SPELLBOUND (2002) ****

Reviewed 5/5/03

Simply put, SPELLBOUND is spellbinding.  It takes a very simple idea and executes it to near perfection – follow eight young teens in their attempt to become the 1999 National Spelling Bee Champion.  The results are hilarious, touching, edge-of-your-seat thrilling, and sad (after all, only one can win it all).

The kids director Jeffrey Blitz turns his attention to (most likely on purpose) are from many varying demographics.  Three are children of immigrants - Nupur Lala and Neil Kadakia are both second generation Indians and Angela Arenivar is daughter of a Mexican cowhand who cannot even speak English.  Ashley White is black, raised by a single mother in Washington D.C. projects, while white Emily Stagg has had numerous au pairs and plays polo in New Haven.  Ted Brigham is the brightest bulb in a small rural Missouri town, and April DeGideo is the daughter of a barkeep in Pennsylvania.  She thinks of her parents as “Archie and Edith Bunker,” a surprising cultural reference for someone her age.  Finally, there is middle class Harry Altman.  The closest to a conventional nerd stereotype, Harry comes across as a combo of Martin and Ralph on “The Simpsons.”

The first half of the movie is devoted to getting to know the kids through interviews with them, their families, teachers, and members of the community.  Three boys in Nupur’s school amusingly recount how they failed to unseat her, and Blitz presents us with the double irony of a Hooter’s restaurant praising her with a sign offering “congradultions.”  The adorable April wears her vulnerability on her sleeve, sporting a pessimism far too premature in one so young and talented.  When school starts again after summer break, she scales back studying for the bee from nine hours a day to five.  Most of the children’s parents do not seem overly demanding of their prodigies.  The exception is Neil’s father.  A self-made man who pushed Neil’s older sister to fifth place previously, he is so fervent over a Neil victory that he has made a deal to feed 5,000 starving people in India should Neil win.  Angela’s brother reveals the trials and tribulations of their immigrant parents, and Angela talks about how her training methods are self-created.  Harry sings off-key for the camera while Ashley says without a hint of self-awareness, “My life is a like a movie.”

As a movie, SPELLBOUND is as riveting as they come once the competition begins.  You don’t want any of the kids to lose, and with 249 contestants, none of these 8 are guaranteed to win.  Once the contest is underway, Blitz tosses in interviews with past winners including the very first from 1925 for added poignancy.  Some kids get easy words (like “corollary”) and some get words you didn’t know existed (like “apocope” and “opsimath”) and some words just shouldn’t exist (like “cabotinage” and “zwieback”).  With only one wrong letter deciding whether a contestant moves into the next round or goes home, the competition is as nail-biting as any sporting event.  No wonder ESPN telecasts it every year.  Each contestant goes down with varying reactions from grim-faced to heartbreaking to a funny, understated “Crap.”

Ultimately, SPELLBOUND’s greatest achievement is making each child a distinct, memorable individual, one fully fleshed out by the backgrounds from which they spring, and every one of them gives tremendous hope to the future.