"Island" adventure

Features writing is a funny business.

In the course of writing one article, we often stumble upon another. We find ourselves zooming off on tangents, wildly and without warning.

That’s why, in the midst of a story about movie theaters, I found myself at Arroyo Grande’s Fair Oaks Theatre — watching a screening of “Nim’s Island.”*

Based on the children’s book by Wendy Orr and Kerry Millard, “Nim’s Island” takes its title from the tropical paradise inhabited by a scientist and his spunky, self-reliant daughter named, improbably, Nim.**

For Nim and her father (Gerard Butler), the island is a lush safe haven. They live off the land, stay in touch via Internet and radio, and once a month, motor out to a waiting ship for supplies.

It’s an isolated life, but Nim (Abigail Breslin) doesn’t seem to mind. She’s too busy playing with her best friends — a lizard, a pelican and a sea lion, natch — and reading about world-famous adventurer Alex Rover (Butler again, letting his true Scottish brogue roar).

The little girl longs to be fearless like her hero. “The thing about courage is that it’s not something we’re born with,” her dad tells her. in a heavy moment of foreshadowing. “It’s in each and every choice we make, each and every day.”

Naturally, Nim’s chance to prove her mettle isn’t far off.

Dad fails to return from an ocean research trip, leaving Nim facing a fierce storm and an invading army of Australian tourists. Frightened and injured, she calls on her favorite hero — Alex Rover — for help.

There’s only one problem: Alex Rover is imaginary, the invention of a germ-phobic, anxiety-prone author (Jodie Foster) who hasn’t left her San Francisco apartment in months.

At its best, “Nim’s Island” is sweet and sparkly, a cute re-telling of “Swiss Family Robinson” with one girl instead four rowdy boys.

The title island looks impossibly lovely, thanks to the work of Santa Maria special effects firm CafeFX and others. And there’s no shortage of computer-animated wonders: anthropomorphic critters, smoking volcanoes and a charming, storybook introduction.

Unfortunately, “Nim’s Island” starts faltering once the outside world starts creeping into paradise.

As Nim sets traps to ward off Australian tourists led by an evil cruise ship crew, the movie comes across as a cheesy blend of”Robinson Crusoe” and “Home Alone.”

Other plot twists seem improbable even for a fanciful children’s movie.

The movie is saved, ultimately, by the wholesome appeal of its stars — especially Breslin, who’s come a long way since “Little Miss Sunshine.”

Gerard Butler is also charming here, both as a caring dad and a dashing adventurer. And Foster, when she’s not kvetching to the heavens, could be channeling a ’90s Meg Ryan — all nervous giggles and sideways grins.

Most of the time, like this movie, it works.

-- Sarah L.

* Photo courtesy of MovieWeb.com.

** Mom’s out of the picture, although the fairytale narration makes it difficult to tell whether she’s dead, missing or literally swallowed by a whale.