Kit Kittredge: Recession-proof girl?

Just got back from a screening of Kit Kittredge: An American Girl, and found it to be a pleasant, G-rated experience with good performances, fine 1930's production design and a wholesome vibe that's actually refreshing.

When the movie opens July 2, it''ll probably get buried by the summer movie crush.

Too bad, since this Depression-era dramedy has uncanny parallels to today's economic crunch times. Themes like housing and business foreclosures, unemployment and the homeless (referred to in the movie by that era's term "hoboes") are core elements of the plot. Nothing political, but the trials of families broken or otherwise devastated by hard times are timeless. Funny that a movie set 74 years ago should be so topical.

It helps that young Kit, played by Abigail Breslin, keeps mostly on the sunny side of life despite the loss of friends forced to move away to better opportunities, and a father (welcome back, Chris O'Donnell) who hid the family's distress for her sake, until he must do the same. Breslin still isn't an especially subtle actor but in these surroundings, a little old-fashioned Shirley Templism isn't out of place.

The movie is corny in a good way, and simplistic about economic factors then (and by extension now) so that modern kids watching  will be able to connect the dots. There are worthwhile messages about honesty, dignity and respect for less-fortunate others. It's the kind of movie that used to be made all the time, that was forgotten when movies got louder, bolder and hectic.

That's why I'm not confident in its success. Will Smith's Hancock is opening the same day, while WALL*E and Kung Fu Panda will still be going strong for the same audience, and they're fun, rather than reminiscent of what parents may be worried about at home. Unless I'm underestimating the appeal for the American Girl doll and book series -- and admittedly I know nothing about it yet -- Kit Kittredge: An American Girl will end up bruised by not one but two economic downturns.

I really hope I'm wrong.