Movie Review: Phoebe in Wonderland

I've had this movie sitting in my Instant Queue on Netflix for a while now.  I've started this crazy thing where I'm actually watching the movies in my Instant Queue instead of just constantly adding more.  I know, I'm so insane.  But anyway, I chose this movie because I love the cover art and because it sounded Alice in Wonderland-related.

This movie is about a little girl who seems to act out all the time.  She mouths off in class and yells out at ballets.  She also seems to have very severe OCD.  She has to wash her hands a certain number of times, so much that it makes her skin raw and bloody.  She also has to touch all the square pavers in the yard in a certain order, and if she gets interrupted, she must start over.  She decides to sign up for the school play/musical, which is a production of Alice in Wonderland.  She lands the lead role, because she's the only one who tries out for it who can actually act (which is ironic, since all the kids in the movie are real-life actors).  The only place she doesn't act out is in her drama class and her drama teacher is a wonderful mentor for Phoebe.  Phoebe's mother is worried by what is going on with her daughter.  Her mother is writing her dissertation on Alice in Wonderland, and sometimes Phoebe says things like she's talking with the Red Queen.  When asked if that is her imaginary friend, she insists that she is real.  Many Alice in Wonderland characters talk with Phoebe and at first they seem very helpful.  The parts with the Alice in Wonderland characters are very well done and extremely artistic.  I don't want to give away the ending, because I really did love this movie and think that everyone should watch it, especially kids, so they aren't so quick to label someone as the "weirdo".

I give this movie 5 out of 5 stars.  The acting, mostly by children, was superb.  The storyline was interesting and the plot moved along nicely.  I also loved how artistic it all was.  I would definitely watch this movie again, and I would strongly recommend it to everyone.