(3 Stars)
After her dad (Tate Donovan) brings her to L.A. and instructs her to stop sleuthing, beloved detective Nancy Drew (Emma Roberts) — an old-school teen who drinks milk and drives the speed limit — ignores the order and works to uncover the details behind a movie star’s death.
Catch it: “Nancy Drew” does get a bit earnest, but it’s the rare kids movie that parents shouldn’t be embarrassed to endorse. Nancy is like June Cleaver meets Veronica Mars, and she’s an independent thinker who earns young girls’ respect and makes it cool to be uncool.
Skip it: If you send texts to people across the table from you. Congratulations: You have the manners of a 16-year-old girl.
Bottom line: The mystery lacks the zip and spunk of its heroine. But it offers a healthy dose of girl power, featuring an appealing sleuth who’s not afraid to be a kid and winds up more adult than everyone she knows.
