B-Rating by Robert W. Hammerle

I loved "Penelope," and I don't remotely care that Entertainment Weekly gave it an "F" rating. I thought it was a ridiculously charming, romantic fairy tale.

Christina Ricci plays another one of her offbeat characters, in this case a girl born with a grotesque pig snout as a result of some family curse. Her wealthy, blue blood parents shelter her from the outside world while they try to invite selective suitors into the home. As one might suspect, they all flee immediately upon getting a glimpse of the poor deformed Ms. Ricci.

Along the way, an unscrupulous reporter played by the wonderful Peter Dinklage recruits a down and out gambler (the equally wonderful James McAvoy) to pose as a suitor to gain a picture of Ms. Ricci for his tabloid. While the resulting relationship between Ms. Ricci and Mr. McAvoy is largely predictable, it is nonetheless warm and affecting.

Tired of her cloistered environment, Ms. Ricci ultimately flees her home to experience the outside world. It is unapologetic fun to watch her experience small pleasures that most of us take for granted (i.e., drinking a beer on tap at a local pub). Along the way she is befriended by a cute little errand girl played by the cute little Reese Witherspoon (who also serves as the film's producer), and Ms. Ricci finally discovers the meaning of friendship.

In addition, Catherine O'Hara has a great time hamming it up as the tortured mother of our pig-faced heroine. Full of good intentions and disastrous results, you know that redemption is waiting around the corner.

While it would be easy to dismiss this film, as Entertainment Weekly did, with a caustic wave of the hand, I urge all of you to resist that temptation. Suspend your everyday cynicism and go see this little film, particularly if you can take a young girl between the ages of seven and fourteen. For not only does "Penelope" serve as a subtle critique on our Botox obsessed society, but it reinforces the universal truth that real beauty is found in the eye of the beholder.