Nim's Island

Name: Nim's Island
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Family
Released: April 4, 2008
Duration: 96 min
Rating: 55
Cast: Abigail Breslin, Gerard Butler, Jodie Foster

2008

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 91 Ratings

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8.4

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8.4	User Score Universal acclaim based on 91 Ratings

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Nim's Island

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Movie Details & Credits

Fox-Walden | Release Date: April 4, 2008 | PG

Starring: Abigail Breslin, Gerard Butler, Jodie Foster

Summary: Anything can happen on Nim's Island, a magical place ruled by a young girl's imagination. It is an existence that mirrors that of Nim's favorite literary character, Alex Rover, the world's greatest adventurer. But Alexandra, the author of the Rover books, leads a reclusive life in the big city. When Nim's father goes missing from theirAnything can happen on Nim's Island, a magical place ruled by a young girl's imagination. It is an existence that mirrors that of Nim's favorite literary character, Alex Rover, the world's greatest adventurer. But Alexandra, the author of the Rover books, leads a reclusive life in the big city. When Nim's father goes missing from their island, a twist of fate brings her together with Alexandra. Now, they must draw courage from their fictional hero, Alex Rover, and find strength in each other to conquer Nim's Island. (Fox Walden)… Expand

Director: Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin

Genre(s): Adventure, Comedy, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 96 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Ruthe Stein

Exhilarating and enchanting family picture. It's the best I've seen this year and highly recommended for girls and for boys, too. Read full review

Leah Greenblatt

It's hard to imagine kids not enjoying the good-hearted, lovingly shot fantasy of it all, and Breslin is charming, though most viewers past puberty will likely yearn to be voted off the Island. Read full review

Marjorie Baumgarten

Boys adventure stories are a dime (store novel) a dozen, but girls adventure tales are rare things indeed. Read full review

Robert Wilonsky

Despite its formula and flaws (chief among them Foster’s sitcom-campy performance), Nim’s Island is a perfectly pleasant, agreeably innocuous ’tweener adventure film. Read full review

William Arnold

Such an air of dumbness hovers over the movie, and it's all played so broadly that nothing about it is remotely believable. Read full review

Joe Neumaier

Foster seems to be having real fun, twitching and skittering around, that steel jaw of hers comically tense. But this family movie shouldn't be about a shut-in trying to get from A to B; it needs to be about an unconventional girl growing up and helping an equally unconventional grownup cut loose on a volcanic island. Sadly, Nim's Island is a missed opportunity. Read full review

Liam Lacey

The movie's dated, stereotypical comedy often contradicts its wholesome intentions, coming across as laboriously cutesy and occasionally perverse. Read full review

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User Reviews

lukechristiansc

Dec 23, 2014

Nim's Island is more of an adventure movie more then a comedy! more thrills then laughs. This movie is definite crowd pleasing adventure with a tropical vibe and all of these B list cast actors Abgail Breslin, Jodie Foster and 300's Gerald Butler are actors who don't even git a **** for anNim's Island is more of an adventure movie more then a comedy! more thrills then laughs. This movie is definite crowd pleasing adventure with a tropical vibe and all of these B list cast actors Abgail Breslin, Jodie Foster and 300's Gerald Butler are actors who don't even git a **** for an Oscar all they want is to have fun on the island and give a good performance i understand. grade B+… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

KatieD.

Nov 30, 2008

I liked Nim's Island because my favorite part was the flying lizards! Katie, age 6.

0 of 1 users found this helpful

AriN.

May 18, 2008

It was a cool movie. I liked it because it was a thriiler adventuere. I really thought it should have gotten a better review. -ari

0 of 0 users found this helpful

ChadS.

Apr 7, 2008

Who the hell does Jack Rusoe(Gerald Butler) think he is? MacGyver? "Nim's Island" comes equipped with two teams of screenwriters. Maybe, just maybe, the original pair of scribes preferred that Nim Rusoe(Abigail Breslin) be given the "Castaway" treatment, rather than have "Nim's Who the hell does Jack Rusoe(Gerald Butler) think he is? MacGyver? "Nim's Island" comes equipped with two teams of screenwriters. Maybe, just maybe, the original pair of scribes preferred that Nim Rusoe(Abigail Breslin) be given the "Castaway" treatment, rather than have "Nim's Island" be a sort of "Home Alone on a Deserted Island", especially when the loner girl shoos away a boatload of tourists. For dramatic purposes, her father should be kept off-screen for the duration that he's lost at sea. But, alas, "Nim's Island" is a children's movie. And yet, Jodie Foster gives such an inspired comedic performance as a reclusive Emily Dickinson-type writer, a tension is created between the two narratives, because Alexandra Rover's story seems aimed at adults. Since Foster raises the game, you'll want Nim to exhibit the same psychological realism as Alexandra, an agraphobic, who's forced to become a hero like her alter-ego. But the island-alone girl never seems truly terrified at her prospects of being a sudden orphan. Neither do we, because "Nim's Island" includes Jack's progress with his leaky boat. There's never any doubt about his safety thanks to an anthromorphic(read: Disneyesque) pelican. It's a shame that the filmmakers didn't give the target audience a little more credit and throw more harm towards Nim's way, because Foster gives an Oscar-caliber performance in what essentially becomes a throwaway film.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful

MovieGuys

Mar 8, 2014

Nim's Island is engaging for the most part, and the story isn't half bad. The execution is about right, and the movie almost lives up to its full potential.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

MovieLonely94

Oct 18, 2010

it won't bring new people to like this movie, but it was definitely worth a try.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

DecepticonPom

May 5, 2008

I've been seeing plenty of family movies with my nephew and niece recently and enjoyed some surprisingly decent romps but this is meanderring tosh! Jodie Foster is squandered on a potentially great role that ultimately serves no purpose whatsoever than to hang a tugidly flimsy and I've been seeing plenty of family movies with my nephew and niece recently and enjoyed some surprisingly decent romps but this is meanderring tosh! Jodie Foster is squandered on a potentially great role that ultimately serves no purpose whatsoever than to hang a tugidly flimsy and unexplored possible romance in the last 5 seconds. Garbage!… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful

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