D.C. MOVIE GUYS

Because of Winn-Dixie
Directed by Wayne Wang
Getting up with fleas nationwide beginning 2/18/2005
2 *
Wayne Wang once took an acclaimed book with an episodic structure and produced The Good Luck Club. Now Mr. Wang has taken a simple story about a girl and her mutt and produced Because of Winn-Dixie. And while The Joy Luck Club entertained audiences, increased the exposure and popularity of Amy Tan’s book, and gave substantial and overdue exposure to an ensemble of terrific Asian actresses, Because of Winn-Dixie is unlikely to elicit anything other than a few yawns. And although he tarts up the Kate DiCamillo’s simple story of a dog as the catalyst to turning a town’s loners into a family of friends, what no one is able to do is give much reason for caring about anything in the movie.
DiCamillo’s prize-winning book is about a lonely, motherless girl newly moved to a rural Florida town (Louisiana plays Florida in tonight’s performance) where her dad has been newly installed as the preacher at the local Baptist church (itself only recently converted from a convenience store). One day while picking up some groceries, India Opal Buloni (Annasophie Robb) comes to the rescue of a mongrel that has gotten loose inside the Winn-Dixie. To keep the rambunctious pooch from being carted off to the pound (presumably to be followed in a week by an appointment with the doggy equivalent of the grim reaper), Opal claims ownership of the dog who luckily responds to her calling him after the store.
And so after convincing Rev. Daddy (Jeff Daniels) to let the dog stay in their trailer (and pleading further with the old coot that runs the park), Opal and Winn-Dixie become inseparable. And because of Winn-Dixie, Opal begins to make friends including an ursaphobic librarian (Eva Marie Saint), the local witch (Cicely Tyson), and the neighborhood brats she once avoided. Winn-Dixie also makes himself at home in God’s new house when he ousts a mouse from the former convenience store (by the way, DiCamillo and characters call it s mouse, but Winn-Dixie catches one very large rat—this is not the only time that director Wang will piss on your leg and tell you it is raining).
Lacking confidence in his story and players Wang and producer/screenwriter Joan Singleton ramp up the melodrama to no discernable benefit save making DiCamillo’s simple story more resemble every other cookie-cutter kids’ movie. They even have the nerve to have Opal dredge up the teary-eyed “please-mister-don’t-take-away-my-dog” speech that already had fleas on it the first time Jackie Cooper used it. Even the steadying presence of Daniels, Saint, and Tyson cannot provide enough support. Miss Robb makes a promising debut as feature lead, but her performance can only take the movie so far. She will be seen later this year as Violet in the Willy Wonka remake.
Maybe there is a good movie in DiCamillo’s book, but you will not find any more than its shadow in Because of Winn-Dixie. Just because you are making a story set in a sleepy southern town does not mean you should put the audience to sleep. That is what we do to unwanted dogs.
–Bill Henry

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