Stuart Little(film)

This article is about the film. For the book, seeStuart Little.For the franchise, seeStuart Little (franchise).For the television series, seeStuart Little (TV series).

Stuart Littleis a 1999 American live-action/animatedcomedy filmloosely based onE. B. White'snovel of the same name.Directed byRob Minkoffin his live-action directorial debut, the screenplay was written byM. Night ShyamalanandGreg Brooker,and starsGeena Davis,Hugh LaurieandJonathan Lipnicki,alongside the voices ofMichael J. Fox,Nathan Lane,Chazz Palminteri,Steve Zahn,Bruno Kirby,andJennifer Tilly.

Stuart Little
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Rob Minkoff
Screenplay by	M. Night Shyamalan Greg Brooker
Based on	Stuart Little byE. B. White
Produced by	Douglas Wick
Starring	Geena Davis Hugh Laurie Jonathan Lipnicki
Cinematography	Guillermo Navarro
Edited by	Tom Finan
Music by	Alan Silvestri
Production companies	Columbia Pictures Red Wagon Entertainment Franklin/Waterman Productions Global Medien KG
Distributed by	Sony Pictures Releasing
Release dates	December 5, 1999(1999-12-05)(Mann Village Theatre) December 17, 1999(1999-12-17)(United States)
Running time	84 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$105–133 million
Box office	$300.1 million

Stuart Littlepremiered in Westwood atMann Village Theatreon December 5, 1999, and was released in United States on December 17, 1999, byColumbia Pictures.The film received generally positive reviews and became a box office success, grossing over $300 million worldwide. It was nominated for anAcademy Award for Best Visual Effects,but lost toThe Matrix.After its success, it also started afranchisewith the sequelStuart Little 2in 2002, the short-lived television seriesStuart Littlein 2003, and thedirect-to-videosequelStuart Little 3: Call of the Wildin 2006. It wasEstelle Getty's final film role.

Plot

InManhattan,Frederick and Eleanor Little visit an orphanage to adopt a new brother for their son, George. Instead, they adopt an anthropomorphic mouse named Stuart. George refuses to acknowledge him as his brother and the family cat, Snowbell, is disgusted to be a new pet to a mouse. The next day, Stuart's life in the house goes off to a bad start when he is inadvertently trapped in thewashing machine,but soon recovers from the incident.

The Littles invite their extended family to meet Stuart where George confesses he does not regard Stuart as a brother but simply a mouse. Stuart asks Eleanor and Fredrick to enquire about his biological parents, feeling an empty space. Stuart encourages George to finish his model boat for an upcoming race and the duo start to bond. Meanwhile, Snowbell and his alley cat friend Monty meet with the latter's superior, Smokey, and formulate a plan to dispose of Stuart. On the day of the race, Stuart accidentally breaks George's remote control. He jumps into the boat and takes control himself, narrowly avoiding a crash and winning the race, finally enabling George to accept Stuart as his brother.

As the Littles host a celebration, a mouse couple, Reggie and Camille Stout, arrive and claim to be Stuart's biological parents who were forced by poverty to give him up. The Littles reluctantly allow Stuart to leave with the Stouts. The orphanage calls to ask how Stuart is doing and when the Littles explain he has gone home with his real parents, orphanage head Mrs. Keeper informs them that Stuart's real parents had died several years earlier. Realizing Stuart has been kidnapped, the family organizes a search party with "missing person" posters, using his photograph from the family photo. Fearing his involvement will be exposed and that he will be kicked out of the house, Snowbell informs Smokey about the news and the latter settles on assassinating Stuart instead.

Remorseful about Stuart's sadness, the Stouts, now revealed to be reluctant pawns of Smokey, reveal their deception; he is delighted and makes his way back to the Little house. On the way, he is ambushed by Smokey and his gang but evades them by going into a sewer. At home, a jealous Snowbell lies that the family is out celebrating his absence, using the fact that Stuart's face has been removed from the family photo as evidence. Heartbroken, Stuart leaves, but Snowbell soon regrets his actions after the Littles return home. Snowbell finds Stuart atCentral Parkand admits his lie, encouraging Stuart to come home. When the duo are confronted by Smokey's gang, Snowbell refuses to hand Stuart over and they give chase, cornering Stuart hanging from a branch over the park's pond. Snowbell breaks the branch beneath the cats, sending them plummeting into the pond. Smokey sneaks up on Snowbell, but Stuart releases a branch that hits Smokey, knocking him into the water. He emerges, but is immediately attacked by dogs.

Stuart is taken home by Snowbell and is reunited with the Littles. Stuart tells them he owes his life to Snowbell, who has realized Stuart truly is family.

Cast

Main article:List of Stuart Little characters

Live-action cast

• Geena Davisas Eleanor Little, thematriarchof the Little family and Frederick's wife.
• Hugh Laurieas Frederick Little, thepatriarchof the Little family and Eleanor's husband.
• Jonathan Lipnickias George Little, the eldest son of the Little family and Stuart's adoptive older brother.
• Jeffrey Jonesas Crenshaw Little, Frederick's older brother, the younger brother of Beatrice and one of George and Stuart's two uncles.
• Connie Rayas Tina Little, Crenshaw's wife and Beatrice and Frederick's sister-in-law and one of George and Stuart's two aunts.
• Allyce Beasleyas Beatrice Little, Crenshaw and Frederick's older sister and one of George and Stuart's two aunts.
• Brian Doyle-Murrayas Edgar Little, Beatrice, Crenshaw and Frederick's cousin, Grandpa Spencer's nephew.
• Estelle Gettyas Estelle Little, Beatrice, Crenshaw and Frederick's mom and George and Stuart's grandmother.
• Harold Gouldas Spencer Little, Beatrice, Crenshaw and Frederick's dad and George and Stuart's grandfather.
• Patrick Thomas O'Brienas Stretch Little, the husband of Beatrice, the brother-in-law of Crenshaw and Frederick and one of George and Stuart's two uncles.
• Julia Sweeneyas Mrs. Keeper, the head of the New York City Public Orphanage.
• Dabney Colemanas Doctor Beechwood, adoctorwho visits the Littles' house following Stuart's entrapment in its washing machine.
• Miles Marsico as Anton Gartman, a mean-spirited boy who bullies George during the boat race.
• Jon Politoas Detective Sherman, apolice detectivewho works for theNew York Police Department.
• Jim Doughanas Detective Phil Allen, Detective Sherman's partner. Doughan also voices Lucky, a member of Smokey's gang, in the film.
• Joe Bays as the boat race starter
• Taylor Negronas a clothing salesman

Voice cast

• Michael J. Foxas Stuart Little, a young anthropomorphic mouse who is adopted as the middle child of the Little family.
• Nathan Laneas Snowbell, the Little family'sPersian catwho initially dislikes Stuart, but later becomes his best friend.
• Chazz Palminterias Smokey, aChartreuxwho is the leader of a gang of alley cats and comes up with a plot to eliminate Stuart when summoned by Snowbell and Monty.
• Steve Zahnas Monty, a graytabby cat,Snowbell's best friend and a former member of Smokey's gang.
• Jim Doughanas Lucky, aSiamese catwho is a member of Smokey's gang. Doughan also portrays Detective Allen in the film.
• David Alan Grieras Red, a gingerAmerican Shorthairtomcat who is a member of Smokey's gang.
• Bruno Kirbyas Reginald Stout, Camille's husband.
• Jennifer Tillyas Camille Stout, Reginald's wife.
• Stan Frebergas the boat race announcer

Production

Development and pre-production

Development on the film began atColumbia Picturesin 1997 when production stalled on a film adaptation of the musicalInto the Woods,which Rob Minkoff was originally set to make his live action directorial debut with. Looking for an alternative route, the studio heads informed him that they had picked up the film rights to E.B. White's novel with Douglas Wick set to produce under his Red Wagon Entertainment banner. It was after reading M. Night Shyamalan's script that he then agreed to direct. In early 1998, the studio officially announced Minkoff as director, with the budget originally set to be under $90 million. While his first full-length live action film, Minkoff directed various short films combining live-action and animation earlier in his career, all of which helped him earn the job, alongside the overwhelming success of his co-directing work onDisney'sThe Lion King(1994). All the cats featured in the film were real and were trained byBoone’s Animals for Hollywood.News outlets originally claimed the film would be G-rated, but the darker tone of the third act would result in theMPAAgiving it a PG rating.

Filming

Filming began on August 3, 1998 both on location inNew York CityandCentral Park,and on soundstages at theSony Pictures StudiosinCulver City, California,where Stage 30 was converted into the set for the boat race scene and Stage 15 became the exterior of the5th Avenuestreet on which the Little family lives. After 12 weeks of production, filming wrapped on November 11. The entire shoot was described as "smooth" and "enjoyable" by the crew members.

Lost painting unknowingly used on set

One of the paintings used as set dressing for the Littles' home was Hungarian avant-garde painterRóbert Berény's 1920s paintingSleeping Lady with Black Vase,which had long been consideredlost.A set designer for the film had purchased the painting at an antiques store inPasadena, California,for $500 for use in the film, unaware of its significance. In 2009, art historian Gergely Barki, while watchingStuart Littleon television with his daughter, noticed the painting, and after contacting the studios was able to track down its whereabouts.In 2014, its owner sold the painting at an auction for €229,500.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack albumStuart Little: Music from and Inspired by the Motion Picturewas released byMotownandUniversal Recordson November 30, 1999, onaudio CDandaudio cassette.It contains songs from and inspired by the film, including the end credits song "You're Where I Belong,"written byDiane Warrenand performed byTrisha Yearwood,which was submitted forBest Original Songconsideration at the72nd Academy Awards,but didn't make the initial shortlist.Also included are two tracks from the orchestral score byAlan Silvestri.Tracks in bold do not appear in the film.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"I Need to Know"(R Angels)	3:54
2.	"The Two of Us"(S Club 7)	3:35
3.	"You're Where I Belong"(Trisha Yearwood)	4:17
4.	"If You Can't Rock Me" (The Brian Setzer Orchestra)	2:40
5.	"1+1=2" (Lou Bega)	4:04
6.	"He Rules"(702)	3:04
7.	"Home"(Brian McKnight)	4:22
8.	"Walking Tall" (Lyle Lovett)	3:16
9.	"Lucky Day"(Matt Goss)	4:03
10.	"Mouse in the House"(Colby O'Donis)	4:34
11.	"As Long as I Can Dream"(Debelah Morgan)	4:27
12.	"The Boat Race" (Alan Silvestri)	5:12
13.	"I'm Gonna Miss You" (Alan Silvestri)	4:43
14.	"You're Where I Belong (Soul Solution Remix)"(Trisha Yearwood)	4:04
Total length:		56:15

Reception

Box office

Stuart Littlewas released theatrically on December 17, 1999. On its opening weekend,Stuart Littlegrossed $15 million, placing it at #1 dethroningToy Story 2.It dropped to #2 over its second weekend, but went back to #1 on its third weekend with $16 million. According toBox Office Mojo,its final gross in the United States and Canada was $140 million and it grossed $160.1 million at the international box office, for an estimated total of $300 million worldwide.

Critical reception

OnRotten Tomatoes,67% of critics gave the film a positive review based on 97 responses with an average rating of 6.4/10. The site's consensus reads: "Critics sayStuart Littleis charming with kids and adults for its humor and visual effects. "OnMetacritic,the film has a score of 61 out of 100 from 32 reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.Audiences polled byCinemaScoregave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.

Jesus Freak Hideout said that "from start to finish, Stuart Little is a near flawless family film"while Stephen Holden ofThe New York Timeshad said "the only element that doesn't completely harmonize with the rest of the film is the visually unremarkable digital figure of Stuart."

Home media

Stuart Littlewas released onVHSandDVDin the United States on April 18, 2000, byColumbia TriStar Home Video,and in the United Kingdom on November 27, 2000. It was later re-released on a Deluxe Edition on May 21, 2002, by Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment. In 2008, the film was released as part of a double feature withStuart Little 2.Stuart LittleandStuart Little 2were released in a combo onSonyPSP'sUMDformat on January 3, 2006, and Blu-ray on June 28, 2011, bySony Pictures Home Entertainment.

External links

• Stuart LittleatIMDb