For a movie that runs just a minute or two longer than 90 minutes, there are times when "Tuck Everlasting" threatens to live up to its name.
This family-friendly fantasy/drama also feels curiously flat and seems much too artificial. Worse, it somehow manages to botch its source material, the beloved 1975 children's novel by author Natalie Babbit.
What's even harder to understand is how this supposed sure-fire material could have gone so wrong with such a talented cast — one that features three previous Oscar winners.
William Hurt and Sissy Spacek star as Angus and Mae Tuck, the patriarch and matriarch of a rather mysterious family living in the forest surrounding the Foster family mansion. Privileged teenager Winnie Foster (Alexis Bledel, from TV's "Gilmore Girls") wanders off into that same forest and stumbles onto the Tucks, who are horrified to have been discovered and who appear to be hiding a secret of some sort.
Still, she finds herself feeling at home with the laid-back Tuck family, especially Jesse (Jonathan Jackson), who is more than happy to share the woods' secrets with her.
Meanwhile, Winnie's parents (Amy Irving and Victor Garber) are growing worried. It doesn't help that they're being pres-
sured by a mysterious man in a yellow suit (an underutilized Ben Kingsley) who agrees to find Winnie, but at a price that may be all too costly.
This is a misfire by all concerned, especially director Jay Russell, whose adaptation of "My Dog Skip" did a much better job of getting mood and period right. This time, Russell's effort to re-create World War I-era America doesn't feel authentic. Perhaps it's Hurt's fluctuating accent (at varying times he sounds as if he's from at least four different countries) or the presence of contemporary-looking actors Bledel and Jackson.
Spacek does her part to restore some dignity, and her performance as the Tuck family matriarch is the sole bright spot here.
"Tuck Everlasting" is rated PG for a brief scene of violence (a bludgeoning) and some mild scenes of peril. Running time: 94 minutes.
E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com