Simon Birch

I hasten to add though that Simon Birch isn't in the same league as the other two, probably because Simon Birch can't seem to decide whether it's supposed to be catering to a child or adult audience.

Young Simon (Ian Michael Smith) is an outcast in his archetypal New Hampshire, small America town. He's not much more that a meter tall and a bit misshapen. He balances his disadvantages with a gently sarcastic, questioning view of the world and a willingness and ability to speak up loudly and wittily in for example Sunday School.

His parents don't care about him, and say as much. He runs foul of the authorities in town, in particular the local priest (David Strathairn).

His best mate is Joe (Joseph Mazzello, Jurassic Park) who is also on the outer. His Mum (Ashley Judd, Kiss The Girls) won't own up to who his Dad was and that's pretty unforgivable in a small American town apparently.

Anyway young Simon is cute and he's interesting with his disabilities. Ian Michael Smith gives a strong, thoughtful performance and Ashley Judd is beautiful. The wrecked Nativity play scene is genuinely funny. But I found myself thinking of a couple of genuine dramas that have been made with short people in lead roles and Simon Birch seemed pretty wimpy compared with The Tin Drum and The Year Of Living Dangerously.

First time director Mark Steven Johnson who wrote both of the Grumpy Old Men movies tries to slot this film somewhere between the over acted style of children's movies and the wry satire suggested by many of Simon's lines, not to mention Garp and The Hotel New Hampshire.

But we're left with an amalgam of styles that will end up pleasing very few patrons.