My Girl (Anna Chlumsky)

(Amazon UK link)

Every so often we buy DVDs inexpensively at a church or charity sale, with little idea what they are about. We read the blurb on the back, of course, but that’s not always all that helpful. One such film that we found probably a year or more ago is ‘My Girl’, and we finally sat down to watch it last night.

We were immediately charmed by eleven-year-old Vada (Anna Chlumsky), a confident, friendly girl with what appears to be extreme hypochondria. I had a little trouble understanding her accent at first, but my ears gradually attuned. And I got the gist. She introduces herself by describing several ailments she has suffered, and then tells her father that she’s seriously worried about something else.

Vada’s father Harry (Dan Aykroyd) works as an undertaker and embalmer, and also, apparently, a funeral director. His wife, we learn, died shortly after Vada was born. In the United States, I gather, coffins are open during the funeral or memorial service, so the person concerned must be made to look good. That includes requiring a make-up expert.

There’s an opening for a new make-up artist, and a young woman called Shelley (Jamie Lee Curtis) applies. She doesn’t at first realise exactly what the job involves, but she’s desperate for work, and takes it on. She lives in a motorhome, and evidently finds Vada’s father quite attractive….

Meanwhile, Vada mostly runs loose outside, cycling or walking with her best friend Thomas J (Macauley Culkin). She doesn’t much like the girls in their class, and puts up with a lot of teasing, but she can take it. She’s the leader in their friendship, but he follows her lead in almost everything. He has quite a protective mother, but he’s allergic to just about everything.

So there are two stories alongside each other, and several other subplots. There’s a growing romance between the adults, and also a maturing in the children’s friendship, although there’s a shocking event which I didn’t see coming. Vada’s hypochondria leads to some amusing scenes, although it reflects some of her deeper fears; she feels a bit neglected by her father, and at first doesn’t like his new relationship.

The acting is excellent, particularly Vada - this was the debut role for Anna Chlumsky, but I would never have guessed. She is perfect in the role. The pace is good, and we found ourselves totally absorbed in the film, sorry when it ended. It’s not a comedy although it’s billed as such; the pivoting event near the end and indeed the setting of the family home rather preclude against it being in that genre. It’s more a coming-of-age story, relationship based, and very moving in places.

It could have been macabre but just falls short of that. I found some of the embalming scenes a tad disturbing, even though not much is seen. And I had to turn my face away during a brief fishing scene. But other than that, I liked the film very much.

It’s rated PG which is about right; there are brief flashes of underwear and a couple of mild innuendoes, but nothing explicit, and no real violence. And as the storyline involves children, it could be seen by older children or teens. Some sensitive children could find it rather upsetting towards the end, however, so it would be best for parents to see it first.

I gather there is a sequel to this, unimaginatively titled 'My Girl 2', so I've put it on my wishlist.

Review copyright 2019 Sue's DVD Reviews