Eleven-year-old Harriet wants to be a writer. Told by her nanny (Rosie O’Donnell) to write down everything she sees, Harriet takes this command to heart and becomes the neighborhood spy. The people she writes about would not be gratified by what she has to say about them, and inevitably, her notebook falls into the wrong hands, leading to some painful lessons for Harriet.The pace is brisk, the editing even faster.
Audio
Very impressive environmental effects. For example, during a street scene, it was almost impossible for me to tell the difference between the voices echoing around the room from the speakers and the voices that were actually outside my window. Some very nice left-right work as well. The sound is strong and clear, with no distortion on the dialogue, and the music is given a lively, powerful mix.
Video
The widescreen is anamorphic, and looks like 1.78:1 (which is still a good sight better than fullscreen). The colours have blindingly strong contrasts, perfectly in synch with the feel of the film: the reds are extremely red, the blues are extremely blue, and so on. The image is very sharp,thus serving the (often hilarious) deep-focus photography very well indeed.
Special Features
None whatsoever — most disappointing.
Closing Thoughts
Though I gather the film didn’t satisfy long-time fans of the book, young viewers should stillhave a lot of fun with it. The transfer is terrific, but the total lack of extras is a shame.
