It has been said, by people both far more intelligent and famous than me, that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. In Akeelah and the Bee, Doug Atchison's slightly heavy and pretty smart feel-good movie, one young girl pretty much lives that quote to it's fullest. That girl is Akeelah Anderson (Keke Palmer). She's 11, she's black, and she's from the south side of Los Angeles. All three of which stack the odds pretty heavily against her. She's the "brainiac" of her middle school and has the uncanny ability to memorize and recall words. Still, the continuous spotlight she's given when she displays her talents have her placed firmly in the "wallflower" category of the social stratospher. That is, until the day Dr. Larabee (Laurence Fishburne) arrives.
The moment he sees her flinging out words at her school's bee his eyes alight and from then on it's that continuous twinkle (both in his eyes and in the eyes of those around him) that managed to get me hooked on that elitist contest known as spelling bees. Plus, as it turns out, Keke Palmer can act. Guided by the strong support of Fishburne and Angela Basset (who plays Akeelah's mom Tanya) Palmer comes out with an enjoyable performance that anchors the movie. Though dealing in stereotypes to substitute for character development, Atchison's dialogue is fresh and fast. Also as a director his funky groove was the first of it's MTV-inspired kind to truly pull me under its spell.
Charming. Light-hearted. Smart. Up-lifting. All four of these words can describe Akeelah. What makes the movie so good is that it's filled with such a person's presence.
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