A Melon-Collie Dog Tale
Because of Winn-Dixie Mixes Laughter & Tears

The state of Florida has a split personality. There’s the touristy Florida along the coasts and in Orlando where you can go for weeks without meeting anyone actually from Florida. Then there’s the rural interior and panhandle Florida with little towns as Southern as any you might find in Alabama or the Carolinas.

It is that second Florida that is the setting for the sadly sweet coming-of-age film Because of Winn-Dixie. Based on the best-selling kid-lit book of the same name, the movie tells the story of Opal (AnnaSophia Robb), a lonely little girl who has just moved to Naomi, Florida, with her preacher dad (Jeff Daniels).

“Okay, okay. I’ll play ‘Old McDonald’ one more time for you guys. After that, it’s strictly stuff from my new album.” AnnaSophia Robb and Dave Matthews star in the new movie Because of Winn-Dixie.

During her first summer in Naomi, Opal adopts a stray dog and names him for the Southern supermarket chain where he was found, meets about a half dozen eccentric adults, and learns why her mother left the family when Opal was only three.

Among the people she befriends are a sad little girl named Amanda, a lonely librarian (Eva Marie Saint), the mischievous Dewberry Brothers, and a guitar playing ex-con named Otis (Dave Matthews) who works at the local pet shop. Like characters in additional unwritten verses of “Eleanor Rigby,” each lonely person seems to be trapped in his or her own universe until Opal and her newfound mutt brings them into orbit with each other.

Director Wayne Wang once again displays his penchant for wringing every last drop of sorrow out of a story. He practically took the “joy” out of Amy Tan’s book The Joy Luck Club and here he does much the same with author Kate DiCamillo’s Because of Winn-Dixie.

That’s not to say there aren’t high jinks. There are plenty of high jinks when it comes to the oversized dog running amok through a church, pet shop or singlewide trailer. But when it comes to the sheer joy of being a child, Wang doesn’t seem to know how to linger on those moments when the world is a mysterious and wonderful place. For example, there’s a brief scene where the Dewberry Brothers tell Opal that a witch lives in a house up a dark country road. Instead of spending a few minutes watching the kids honestly dwell on the magic of witches and evil spells, Wang immediately cuts to Opal meeting an old blind woman named Gloria (Cicely Tyson).

Fortunately, the talented cast of kids and adults saves Wang from his melancholy self. Robb and most of the rest of the kids in the movie are first-timers and their earnestness goes a long way to keeping the tale believable. As far as Dave Matthews goes—let’s just say that his music fans don’t have to worry about Hollywood taking up too much of his time in the near future.

To Wang’s credit, the movie avoids the kid-film pitfall of trying to wrap up every single loose thread at the end. Opal’s mother doesn’t magically return, her relationship with her dad remains awkward, and a cloud of sorrow remains over the citizens of Naomi. At the end of the movie, the characters are a just a little wiser, not quite as alone, and Opal feels a little more at home in her new town.

The movie also has a unique way of showing Opal’s imagination and memories through film footage that looks like old home movies. I just wish Wang had used more scenes of that and fewer scenes of adults telling their sad tales to a little girl and her dog.

For avoiding the quick-fix clichés of most kid movies and utilizing realistic characters, Because of Winn-Dixie is recommended for kids of six or older. It might be a little too long (two hours) and overly dramatic for kids younger than that.

Because of Winn-Dixie is rated PG for thematic elements and brief mild language.