Review by vchimpanzee

This story is set several hundred years ago. A mysterious girl who apparently speaks no English is found begging in the streets. The magistrate wants to put her in jail, but the wife of one of the prominent men of the city wants to take her home to stay with her. Several people are consulted to determine what language the girl speaks, including one language expert played by John Lithgow who is very funny (especially when he tries to speak various languages). The girl doesn't look Asian or Middle Eastern, but if she's faking it (as some suspect) she's doing a good job. She has a tattoo and strange religious customs that provide clues, though the language in which she writes is not known to anyone. It is decided that she is speaking a dialect from Asia.

When she does understand what is going on, she comes across as quite charming. Eventually, it is determined that she must be a princess, and her name seems to be Caraboo.

Phoebe Cates gave a performance worthy of an Oscar nomination. Whether her character did as well I won't say. You'll just have to watch.

I was worried when the movie wasn't funny at first, but the humor came in large doses after a while, and not the usual type of movie humor. This was quite a sophisticated film considering it often tried to be silly, and the costumes and the settings were very nice. The music was magnificent, whether highbrow classical or period music that sounded more like what ordinary people would enjoy.

Everything about this movie was well done, and while it's not normally the type of movie I would watch, I enjoyed it.