Movie Preview and Review: Akeelah and the Bee

Akeelah and the Bee. You guessed it ... a spelling bee. Heartfelt story ofan eleven-year-old girl who knows how to spell and lives in the rough part of south Los Angeles. Makes one realize more of what it is like to be in a school with busted lockers, doors broken off bathrooms, and some tough characters to deal with. It would be so easy to fall into the wrong crowd. What I love about the movie is that it shows the love of these kids for each other of all races and that just maybe, learning in school is much more important than getting into a gang or rebelling like we all did as kids. Most of the time it is to please our friends. One scene that related to me a lot, since I grew up very poor with five brothers and a sister, was the party for the spelling bee finalists. When I was in third grade I was invited to a birthday party of one of my girl classmates. Had my mother buy and wrap me a present. When I got to the house (very big and nice) I felt not worthy and turned around and went back home. There is a scene very similar to that in the show. I'm not saying it was the best acting, but it didn't make any difference. It will make you feel good. Akeelah played by Keke Palmer was sweet and very likable. Angela Bassett was good, too. I especially liked the acting part of Laurence Fishburne as a very dedicated teacher and a person you would love to know. We need more of these positive movies for our young people. To tell you the truth, I would rather see a spelling bee much more than any sport that I can think of. Take care, Joe