My Girl

For the month of July, I have decided to review films starring the famous child actor, Macaulay Culkin. Let’s get started with the 1991 classic, that is also the title of a song by The Temptations, “My Girl.”

She lives in a dark realm for such a fearless little girl. Her mother died two days after she was born. Her father runs a funeral home. The preserving takes place in the basement. Her grandmother, played by Ann Nelson, has Alzheimer’s and is wrapped in deep silence, expect for the time when she starts singing the famous songs of 40 years ago.

No wonder Vada is a hypochondriac who is always running off to the family doctor, played by Peter Michael Goetz.

However, in other ways Vada is very normal. She has a crush on the teacher who lives down the street, played by Griffin Dunne. She goes biking with her best friend, Thomas J., and they talk about the meaning of life. She loves her dad, who is somewhat distant, and she gets a little jealous when dad hires a new cosmetologist, Shelly, and then it looks as if he might be getting married again.

Roger Ebert noted in his review, “"My Girl" is the second recent film about young people learning the realities of life. Like "Man in the Moon," it is about young romance, innocence, tragedy, and growth. The characters in "My Girl" are a few crucial years younger than those in "Man in the Moon" - Vada is 11 and just this side of the great divide of adolescence - but both movies feature a swimming hole, and a first kiss, and a father who is strict but loving. And the key to both movies is in affecting, genuine performances.”

Vada is played by Anna Chlumsky, a newbie who does a good job of creating her smart, curious, miserable character. Thomas J., her best friend, is played by Macaulay Culkin, in his first role since “Home Alone,” and once again he is a sincere, wide-eyed little boy who sees a lot and says little. Ebert noted, “Adults in movies like this are often turned into dotty caricatures, but it says a lot for the filmmakers (director Howard Zieff and writer Laurice Elehwany) that they see their adults as normal people.”

The father is played by Dan Aykroyd and Shelly is played by Jamie Lee Curtis, and they’re both lonely as the movie starts. Vada’s father hasn’t dated in 20 years, and Shelly reveals that she took the job (“even though I don’t much like dead people”) because she saw that a family lived there and thought it would be good for her.

Vada is jealous as she begins to lose her father’s complete attention, but that gets taken care of all in good time.

Ebert noted, “And then something tragic happens, just as it did in "Man in the Moon," and Vada has to learn to accept the hurt of life.” The movie gives complete respect to her loss. There isn’t a quick and emotional ending, but a conclusion that shows how Vada makes her accommodation with loss – and a scene within which a deep truth is spoken.

The likeness in this film is in its honesty. There are some necessary scenes. However, there are also some very original and touching ones. This is a movie that has its heart in the right place.

I feel that it is necessary that I talk about “My Girl 2,” released in 1994. There have not been many films about the ways adolescent girls go on a trip of self-discovery. “My Girl 2” does this nicely. Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat said in their review, “In this top-drawer sequel to the 1991 box-office smash, Vada is 13 years old.” She feels a little superfluous in her Madison, Pennsylvania home since Shelly, the beautician her undertaker father married, is pregnant. Vada has been asked to give up her room for the new baby.

Still questioning her roots, the precocious teenager takes the chance to visit Los Angeles to research a paper on her mother, who died giving birth to her. Vada stays with her Uncle Phil (Richard Masur), a mechanic who’s living with his boss (Christine Ebersole) and her son Nick (Austin O’Brien). This boy becomes Vada’s guide as they find people to give her details about her mother’s life in high school and college.

Director Howard Zieff makes a completely engaging and realistic performance from Anna Chlumsky in the lead role. Vada is a poet who is both playful and purposeful. At one point she asks, “How come boys talk all the time and have nothing to say, while girls have a lot to say but no one will listen?” Vada eventually finds her mother’s ex-husband, played by John David Souther, who gives her a surprise look into her roots. And a nice kiss with Nick at the end of her trip sends her on her way delighted.

Brussat noted, “My Girl 2 celebrates one teenage girl's coming of age as she expresses her competence and her caring, her attachment to others, and her autonomy.” Knowing more about her roots, Vada is ready to tell everyone.

The first movie is a classic that everyone should see. The ending is one of the most emotional and I wouldn’t be surprised if people cry when watching it. I didn’t, but I did feel sad. However, the second one, despite it being direct-to-video, is not all that bad. I liked how Vada wants to discover more about herself. People may say it was a giant cash grab, but I think it really helped us learn more about Vada. You should see these movies because they are really nice, feel-good movies.

Next week, I will sadly be reviewing one of the worst movies ever made, and the worst movie to star this actor, in “Macaulay Culkin Month.”