Mandie and the Secret Tunnel

Lois Gladys Leppard's Mandie series, set in North Carolina at the turn of the 20th century, inspires this likable family film about a girl who finds out her favorite bedtime story is true. While 14-year-old Mandie (Lexi Johnson) is out hunting in the Blue Ridge Mountains with her father, Jim (Adam Boyer), a wolf attacks and kills him. Her mother, Etta (Angela Oberer), blames Mandie for his death and threatens to send her away. But that night, Mandie remembers a story her father used to tell her about an Indian princess who sets out on a treacherous journey to find a safe place to settle. With the help of Jim's Cherokee friends, Mandie and her cat, Snowball, run away to live with Jim's estranged brother, John, but arrives only to find that he's been lost at sea. His housekeeper and estate keeper (Gezell Fleming and Dean Jones) allow Mandie to stay, and soon she has a new friend in next-door neighbor Polly (Amanda Waters). While exploring John's mansion, the two girls find a secret tunnel—just like the one in Jim's story—which leads to evidence proving the princess's existence (whom Mandie's grandfather hid together with other Native Americans during their journey along the Trail of Tears). Aided by Mandie's friend Joe (William Smith Yelton), the girls also compete with a pair of phony relatives to find John's will. Directed by Owen Smith and Joy Chapman, this first of several proposed Mandie films gets off to an awkward start, but once the tale kicks into high gear, it becomes an adventure-mystery the whole family can enjoy. Recommended. (K. Fennessy)