Xpress, the Coolest Section of the St. Petersburg Times, is the home for features, news and views of interest to young readers. Most of the work in Xpress, which appears on Mondays in Floridian, is produced by the Times' X-Team. The team of journalists ages 9-17 from around the Tampa Bay area is selected every year at the end of the school year to serve during the following school term. The current team of 12 was chosen out of 150 applicants. Watch for X-Team application forms in Xpress during the month of May.
Read the reviews by Xpress Film Critic Billy Norris
Movie review
A date movie with balanced appeal
By BILLY NORRIS
Published April 12, 2004
Read the reviews by Xpress Film Critic Billy Norris
The Prince & Me
Rating: PG
Summary: Paige Morgan (Julia Stiles) is a hardworking Wisconsin farm girl and intellectual college student who is well on her way to acceptance at the elite Johns Hopkins medical school. Her academic schedule for the new semester is brutal, and she needs to remain focused to stay on track. Simultaneously, Edward, the Crown Prince of Denmark, (Luke Mably) is going through a rebellious phase (girls and fast cars) and decides to spend some time in America, against his parents' wishes. After seeing a "Girls Gone Wild"-style commercial about college girls in Wisconsin, he decides to go there. Upon his arrival, and accompanied by his personal butler, Soren (Ben Miller), "Eddie" decides to be a normal college student. He is immediately attracted to Paige, who is working as a bartender in a campus hangout. Her first impression of him is not a good one. Much to her chagrin and his satisfaction, they are paired as lab partners in an organic chemistry course, and his slack ways begin to adversely affect her grades. Another kind of chemistry is at work, though, and they start to fall for each other. The only thing in the way of their love is that Eddie will soon become king of Denmark, and Paige knows nothing of his high status, and her possible future as his queen.
My View: This is a great date movie. I originally had this one pegged as a film that would cater only to the female audience, but I was wrong. What balances the appeal is that in addition to the romance, considerable attention is given to the prince's relationship with his butler, his roommate and Paige's brothers. Paige takes him home for Thanksgiving and introduces him to life on a Wisconsin farm. Some of the funniest scenes are when he is bonding with her brothers. Though Stiles is not my favorite actor, this role is a good fit for her style. The plot has familiar elements and is reminiscent of What a Girl Wants, The Princess Diaries and The Lizzie McGuire Movie. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Recommendations: Guys and girls will like it. It's a good movie for teens and up. This movie is not completely appropriate for younger audiences because of some adult-themed humor and language.
Grade: B
Billy Norris, 16, is in 10th grade at Seminole High School and is a former member of the Times X-Team.
