Valentin, a 9-year-old boy living with his grandmother in late-1960s Buenos Aires, believes his family has problems that only he can solve. The youngster dreams of being reunited with his mother, who's separated from Valentin's abusive father.
Agresti has a decent cast here, but his story is so thin, it threatens to float right off the screen, even when late plot developments add a twist or two.
– Peter Howell,
Toronto Star,
4 Jun 2004
fresh:
The winsome child/unappreciative adults memoir is almost a genre unto itself. But this version is particularly well-cast and well-told.
– Eleanor Ringel Gillespie,
Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
17 Jun 2004
fresh:
Sporting thick, black-rimmed glasses, a runaway imagination and enough nervous energy to light up Manhattan, Noya turns what could have been a pitiful character into a rambunctious imp.