Director: Doug Atchison
Stars: Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne, Keke Palmer (Full Cast)
Studio: Lions Gate Films

The Plot: A gifted young girl (Palmer) from the Crenshaw district in South Los Angeles trains for the National Spelling Bee with the help of a reclusive professor (Fishburne).

 Akeelah and the Bee Movie Trailer

 Akeelah and the Bee Movie Stills

Review by SEAN AXMAKER

Doug Atchison's heartwarming tale of the odyssey of one little girl from the apathetic streets of South Central L.A. to the National Spelling Bee finals in Washington, D.C., is a celebratory drama engineered to leave you choked up and cheering.  Keke Palmer is adorable as Akeelah, a diminutive underdog in every way. She's emotionally adrift since the death of her father. Her overworked mother (Angela Bassett) is all but absent and indifferent to Akeekah's potential. She's the smallest in her class, in a school where being smart paints a target on your back, and hides her intelligence under a pose of indifference. more detailed..

Review By Joe Lozito 

It’s hard to believe the best family film so far this year comes from a writer-director whose previous film bears the unfortunate title “The Pornographer”. But as Doug Atchison's new film “Akeelah and the Bee” – a heartwarming, spelling bee Cinderella story - might teach us, you can find inspiration where you least expect it. more..

THE EFC REVIEW

We have a major find in Keke Palmer, whose turn as the title character in “Akeelah and the Bee” is far from perfect, but it’s vibrant and engaging and quite wonderful. Palmer, who has appeared previously in such works as “The Wool Cap” and “Madea’s Family Reunion,” has turned in the kind of performance that causes you to sit up and take notice. We see the seeds of something special here; Palmer cements herself here as one to watch in the years to come. more..