Like a slightly grown up Dora the Explorer or Harriet the Spy, the obnoxiously cheery Nancy Drew catches the crooks (who are also ridiculous and comical thanks to a cameo by Chris Kattan), negotiates with them, and serves them up to the police with a bow on top. To start things off, the opening scene is grossly over-the-top and cartoonish, setting a horrible first impression. Aided by her longtime boyfriend, Ned (Max Thieriot), and the spunky young Corky (Josh Flitter), Nancy is intent on wrapping things up nicely and neatly, despite her father’s constant warnings of the dangers of a young girl taking up work better suited for the police.

Carefully and craftily plucking leads from everywhere and everyone she encounters, she eventually gets mixed up with a band of ne’er-do-wells who threaten her life as she gets too close to the secrets behind actress Dehlia Daywood’s mysterious demise. When her father decides to move to Hollywood for the summer, she purposely chooses a somewhat haunted mansion for them to stay in, knowing that an unsolved murder occurred there years earlier. Nancy Drew (Emma Roberts) is a forever sleuthing, noble detective, who itches only for more clues and the next case to solve. The adults who accompany their children, however, may feel that director Andrew Fleming (“Threesome,” “The Craft,” “Dick”) is trying a little too earnestly to shove a “do the right thing” theme down their throats – much like Nancy’s signature lemon cake.

Not fashioned comparably enough to the original novels by Carolyn Keene (who was actually several authors) to merit using the popular title character (other than for presold value), the film still has enough heart about it to thoroughly entertain its target viewership. Learly catering toward a young audience, “Nancy Drew” is an effervescent mystery manufactured from equal parts comedy, adventure, and sappiness.

Hollywood Horror by Carolyn Keene