Movie Review:
Hoot

Production Company: New Line Cinema
Director: Wil Shriner
Principals: Luke Wilson, Logan Lerman, Brie Larson, Cody Linley
Rating: PG

By Gregg Tubbs

(UMC.org)—If you’re as old as I am, you probably remember a charming environmental campaign from the 1970 with the slogan, “Give a hoot, don’t pollute.” The campaign featured a cute little owl to appeal to kids and raise their awareness (and hopefully that of their parents) about littering, polluting and other eco-nastiness. The equally charming new film Hoot, based on the Newbery Award-winning, young readers’ novel by Carl Hiaasen, evokes that same planet-loving sentiment. Like the ad campaign, the film also appeals to kids and stars a cute owl, but here the owl needs to be saved, and the threat is not pollution but the rampant development of the vanishing wilds of Florida.

The site of a future “Mother Paula’s Pancake House” is located on top of a little colony of burrowing owls, which are an endangered species protected by Florida law. Copyright © 2006 New Line Cinema

In Hoot, three middle-schoolers—a runaway, a tomboy and the “new kid”—join forces to foil greedy land developers, corrupt politicians, and comical cops in a story that is part mystery, part ecological statement and part drama about the trials of youth. Thanks to the pedigree of Hiaasen’s sharp book and the loving transfer to screen by co-producers Jimmy Buffet and Frank Marshall (Seabiscuit) and Walden Media (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe; Holes), Hoot blends just the right amount of spunk, heart and humor into its tight 90-minute package. The result is perfect, breezy family entertainment with the not-so-hidden message about loving God’s creation and protecting the wonders in it.

Middle-schooler Roy Eberhardt (Logan Lerman) is the eternal “new kid on the block.” By his own count, he has attended six schools in the last eight years. His latest move has been hard, since his dad’s job has taken him from Montana, which he loved, to Cocoanut Cove, a city on the Atlantic Coast of Florida. The usual trials of a new school—and dealing with a new school bus bully—are leavened by a bit of mystery. Who is the barefoot boy Roy sees running through the woods? Why is someone vandalizing a construction site? And are those really owls living in burrows in the sand?

Roy (Logan Lerman) and his new friends, Mullet (Cody Linley) Fingers and his sister Beatrice (Brie Larson), set out to stall the destruction of the land until they can find legal grounds to stop the land development permanently. Copyright © 2006 New Line Cinema

As Roy does a little detective work and makes friends with some savvy locals, he learns that the site of a future “Mother Paula’s Pancake House” is located on top of a little colony of burrowing owls. The owls are an endangered species protected by Florida law, and yet the Mother Paula Corporation has somehow gotten the legal go ahead to bulldoze the site, which would also wipe out the helpless owls. Roy’s dad claims there’s nothing they can do about it, but Roy argues, “Just because it’s legal, doesn’t make it right.” So Roy and his new friends, Mullet Fingers (a typically loopy Hiaasen penned name) and his sister Beatrice “the Bull,” set out to stall the destruction of the land until they can find legal grounds to permanently eliminate the threat to the fragile and endangered ecosystem.

Packed with amusing plot twists, offbeat characters, and puckish humor, Hoot is fun for the whole family. But adults should be aware that it’s aimed at kids. While it lacks subtlety, the film more than makes up for it with its heart and beautiful Florida vistas. An added bonus for any grown-up “Parrot Head” is the presence of Jimmy Buffet. One of the co-producers, Buffet also multitasks by playing Roy’s science teacher and providing original songs and lively covers for the musical score. Buffet’s covers of Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves of London” and the classic “Barefootin’” are standouts, but the real highlight is a new tune called “Good Guys Win.” The song perfectly sums up the film’s inspiring message that occasionally the good guys really do win, and that sometimes grownups can learn from their children.

One of the co-producers of the film, Jimmy Buffet also plays Mr. Ryan, Roy’s (Logan Lerman) science teacher, and provides original songs and lively covers for the musical score. Copyright © 2006 New Line Cinema

Gregg Tubbs is a freelance writer living in Columbia, Md.

This review was developed by UMC.org, the official online ministry of The United Methodist Church.

Group Study Guide

Study Questions:

• Have you ever read the book “Hoot”? What did you think of the film adaptation? Was it faithful to the book?
• Have you ever moved from a place you loved? How did that experience help you identify with what Roy was going through?
• Roy punched Dana, the bully, on the bus. Have you ever encountered a bully? How did you respond? Did Roy do the right thing or should he have simply “turned the other cheek”?
• What did you think was the main message of Hoot? (There are many—standing up for your beliefs, protecting the earth, opposing greed, etc.)
• There was a lot of “name-calling” and the assigning of nicknames in Hoot. In your experience, was this realistic? Is name-calling wrong? How can nicknames be either complimentary or hurtful?
• Roy’s parents made him apologize to Dana. If you were Roy’s parent, would you have done the same? Have you ever had to apologize to someone, even though it was difficult?
• Do you think Mullet Fingers was right to vandalize the construction site? Why or why not? Can two wrongs make a right in this situation?
• The ads for this film say “It’s time to stand up for the little guys.” Do you agree? As Christians, should we stand up for the small and helpless? What Christian principles support this stance?
• What was Mr. Muckle’s main weakness? Greed, pride, cruelty? Have you ever had to stand up to someone like Mr. Muckle? What did you learn from that experience?
• How do you feel about development of natural lands? Should people limit development? Is this a Christian issue?

Group Activities:

Take a Stand: One of the main themes of Hoot is standing up for what you believe is right. For this activity, ask your group members to pretend they are about to go out and march, either in protest or in support, of something they deeply believe in. Encourage them to apply Christian ethics when deciding what their cause will be. Supply them with letter-sized paper, wooden craft sticks, tape and markers or other drawing supplies. Ask each person to create a sign with a slogan (like “Give a hoot, don’t pollute”), symbol or picture that represents his or her position. After everyone in the group has created a sign, ask group members to share their sign and explain what their cause is, why it’s important, and how they would make a stand to support it. Discuss common themes and any particularly unique concerns. Don’t be afraid to discuss whether the issues are consistent with Christian thinking or if whether they motivated primarily by tradition, patriotism, regional loyalty, etc.

Sing in Praise of the God of Creation: The film advocates a reverence for nature and wildlife. Invite your group to praise God through song, as the God of all creation and the source of all life. Many popular hymns center on God and nature or include this theme. Some possible hymns you might sing are:

o “For the Beasts of the Earth”
o “This is My Father’s World”
o “How Great Thou Art”
o “Morning Has Broken”
o “God of the Sparrow, God of the Whale”
o “All Things Bright and Beautiful”
o “Creating God Your Fingers Trace”
o “All Creatures of Our God and King”

Intersperse your sing-along with brief discussions of what these songs mean and how they relate to our responsibility as stewards of the earth.

Group Discussion: Hoot grapples with the subject of civil disobedience. Ask the group to discuss the concept of civil disobedience. Did the kids in the film have the right, or even the obligation, to do what they did? Discuss Roy’s argument that something that is legal is not necessarily right. What is the difference between something being legal and being right? Is there a law higher than human law? Did Jesus ever ignore the law, as it was strictly applied? What reason did he give? See Luke 6:6-10 and Matthew 12:1-3.

Resources
Official Hoot Web site

Theatrical Trailer
QuickTime