Herbie: Fully Loaded, directed by Angela Robinson, is a family movie that is unexpectedly tolerable even to parents.
Lindsey Lohan stars in the film as Maggie Payton, a former street car racer who recently graduated from college.
Maggie's father Ray Payton Sr (Michael Keaton) gives his daughter a car as a graduation gift, and she can pick any car she wants from a junkyard.
Herbie, the Volkswagen bug, who can express emotions by changing the shape of his facade, can spit oil and most of all, who was a race car in the previous movie series, is chosen.
Ray Sr does not want his daughter to race. But Maggie ends up racing, and wins against Trip Murphy (Matt Dillon). Maggie then becomes a target for revenge from Trip.
The movie does offer funny moments, but it can get tiresome at times too. One must not forget that this is a G-rated movie made by Disney. So the jokes are laughable but there are moments when it gets too ridiculous and immature for adults.
Underneath the silliness, this film, like other Disney films, offer lessons for the viewers -- the importance of family values, loyalty and though it may have been subtle, the inevitable break of line between men and women, at least in NASCAR.
NASCAR -- an American racecar association -- is a male dominated sport. For a woman to be racing in it is very rare.
Ray Sr had said he does not want his daughter racing because she had crashed her car before. But Ray Jr (Breckin Meyer), a NASCAR driver, crashes his car when he is on the racetrack, thus Ray Jr is portrayed as a driver without talent.
Herbie is a kid's film and must obviously end happily, even cliché. But the movie was not too bad. It is not recommended for teenagers but children and parents may enjoy it.
More from rediff