Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

I have recently been on a reminiscent kick of watching old non-animated Disney movies. Most recently, I put Candleshoe on my Netflix queue and impatiently waited. I had seen this movie years ago when I was about 8, so I didn’t remember much, except that it had Jodi Foster in it and I thought she was so cool after I had seen her in Freaky Friday. After being quite disappointed by other movies I once thought were cool as a kid, I was a bit apprehensive of Candleshoe, but I was rather pleasantly surprised.

The story begins with a 14 year old Jodi Foster as Casey, a rag-a-muffin, rebellious orphan who happens to bear striking similarities to a young girl who was kidnapped/lost when she was very young. A con man, Harry, finds her and convinces her to play the part of the long lost granddaughter to a wealthy elderly woman who is rumored to have a hidden treasure somewhere on her property, which is the eponymous Candleshoe.

Candleshoe is a beautiful English estate where Casey finds herself transported to, away from the familiar New York streets she called home. Upon arriving at Candleshoe, Casey is taken in as the veritable grandchild and is surprised to find an interesting assortment of characters living in the house with her newfound “grandmother”. Several children in the town living in an orphanage have also come to call Candleshoe home, and they remain loyal to Grandmother and her beloved estate.

The children at Candleshoe are somewhat suspicious of Casey, but do their best to welcome her to the “family”. As it turns out, Candleshoe is in great debt and the children have been struggling to keep the household afloat by offering tours of Candleshoe, selling jams, breads and other wares to help try and make ends meet. Casey ends up (in true Disney fashion) having a change of heart and helping Candleshoe out as well.

Meanwhile, as Casey is finding that living at Candleshoe better than she thought it would be, her original mission was to find the hidden treasure. Thus our conflict of the plot begins. Torn between being the rough and tough pre-teen that she was and being a kind a good granddaughter, Casey realizes that there is more to life than cons and self-serving behavior (can’t have a good Disney movie without a good lesson now, can we?).

My entire family enjoyed watching this movie, although my three year old drifted in and out of interest throughout. I had remembered watching Candleshoe as a child, around 8 or 9 and really enjoyed it (although I did not remember anything about the story line more than twenty years later). This movie is completely family appropriate, with funny and heartwarming moments and a bit of suspense as well.

The acting in this movie was fine. Jodie Foster may not have been entirely Oscar worthy in Candleshoe, but she played a tough New York orphan with a bit of an edge. Helen Hayes (the grandmother) and David Niven was wonderful as the jack of all trades butler. This movie called for no special effects and really has held up well, being filmed in 1977, although the costumes do appear a bit outdated. Disney did a great job with this movie, making it really a family film for all to enjoy. With a somewhat predictable plot, clearly a good guys vs. bad guys movie, Candleshoe is a great movie to watch on a rainy weekend with the entire family.

This is my entry to Captain D's Good Movie Write-Off



Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 9 - 12