Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma

'Gracie' excellent, 'Knocked Up' not for fuddy-duddies

“Gracie” is an excellent movie if you can white-knuckle it waiting for the sad part at the beginning to end. Gracie’s soccer star brother Johnny (Jesse Lee Soffer) dies in a car wreck – an extremely realistic event, especially since the number one cause of death between people ages 3 to 33 is car accidents.

Even though Gracie (Carly Schroeder) is devastated by her brother’s death, she helps to repair the family’s broken heart by stubbornly insisting upon playing boys’ varsity soccer. Historically, girls weren’t allowed to play soccer until Title IX was passed in 1972. And of course, now the US Women’s Soccer Team has won four world championships since 1994.

This movie is about determination and Gracie’s passion for soccer and for not giving up when all seems lost. Gracie’s mother, Lindsay (Elizabeth Shue), reminds Gracie, “Limit yourself – that’s fine – but don’t let others do it for you.”

Schroeder is full of talent as a soccer-playing actress. She represents a realistic role model for young teenage girls tempted by peer pressure. She gives in but does not give up and finally gets to live her dream: scoring the winning goal during a pouring rainstorm at a soccer game dedicated to her brother’s memory.

Based on a true story from Elizabeth Shue’s life, “Gracie” is inspiring and full of beautiful scenes of the East Orange New Jersey river landscape.

Offensively unrealistic, “Knocked Up” is not for fuddy-duddies. Fuddy-duddies don’t like watching young men like Ben Stoner (Seth Rogen) sit around smoking pot half the movie making crude, stupid jokes. They’re not amused by young women going to bars alone, getting drunk and picking up strange guys. They will not laugh but will instead sit in disgust at this degrading movie that should be about the sanctity of pregnancy.

Allison (Katherine Heigl) and her sister Debbie (Leslie Mann) are caring mothers, but the ready-made father, Ben, makes them out to be controlling hags. He offends everyone he meets and when Allison’s baby’s umbilical gets wrapped around its neck at delivery, he starts yelling at the doctor for being so rude. Each scene feels oddly fake, especially Allison’s fake bare balloon-like belly.

Allison’s character is like Gloria Steinem meeting Phyllis Schaflee: Allison is a TV star before the one-night stand and, after she becomes pregnant, becomes dependent on Ben (the baby’s father and a virtual stranger) for support and love. She seems to lose her independence overnight.

Pro-lifers will love this movie mainly for its anti-abortion message. Fuddy-duddies will find it boring and infantile.

 

Reader Comments(0)