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Parents' Guide to

Mandie and the Forgotten Christmas

By Renee Longstreet, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

Feisty heroine fights social injustice in slow-paced tale.

Movie G 2011 95 minutes
Mandie and the Forgotten Christmas Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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Is It Any Good?

Our review:
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Kids say: Not yet rated

Good intentions and a terrific, natural performance by Kelly Washington as Mandie cannot save a weak, contrived script and slow-paced, lifeless direction in this addition to the Mandie series. The messages are sound -- thinking for oneself, taking risks to right a wrong, and refusal to accept prejudice -- but they're given such a weak platform that they have no resonance. The "forgotten Christmas" element never pays off. The would-be antagonist's backstory, which is supposed to explain her behavior, has no bearing on the current dilemma and never accounts for her illusive attic. The depiction of the Native American uncle of the heroine is both offensive and inauthentic. While some performances are solid, others are substandard. Worst of all, the movie lacks logic, motivated behavior, and any semblance of reality no matter what the year.

Movie Details

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