by Frank Wilkins
An extremely troublesome feeling slowly crept over me as I watched Catch That Kid. And although I kept hoping the filmmakers would find a way to redeem themselves, as the credits began to roll, I realized they never seized the opportunity. The film's central message is, and there's no attempt to disguise it, that it's OK to commit a crime if you are doing it for the benefit of someone less fortunate. A corollary prong of the message teaches our children that it is OK to rob banks and large companies because they don't treat the little people very well.

Our juvenile delinquents are lead by the heroine Maddy (Kristen Stewart), who, like her father thrives on the danger of rock climbing. Setting up two major necessary components of the forthcoming heist, Maddy's father runs a go-kart track while her mother (Jennifer Beals) designs security systems for banks and other large companies. Maddy's father was seriously injured some time ago in a fall while climbing Mount Everest. Now paralyzed, he will need an expensive surgery if he hopes to regain use of his legs. Maddy concocts a scheme to rob the very bank, for which her mother is currently designing a security system, of the $250,000 needed for her father's surgery.

Realizing the complexity of pulling off a heist of such proportions, Maddy shamelessly flaunts her budding femininity to lure two partners in crime, Gus (Max Thieriot), the go-kart mechanic and Austin (Corbin Bleu), the computer whiz. At the risk of, once again, sounding overly moralistic (I always feel better taking the conscientious high-road rather than the alternative), I'll point out the problems I had with the way Maddy enlisted the help of her friends. To get them to participate in the bank robbery, she tells each of the boys individually that she loves them. Now, maybe I must accept the fact that today's twelve to fourteen year-olds know what love is, but I don't have to accept the fact that it's appropriate for a girl of such an age to tell a person of the opposite gender she loves him for the purpose of personal gain. Much less telling two boys within minutes of each other.

With the inclusion of Gus and Austin in her scheme, Maddy can now proceed with her plans of bypassing the bank's security system, foiling the bumbling security guards, and utilizing her climbing skills to crack the massive safe. With $250,000 in tow, the three hit the streets of Los Angeles in their supped-up go-karts with the police on their tails.

Catch that Kid wanted to be a fast-paced, spy thriller with the smarts and ingenuity of the Spy Kids movies. But it ends up being a lifeless, poorly lit Spy Kids starter kit that can't even make an eight-year old laugh at its flatulence humor. While the special effects are adequate, the poorly written script and the fact that we are putting violent and deviant behavior in a glamorous light, make this one a must-avoid. I'd recommend waiting for this one to come to DVD, but I doubt it'll get any better or any less objectionable between now and then.

Frank Wilkins

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