The Mighty

(Miramax)

Peter Chelsom's adaptation of Rodman Philbrick's acclaimed Freak the Mighty is an amiable little gem, with Elden Henson and Kieran Culkin (yes, Macaulay's younger brother) as two socially outcast seventh-graders, Culkin a physically stunted intellectual prodigy, Henson a gentle giant afflicted by learning disabilities. The boys complete each other, inventing a fantastical being called "Freak the Mighty" who thwarts the ill doings of local bullies, resolves the heinous domestic scars inflicted by Max's nefarious father, and ultimately confronts death.