Spirit Of The Eagle

A Silver Award Winner at the Chicago International Film Festival (like its predecessor in the Miramar "Legend" series, Gift of the Whale), Spirit of the Eagle is another excellent live-action mix of story and fact. 12-year-old Cleve, an inner city Seattle youth is picked on by bullies at the basketball court because of his size. While still smarting from humiliation (and a sprained arm), Cleve takes a trip with other classmates to a wilderness camp, where they discover and learn about eagles. Befriended by a young girl who used to live in the country, Cleve begins to appreciate the beautiful surroundings, and pays attention to what the camp counselor is saying. When Cleve and his new friend find an eagle entangled in a net, they rush back to camp for assistance. Spectacular footage of soaring eagles, fledglings learning to fly, and hunting eagles diving down to the ocean is interspersed throughout the story. Credit writer/director Kathleen Phelan for not only managing to get wonderfully natural performances out of the young thespians, but also with the rare ability to accurately portray the rhythm and word choice of young teen conversation. How she manages to achieve this--and still work in a lot of educational material about eagles--is something of a wonderful enigma. I've seen many shows that present the educational material and forget the kids, or play up to the kids and forget the educational material, but Spirit of the Eagle is that unusual film that truly strikes a balance between education and entertainment. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice. (Available from most distributors.)