Based on the book by the same name, Tuck Everlasting is about the young Winnie Foster (Bledel), who happens upon the Tuck family hidden away in her family's woods, along with an important secret that is ultimately entrusted with her. The Tucks are a laid-back family that have managed to live well beyond their years - in fact, they've been fortunately to be granted with immortality, but this gift comes with a price. Because of their secret, they hide away from civilized humanity, only getting together once every ten or so years.

One of the biggest questions the movie asks is whether it is better to live forever or just to make the best of the life you've been given. The gift of immortality makes those gifted live outside the realm of normal people, where they must hide themselves from the rest of the world. This drawback is none more evident than in the situation of the eldest Tuck son, whose wife and child leaves him when they discover the secret, only to die later on, leaving the son scarred from the incident.

As far as production values go, Tuck Everlasting is a finely crafted work. Sets, costuming and the care taken with the camera all present an excellent timepiece set in the early 1900s. Luckily, a lot of the movie is shot in a number of outdoor locations that are just gorgeous to behold.

The strong cast provides fine performances all around, even though some of the more placid moods don't strike the viewer as much as Kingsley's coarse gentleman or Irving's bitter and conservative female head of the Foster household. While both Hurt and Spacek are nice additions to the cast as the Tuck parents, neither are given much time or depth to really work with their characters.

I would have to say that Tuck Everlasting could really use a lot more character depth to it. Very little time and care is given to developing the means by which the characters feel and act. Compared to timepieces like Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility, Tuck Everlasting is more of a lightweight, Cliff Notes rather than a hearty tale.

For those who read the original book or enjoy a timepiece "love story lite", check out Tuck Everlasting. For those who enjoy something a little more in depth, you might want to pass as the story seems to be over way too soon.

- - Kinderfeld