VJ Purplequeen:

What a great feel good movie and message! Although seeming rather unrealistic, I was able to readily to suspend my belief that this could really happen and enjoyed tremendously seeing a movie that projected what might happen in a better world. The acting all around was quite marvelous and it is a movie I hope that many people (junior high schoolers especially) will see and think about.

ykf 483620:

This was a great little movie about a little girl finding the confidence to suceed through a spelling bee. There are some wonderful performances and a very uplifting tale about how hard work is its own reward. I really liked this film and I think it will have a broad appeal. And that's why I recommend it to all.

crewark:

It seems we are in a renaissance of films about spelling bees, what with not only "Akeelah and the Bee" but also "Bee Season." Then there is "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" on Broadway. I think the reason for this is clear: ESPN has been broadcasting the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee live for the past several years. Anyone who has stumbled across this on cable has probably stopped to check it out and quickly learned all of the stock questions contestants ask regarding definitions, origin, and using words in sentences (ESPN did a nice station promo off of it as well). Just like horse racing during Triple Crown season, people who ignore it the rest of the year can find themselves watching these kids spell words the rest could never use in a sentence, let alone spell.

MattChance:

I wasn't sure that I'd like Akeelah and the Bee. Sure it fits my profile as a big fan of indie feel-good movies, but I was afraid it would be too cliched to impact me at all. Even when I started watching, I was worried that it was going to just be about the area where Akeelah lives, and how her neighborhood impacts her life. Thankfully, the director didn't go the easy route. Instead, a natural talent shines through in Keke Palmer, and she blows away anyone else onscreen with her. Akeelah is so much more than a story about a gifted child. It's also about how everyone around her is affected by her passion for her goals in life.

jlighthall:

Akeelah and the Bee is a touching story that also has some funny moments. It has it's tear jerking parts and some parts that make me feel like an inferior speler Great cast of actors and actresses, this one is an owner for my family.

KramerInFlorida:

Feel good movie. It's like junk food for your heart. Great performances by scholarly Laurence Fishburne, overworked mom Angela Bassett, and of course Keke Palmer as Akeelah. Her relationship with Javier (J.R. Villarreal) is undeniably cute.

Rick McLeod:

I hate "try hard and you can accomplish anything" movies. They usually make me sick. Maybe it's because I am now of the age where I know I won't make the major league, or fly to the moon, or be Charlize Theron's boyfriend, but I usually feel like these kinds of movies exist solely to keep up the spirits of the disenfranchised masses. This one, however, won me over. I was genuinely pulling for Akeelah, and believe me I'm down with schadenfreude as much as the next guy. Good movie.

79c3c281a2:

Some critics made this sound like so much more than just a glorified afterschool special, hence the rental. Sadly, it turns out to be a glorified afterschool special. Not bad for what it is, but too cliched and dull for me.

umj 84370:

People enjoy seeing others achieve--it's inspiring. However, while this movie seems targeted at the inner-city gansta viewers, it stereotypes the inner-city "black" culture and portrays unrealistic solutions to their troubles: namely that having "one of their own" succeed will lead to their prosperity. In my opinion, it's their self-racist/culturist attitude that should be denounced: only when "they" treat themselves as INDIVIDUALS and not part of some race/culture, then they'll free themselves to use reason, and make good decisions about life and finances. Another major flaw of the movie is the lip-service to self-sacrifice when Akeelah chooses to stunt her own success to let another family pretend that their child won. This is one of the worst "morals" of the ages and should not be championed.