Akeelah and the Bee

Summary:
An inspirational drama, Akeelah and the Bee is the story of Akeelah Anderson (Keke Palmer), a precocious eleven-year-old girl from south Los Angeles with a gift for words. Despite the objections of her mother Tanya (Angela Bassett), Akeelah enters various spelling contests, for which she is tutored by the forthright Dr. Larabee (Laurence Fishburne); her principal Mr. Welch (Curtis Armstrong) and the proud residents of her neighborhood. Akeelah’s aptitude earns her an opportunity to compete for a spot in the Scripps National Spelling Bee and in turn unites her neighborhood who witness the courage and inspiration of one amazing little girl.

I have to admit that I've avoided watching this movie since it was released in 2006. I have no idea why. I think it was just one of those movies that I said I'd get to eventually. The title has popped up in my life so many times that I finally picked it off the shelf at my library and decided to give it a go. Honestly, I knew nothing about the movie except it seemed that a lot of kids liked it. I thought it was about a cute African American girl and a bee...as in bumblebee so I was pleasantly surprised when I found out it was about spelling!

At the start of the movie Akeelah is walking through the her south Los Angeles neighborhood with her best friend. In a voice-over she asks, "You know that feeling where no matter what you do or where you go you just don't fit in? 'Cause that's how I feel all the time." Even for kids, or adults who don't have an answer to her question, most of us know what it's like to not fit in and I wanted to know why Akeelah felt this way, so I settled in for what ended up being a very enjoyable movie.

11 year-old Akeelah attends a school known for low test grades and being one of the poorest schools in her area. The students are just trying to get through each day and that includes Akeelah who doesn't want to stand out yet has a love for words and language which she learned from her father who we find out passed away when Akeelah was only six. Akeelah spends her time playing Scrabble online and reading the dictionary while at the same time skipping class and doing poorly in school. The school principal threatens Akeelah with detention, but because of a teacher that notices Akeelah's gift for words and language, she is given the opportunity to avoid detention by entering the school's spelling bee. Enter Dr. Larabee, a professor and former national spelling bee contestant, who witnesses Akeelah as she breezes through the school competition. Dr. Larabee agrees to coach the hard headed and feisty Akeelah in order to help her reach the nationals. In the process he also becomes a father figure.

Akeelah's journey to the nationals puts her through some tough situations: peer pressure, lack of support from her overworked mother, jealousy from her peers and friends, insecurities about not being worthy and good enough. Although these can be overwhelming subjects to deal with, the movie does it in a way that kids of all ages can relate. When Akeelah enters the first spelling bee we see the two female school bullies making fun of her with giggles and taunts. The scene keeps the focus on Akeelah, but the quick moments with the bullies immediately had me rooting for Akeelah to win. Another well shot scene is when Akeelah makes friends with other contestants in the spelling bee. Most of the kids are from well-off families. What's interesting is the director chose to include kids from a variety of cultural and ethnic backgrounds. When Akeelah attends a birthday party for one of her spelling bee friends she brings her best friend from school. Her friend decides to not go into the party with Akeelah. Akeelah doesn't quite understand why, but the audience watching the film knows that her friend feels out of place around the "smart" and "rich" kids. What makes this film really worth watching is its message that kids can overcome the obstacles in their lives regardless of where they come from. Akeelah has to decide what is important to her and it is great watching her go through her journey to the national spelling bee championship. A great uplifting movie for young and old alike!