Emmett

Emmett Charles (Miles Brown) is a confident, imaginative 12 year old prodigy attending high school. There is a thieve in the school and police detective Gordon is called in. Suspicion falls upon Emmett's brother Luke.

Emmett is an annoying brat. He can claim some of it as comedic flourishes but there is too much of it. Everybody keeps complaining that he's too perfect when Mac is closer to the truth. He's a know-it-all but has non of the experience. Quite frankly, I feel sympathetic to Mac and I shouldn't. The movie forces me. Then there is the smorgasbord of differing styles and tones. It's a mangled mess. It wants to be a kiddie movie. It wants to deal with the serious race card. It wants to be a wacky screwball comedy. It's all over the place. The production looks weak. That part is surprising since there are some good actors involved. The mystery is not a tough mystery. I thought the case got solved with the pawn shop surveillance footage. When that happens, the tension of Luke all goes away. This is a mess.

Boy Genius wants to be one of those offbeat feel-good comedies, but it never quite clicks. The humor misses more than it hits, the pace drags, and the plot never really pulls you in.

There are a couple nice moments here and there, but they're not enough to keep it from feeling kind of forgettable. Even with its heart in the right place, it never finds the rhythm it needs.

A twelve year-old child prodigy Emmett (Miles Brown) teams up with a quirky retiree to solve a crime and save his family from splitting up. A 12-year-old child prodigy teams up with a retired eccentric to solve a crime and save his family from falling apart. Very cute, valid and necessary... Direction Bridget Stokes...

Those teenage Disney films, almost childish, and silly, but cute at the same time, exaggerated, the brothers' relationship is very cute, won my heart... see deep-rooted structural racism... Many layers that can be analyzed within varied and dramatic contexts... Very cute, valid and necessary...

This was such a sweet movie. Really well-made and the kind of film you finish feeling really good about the world. Miles Brown is definitely a star-on-the-rise, and great chemistry between him and Rita Wilson. This is the kind of film you could watch with the family and know that everyone will enjoy.

Loved this unusually touching and funny movie for all the usual reasons -- great script, superb acting and beautiful, subtle direction. Miles Brown is Emmett, a junior high school prodigy, and Rita Wilson is Mary, a mystery writer, who joins forces with him to exonerate Emmett's brother, under suspicion for a series of thefts. Brown and Wilson are outstanding in their roles and make a truly winning odd couple. A captivating movie of great humor and imagination, whose life lessons and heartfelt moments are handled with a light touch. This one's sure to be a classic.