If only, if only, the woodpecker sighs
Louis Sachar has written some of my favorite children’s books ever. The episodic Wayside School books are comic masterpieces, particularly the first two entries (Sideways Stories and Falling Down). In elementary school I read a bevy of his novels and don’t recall disliking a single one.
But his greatest achievement is quite possibly Holes, the 1998 Newbery Medal winner. It has more of a dramatic punch than some of his other work, though still has the light touch and playful irony of his comedy novels. The multi-timeline story follows the saga of Stanley Yelnats IV, an unlucky kid who gets sent to Camp Green Lake, a juvie rehabilitation program that is not a camp, not green, and not at a lake, for a crime he did not commit. The novel traces the Yelnats family’s bad luck across five generations, all of which set up connective threads to Stanley, leading to a tremendously clever and satisfying finale that is full of payoff and unexpected connections.
It’s a terrific yarn that flows with magical realism, but it also has a strong element of commentary to it, too. The story is an introduction to broken justice systems and the way the disenfranchised people (the homeless; people of color) are systematically harmed by inequitable institutions. And yet the book never once feels preachy or on-the-nose with its themes. I dare say the book, unique and touching and gripping, pitched perfectly at middle schoolers (but adored by my 6 and 4 year olds as read aloud by me) is an outright masterpiece and one of the best middle grade novels of the past few decades.
Five years after the book was published, Disney theatrically released a rock-solid, extremely faithful adaptation. The sterling execution of great source material is basically sufficient to get Holes it into “great” territory. Sachar provides the screenplay (the only script he’s ever written), which conveys the complex, non-linear story in an understandable and intuitive sequence that maximizes the intrigue and satisfying payoffs. He worked closely with director Andrew Davis, famous for thrillers, in perfectly pacing the story for the screen.
Some of the performances are tremendously fun: Jon Voight, Sigourney Weaver, and Tim Blake Nelson are terrific as the trio of villains. Patricia Arquette out-classes everyone, bringing a real emotional intensity to her performance as tragic outlaw Kissin’ Kate Barlow. Shia LaBeouf shows in his film debut (he starred in the TV show Even Stevens for the five years preceding Holes) that he can carry movies like this, though I think he could have played Stanley a bit more passively in the early parts of the film to deepen his arc and growth. The only real blemish in the ensemble is Khleo Thomas as Zero, who is supposed to be a dark and enigmatic character. Thomas instead plays him like a chipper sidekick.
The production, largely shot on location in a dry part of California, is solid, but weighed down with some 2000s family movie chintz. The soundtrack is a clunker, filled with cheesy Disney radio rock that doesn’t fit the tone of material at all. And as strong as the writing is, the direction and some of the acting, has a smidge too much wackiness in it, vestigial from live-action cartoony family comedies of the era like Snow Day and Max Keeble’s Big Move. The editing also suffers from a gross abuse of a digitally added stuttery framerate to emphasize a dramatic moment or shift in timeline. It’s ugly and would belong in a TV movie. (You know it’s bad when my 6 year old complains about something in your editing.)
But the flaws are pretty minor. I might even go so far as to call Holes a modern family movie classic, the kind worth revisiting with your kids as they grow up. It has genuine cinematic talent, polish, and scope. It appeals to both kids and adults without alienating or pandering to either. They just don’t make many movies like this; but then they don’t make many books like Holes.
Is It Good?
Very Good (6/8)
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