theresa Rebeck
Composer: Jamshied Sharifi

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Harriet the Spy

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

...smart, good-natured and fun.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ian Freer
Ian Freer
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
02/14/02
Washington Post
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
02/14/02
Joe Baltake
Joe Baltake
Sacramento Bee

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
04/12/02
Globe and Mail

...in busily updating the '60s story for the more worldly '90s, the filmmakers have ended up, ironically, with a product much more naively juvenile than the original.

Full Review Source: Slate | comment Comment
01/01/00
Ann Hulbert
Ann Hulbert
Slate

While the well-loved novel was apparently about the admirable battle a kid must wage in order to become an artist in the face of peer disapproval, the movie seems to be about a mean-spirited tyke who has no scruples.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
01/01/00
Barbara Shulgasser
Barbara Shulgasser
San Francisco Examiner

...doesn't live up to its promise as a movie that could have had a lot of fun exploiting the ingenuity-themed construct.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
01/01/00
Christine James
Christine James
Boxoffice Magazine

A very draggy affair because Harriet’s exploits are treated like an episodic laundry list.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
02/09/02
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post

A below mediocre adaptation of the popular novel that is nonetheless served well by the two female leads, but all representative of the adults world (parents, teachers, psychologists) are narrow, standard-issue constructions.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
10/30/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Hollis Chacona
Hollis Chacona
Austin Chronicle

Nick's methodology is way, way, outta synch with the spirit of Louise Fitzhugh's award-winning book.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
01/01/00
John Paul Powell
John Paul Powell
Jam! Movies

There's dancing, and bubble blowing and bed bouncing that's entirely aimless and Harriet's neighborhood sleuthing becomes particularly pointless.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Keith Simanton
Keith Simanton
Film.com

Harriet the Spy has real character in some of its details, but it never feels like much more than a low-budget TV show.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Peter Stack
Peter Stack
San Francisco Chronicle

...a tedious adaptation...

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
01/01/00
Rita Kempley
Rita Kempley
Washington Post

...the pacing is slow and there are scenes that seem amateurish...

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There's a certain amateurish quality about Harriet the Spy, but it's more the TV-trained grownups behind the camera...than the pint-sized thespians in front of it.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Sean Means
Sean Means
Film.com

The whimsical and meaningless first part dissolves into a mean spirited and disturbing concluding section.

Full Review Source: Internet Reviews | comment Comment
07/25/02
Steve Rhodes
Steve Rhodes
Internet Reviews

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment Comment
02/14/02
Susan Stark
Susan Stark
Detroit News

The film's OK, a little thick with sensory overload, but it wasn't made for old guys like me.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Tom Keogh
Tom Keogh
Film.com

At least they didn't make the nanny's umbrella handle a talking parrot.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
E! Online
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
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