The Ultimate Gift

This movie is about morality... It could be said today or anytime in the past that morality is needed, so why not moralize a little bit? Unfortunately, it is a very straightforward and predictable morality. And that is still not the worst part. It is a calculated kitschy spectacle, squeezing out sentiment and emotionally blackmailing. American cinema has produced countless movies about the redemption of a corrupted wealthy person, and this film is not innovative in any way in that regard. It does not deserve less than 2 stars because it is professionally directed, with decent actors and honest performances. But the screenplay and the dialogue, are another issue altogether. They go something like this: "You just got a 100 million dollars. - What, money? How come I don't feel anything? How come it doesn't satisfy me? - It's because you have become a different person." Or: "I want to be with people I love, who love each other and who love me." The words "love," "happiness," and "joy" are all over the place, and as seen in reviews for this film, it surprisingly works very effectively. Abigail Breslin in the role of a wise little girl, dying from leukemia of course, who orchestrates the future of her mother and the main character of the story, managed to thoroughly disgust me with her presence in this sickly-sweet film, and I had to remind myself of her excellent performance in Little Miss Sunshine, so as not to condemn her. Overall impression: 35%. (31/07/2009)