CheerupSilver Very Cool!!!

Exoticalot People are voting emotionally.

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

Nick Phillips This film had potential, but I, and I suspect those involved in making it, really have no idea who it was actually aimed at.Simplified too much to appeal to more mature kids (of all ages), too much involvement from rather cardboard parents for any escapism, the moralizing getting in the way of the story too much for younger kids and too obvious for older ones, the "puzzles" far too simply solved.Overall, far too much certainty. For a movie with this kind of story to succeed, I think a lot more ambiguity and uncertainty is required - hints at what's going on, who the characters are, and what's going to happen, rather than great big illuminated signposts. It could probably do with taking itself rather more seriously, too.I only find myself wondering how they managed to string it out for so long.

deerlove Mr. Bowie's first few attempts at acting were stiff. Absolute Beginners was more like a music video than a dramatic story. Although I own and enjoy Labyrinth, I was hoping to see him in something better than a cartoon character. His bid for the Elf king was not unwelcome in my view, though he was a little old for the part at the time. This film shows his mysterious persona at it's best. He seems to be the person he is playing. I do not want to spoil the story for any "new viewers", so I will not give specific details. The treasure hunt provides intrigue for the viewer and a sorely needed diversion for a desperate child at the end of all hope. The ending satisfies any sentimental person. I would buy this film if I found it on DVD.

vchimpanzee At the beginning, Mr. Rice is giving Owen a decoder ring, but in the next scene Owen is throwing the ring away. Mr. Rice has died, and Owen's parents won't even let him go to the funeral. Owen sneaks in anyway and tapes part of the funeral from the balcony. Later in the treehouse, he wants to show his friends Gilbert, Veg and Funnel Head the tape, but there's a problem. So they don't believe he was there, and he doesn't get 'points' (the boys get points for each courageous or stupid deed).Veg's father is the real estate agent handling the sale of Mr. Rice's house, which makes it easy for the boys to sneak in. There, they find clues to Mr. Rice's secret.Simon is a potential friend for Owen, for reasons I won't mention. But because he has leukemia and has lost his hair, other boys make fun of him. For that reason and for reasons that would be spoilers, Owen refuses to be Simon's friend.In some ways this resembled 'Stand by Me', though it's not nearly that good. And I didn't like that movie that much. It was occasionally creepy, with eerie music. One occasion that required this music was the presence of the local undertaker and his 1960 Cadillac hearse (technology and music made it clear this was the present, so I don't know why the hearse was so old, but who cares? It looked great). Owen showed a lot of intelligence in solving the mystery, and Bill Switzer and Zack Lipovsky were good together in their scenes. The solution to the mystery made an interesting and inspiring story.David Bowie was good as the middle-aged Mr. Rice, not showing any signs of being a wild rock star, though he was only seen in flashbacks sharing his wisdom with Owen. Funnel Head's brother Percy more closely resembled Bowie in his younger days; he was quite a colorful character whose help was needed in solving the mystery.This was a family movie, with a minimum of offensive content (there may have been bad language removed for TV). The worst thing was probably the bullies beating up on those they didn't like.This wasn't bad.

xfile1971 This movie has already been covered by quite a few reviews. However, the best part of the movie has yet to be mentioned. A couple of our teenage protagonists have just come back into town and are talking to their friend Owen. They relate to him a charming story regarding an acquaintance of theirs named Percy. Well, it seems the mischievous Percy tied the rear legs of a dog together and then threw it into the middle of the lake to see if it could swim back to shore. Guess what? It couldn't! After a good chuckle by the group of kids, they decided to play a nice game of street hockey. Those crazy kids! "Mr. Rice's Secret" is truly one of the most touching and inspirational films of our time.