Parents' Guide to Penelope

Movie PG 2008 101 minutes
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Common Sense Media Review

S. Jhoanna Robledo By S. Jhoanna Robledo , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 10+

Offbeat romantic comedy is sweet but lightweight.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 10+?

Any Positive Content?

  • 2:03
  • Penelope Trailer
  • Christina Ricci wears a scarf over her face and sits on a green park bench.

Parent and Kid Reviews

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age 11+

Based on 15 parent reviews

 

 

See all 15 parent reviews
age 10+

Based on 21 kid reviews

Kids say the movie is generally light-hearted and entertaining, suitable for older children, though it includes some mild language, drinking, and themes like self-love. While some found it boring at times, others appreciated its positive messages and emotional storytelling, indicating mixed feelings about age appropriateness.

  • light-hearted fun
  • age appropriateness
  • mild language
  • self-love themes
  • mixed reviews
Summarized with AI
 

 

See all 21 kid reviews

What's the Story?

Born to a privileged family burdened by a curse, pig-nosed Penelope (Christina Ricci) will only get a human snout when she finds true love with one of her "own kind." Mindful of a scandal, her parents (Richard E. Grant and Catherine O'Hara) fake her death and lock her away until she's grown up, at which point they begin hunting for a suitable -- and, more important, willing -- mate. The "auditions" for a hex-breaking aristocrat begin straight away, but every time Penelope reveals herself, the men run off. One, disgraced after no one believes his tales of a monster on the loose, hires a muckraker named Lemon (Peter Dinklage), who hatches a plan to hire Max Campion (James McAvoy) -- a down-on-his-luck blueblood with a gambling problem -- to snag a picture that will sell lots of tabloids. But Lemon didn't bet on Max having a heart (not to mention a soul); soon, Penelope is unmasked, Max rejects her, and she's left to figure out what how to live happily ever after -- with and without the boy.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say ( 15 ):
Kids say ( 21 ):

Brimming with style and whimsy, PENELOPE is a traditional fable set in a too-exquisite, retro metropolis. It's genuinely lovely to look at -- even that nose, which doesn't actually seem so bad. But although it's amiable -- aided in part by an appealingly rakish McAvoy and a game, though disconcertingly tame, Ricci -- it's a half-baked soufflé that collapses midway. Despite all of its fairy-tale trappings, it's not really any less predictable than any other mainstream romantic comedy.

The supporting cast is generally strong -- O'Hara is delightfully caustic -- though Reese Witherspoon's cameo turn as an "edgy" messenger Penelope befriends doesn't work because, well, she doesn't believably have an edge. As for the film's central question -- can a sweet girl with a pig's snout find true love with one of "her own"? -- the answer is this: What exactly does "one of her own" really mean?

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how this movie is like a fairy tale. What does it have in common with more traditional "once upon a time" stories? How is it different? What lesson do Penelope and her family learn from their curse? Are the men's reactions to Penelope understandable or reprehensible? What shapes their expectations of how a woman ought to look?

Movie Details

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