I don't know if Queen Latifah will receive an Oscar but it is very clear she is in her element in a great "feel good" or emotional leadership role of the Boatwright family.  I saw the movie in an almost empty theater with 6 teenager girls who cheered when one of their mothers came in just as the movie started.  (  Thank Goodness for Mom to chill out the girls ! )

Even better, as always, is the slightly lanky child acting prodigy, Dakota Fanning.  She may not have her cute little girl looks, and certainly is showing signs of a being a new teenager, growing, out of proportion, but she is blossoming into lovely looking leading lady and her acting is absolutely superb.  She might get a nod as well and I expect this will serve as a great transitional movie to more mature parts for her to come.

For both Lin and I we were 13 and 14 respectively in 1964 and lived through this awkward time in US history, but in the comfort of a section of almost all white south side of Alameda, CA.  I had friends still making making hatred jokes of the few Japanese in town with anti Japanese slurs left over from WWII.  Some of my friends parents served in WWII and had that hatred left over and passed in on.  My Step father was from Texas and in his rural upbringing was taught racial prejudice and tried to pass that on also.  It was through good peer groups and friends that I saw this was wrong.  Additionally I had grown up with two black twins, Alan and Alvin Jordan.  Always ostracized from kindergarten by race, they actually were very regular guys, but fiercely defense and combative about race issues and with good reason and cause. Even at a preteen and small child in the face of all the obvious prejudice you could see they just wanted the same recognition, friendship and love any small child wanted. I never have been able to follow up after high school to find out how life went for them , but after 40 years all I can think and hope is that life was worthwhile and they found peace, happiness and significance.

The role of Lily played by Dakota Fanning and her friend in the movie Zachery Taylor played by Tristan Wilds will cross racial lines and social norms of the day and even border on scandalous for the South in these turbulent times.  Yet I found myself secretly cheering for them.

Not all goes well, hence all the tears.  I felt a real sadness in parts but jubilation and joy in the end.

I can't end this without a nod to Paul Bettnay as Lily's father T. Ray Owens.  He sadly has to play a bigoted father, angry and hurt, emotionally damaged goods and to his credit does it well.  Other cast members making significant contributions are  Jennifer Hudson , Alica Keyes,  Angela Bassett, and Sophie Okonedo
 
Very much recommended by me as well and yes by all means take your teenage children !

-AL