Korean film offers simple, pure message to little ones

It's probably not realistic to suggest a slow-moving Korean movie might be a good choice for kids -- but I'm going to anyway . . . along with a few new DVDs aimed directly at "tweens" and small fry:

-- "The Way Home" (Paramount, 2002, PG, $29.99). Hollywood moviemakers try to explain away the fact that their films are loaded with profanity, sexual content and violence by saying they want to replicate real life; they want their films to be "realistic." The irony, of course, is that most Hollywood films are replete with fantastic situations and cardboard characters who behave in ways that are anything but realistic.

They should all be forced to watch "The Way Home," a low-key Korean picture that provides a valuable lesson in how to keep it real . . . and yet, it's a soft PG-rated film.

The plot is deceptively simple: A woman needs some time alone to look for a job, so she takes her young son on a long, uncomfortable bus journey deep into the country to leave him with her mother for a time. The 7-year-old boy is a spoiled brat who doesn't want to be with his elderly grandmother -- especially since her hut has no plumbing or electricity. He wants his TV, his Kentucky Fried Chicken and the modern conveniences with which he's grown up in the city.

Worse, his grandmother is a deaf mute, hunched over from years of carrying heavy loads on her back, and she barely ekes out a living. So the boy retreats to his GameBoy and the junk food his mother has packed for him . . . until the batteries run down and the food runs out. Then he begins to belittle and play mean tricks on his grandmother behind her back.

The grandmother, however, is infinitely patient. Her eyes tell the story; she loves the boy unconditionally. And though it takes most of the movie, he gradually softens toward her. But not in a Hollywood way; it's not a stark, dramatic change. Outwardly, he's not a whole lot different at the end of the film -- but a bond has been formed.

"The Way Home" is a remarkable film of simple beauty; it stays with you, as does the image of this grandmother and the never- wavering affection she has for her grandson.

Extras: Widescreen, in Korean with English subtitles, etc.

-- "Good Burger" (Paramount, 1997, PG, $19.99). In spirit, this Nickelodeon farce brings to mind the first two movies by Savage Steve Holland, "Better Off Dead" (1985) and "One Crazy Summer" (1986), both starring John Cusack and both similar off-the-wall, goofball comedies aimed at a youth audience.

The stars here are a sort of teenage Abbott & Costello, Kenan & Kel. Kel Mitchell is a hoot as Ed, the dimwitted counter-server at Good Burger, a 40-year-old local eatery. And Kenan Thompson is Dexter, a wheeler-dealer who goes to work for Mondo Burger, the flashy, high-tech new joint across the street. But when he's fired almost immediately, Dexter goes to work for Good Burger instead.

The primary plot has Kel coming up with a taste sensation that brings in customers -- and get this, it's fry sauce! But forget the plot and just go with the silliness. It's all pretty juvenile, but I did laugh here and there, and kids will no doubt love it. Guest stars include Sinbad and Shaquille O'Neal.

Extras: Widescreen, etc.

-- "Harriet the Spy" (Paramount, 1996, PG, $19.99). My reaction to "Harriet the Spy" was far less enthusiastic, mainly due to the overly flashy camera work by director Bronwen Hughes, which I found distracting and annoying.

But, again, kids will no doubt enjoy this adaptation of Louise Fitzhugh's novel about a young girl (Michelle Trachtenberg, more recently seen as the younger sister of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer") who keeps a journal of everything that goes on around her, including some things she probably shouldn't. When her schoolmates find out what she's been writing, she finds herself shunned until she can make amends.

Some nice messages and moments, but mainly for younger youngsters.

Extras: Widescreen, etc.

-- "The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius: Confusion Fusion" (Paramount, 2002, not rated, $19.99). This is a collection of short episodes from the popular Nickelodeon TV show, the computer-animated adventures of a boy who's too smart for his own good. Some of it's pretty silly, some of it's pretty gross (they're big on snot bubbles here), but, hey, it's for kids. So, let them enjoy it by themselves.

Extras: Full frame, nine episodes (including a double-length episode), "Jimmy Neutron" pilot, etc.

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