Swindle

Honestly this movie is really good? Like, it's targeted toward kids, but even an adult can enjoy it. Yes, it has plenty of stupid moments, but you can just laugh those off and still enjoy it. Props to nick for this one

Lately, it seems Nickelodeon has been going downhill from the releases of their new series', but when I saw them advertising for one of my favorite books I read in elementary school, I thought "Great. Now they're going to make a mockery out of this book." Surprisingly, that didn't happen. It flowed out smooth enough to take in the movie without too many judgements, but it didn't completely elude my judging. There were 2 things I didn't care for in this TV movie. One being it verged from the original story a bit. I kept waiting for the part when Ben would reveal his narcolepsy, but that never happened. Aside from that, I was disappointed that the final heist never happened in Swindel's house, instead in a hotel lobby. Nick definitely took away the most suspenseful part. The second thing I did not care for were Noah and Jennette's characters. Savannah was meant to be the animal lover and the dog whisperer. Instead she was an actress with really no part. Ariana's character wasn't even "Pitch", instead she simply went by "Amanda" (Which wasn't even her real name in the book). However, though Nick left out some of the scenes I was hoping to see, they did a pretty decent job and is easily re-watchable.

This is an alright teenage film for all viewers to watch. The crew did a fine enough job in creating this teenage film. The storyline of this teenage film was good enough and original. The cast selection was great. I am a massive fan of Ciara Bravo, Ariana Grande, Jennette McCurdy, and Noah Munck. All from Nickelodeon. They all work very well with each other. The chemistry between them is always strong. This teenage film reveals to viewers that everyone needs to be more cautious in the world of today. No one knows what truly is out there and no one knows what the future holds. This is a fine teenage film for everyone to watch.

Decent watch, might watch again, and can recommend, but go watch "The Perfect Score" before this.

A lot of young actors, 3 of which I recognized at all, but couldn't place without looking at the credits, and wouldn't you know it Ariana Grande used to be an actor. She does a decent job, along with the rest of the cast.

Fred Ewanuick was my favorite as he usually plays such a nice guy, it was refreshing to see him handle a villain role,if poorly written. A similar problem to "Big Fat Liar", you have to really be delicate with what a villain does or the heroes do to a villain in a kids targeted movie.

Ultimately, I would suggest "The Perfect Score" or "Big Fat Liar" over this, but it's not a bad watch.

In the movie Swindle, there are many things different from the book. The movie was pretty bad, but I'll give Nick some credit for trying! If you want to see a movie based on the book Swindle, don't even bother to watch this; it's as if the makers of the movie just skimmed through the book and took small details for the Nick version. It has more parts that came from the imagination than the original parts. This movie is over an hour, and whether you've read the book or not, it's not worth watching. This movie deserves a one star rating. The story (that's in the movie) is so messed up that if somebody read the book after seeing the movie without the names and title, they might not be able to tell that movie was made after the book Swindle. It needs lots of improvement, but it's too late now for Nick to change the movie. Overall, it's not worth watching. Here's a list of some differences.

1: In the book, the team is originally Griffin Bing, Antonia "Pitch" Benson, Melissa Dukakis, Logan Kellerman, Benjamin (Ben) Slovak, and Savannah Drysdale. While they were in a meeting, Darren Vader eavesdropped, and then he became one of the team members. In the movie, Logan isn't in it at all! Also, Darren is one of the original team members.

2: Some of the characters last names and/or personalities are changed in the movie. Melissa is Griffin's sister in the movie (Melissa Bing), and is Melissa Dukakis in the book. Antonia "Pitch" Benson isn't Antonia OR Pitch in the movie; she's Amanda. Her specialty is not climbing in the movie; it's gymnastics. Also, her character doesn't have honey-blond hair, which it says in the book Framed, also in the Swindle series. Ben DOESN'T HAVE NARCOLEPSY IN THE MOVIE?!?!?! He's narcoleptic in the book, so why not the movie? He is the small spaces specialist in the book too, but not in the movie! In fact, in the movie he's taller than Griffin! Ben has a different last name in the movie than the book. Savannah has a different last name in the movie like Ben. She is an actress in the movie, whereas in the book she's an animal lover, expert, and carer-for. What is not delightful about that is if Nick had made Savannah's specialty NOT be acting, my favorite character, Logan Kellerman, might be in the movie.

3: Things about Swindle's store, and Swindle changed, too. "S. Wendell Palomino" is "Paul Swendell" in the movie, which is different from the book. His store's name in the book is Palomino's Emporium of Collectibles and Memorabilia; in the movie, it has a pretty much different name in the movie. Another change is the baseball card is not a Babe Ruth card, Swindle doesn't have an assistant manager, AND he doesn't have the Doberman Pinscher, Luthor (who's face is on the cover of every book in the Swindle series). How can Nick have made a Swindle movie without Luthor??? It's like making a Jaws movie without a shark!!!

4:The people who play the kids from the story are older than 11. In the book Swindle, Griffin, Ben, Savannah, Pitch, Logan, Melissa, and Darren are all 11. In the movie, the members of the group are teenage high school students who can drive cars!! Also, the actors and actresses don't look like I'd picture them from the book descriptions, except for maybe Darren and Melissa, if they were younger.

5: Ben's family has the money problems in the movie. In the book, it's Griffin's family that has the problems. Ben's dad is the inventor, and he doesn't invent the Smartpick, like Griffin's dad did in the book. He invents a blue hand that can reaches out and grab things for couch potatoes.

6: There are different things about the heists. There is no "old Rockford house" sleepover, so the card is found somewhere else. There is no heist in Swindle's house like the book. Everybody knows about the store's heist when it takes place in the movie, but in the book, only Griffin, Ben, and maybe Savannah know until it's over. In the movie, the card was found in Swendell's store in the first "the great baseball card heist" instead of it and the safe it was in taken to Swindle's home like in the book.

Like I mentioned, in the movie Swindle, there are many things different from the book. It could be a lot better if Nick had made it more like Gordon Korman's original story. If you haven't read the book Swindle, it's worth your time to read it and see the differences for yourself. Plus, it's a great book and the start of an awesome series!! If you HAVE read the book Swindle, and you agree, thanks! If you don't agree…. hey! We have our opinions! The movie Swindle had weird spots, bad spots, and okay spots! And maybe a few good spots. I might not even be mentioning these things if it was more like the book, but thank you for reading!