Max Keeble's Big Move

   As if facing the seventh grade isn't enough pressure for Max (Alex D. Linz), after his fist day of humiliation, he is hit with the news that his family is going to be moving. But instead of sulking, Max takes it upon himself to become a one-kid retribution machine. Recruiting friends to help carry out his schemes, Max sets out to make each bully that wronged him pay for what they did. But as the dust settles and fate rears its ugly head, Max is hit with the news that he is not moving. Now Max has a decision to make: Does he hit-and-run and let his friends fend for themselves, or face up to the consequences for his actions?

   The going-back-to-school theme has been done for as long as there has been a) school and b) movies; however, the filmmakers of "Max Keeble" reinvigorate the theme with genuinely funny over-the-top humor and a barrage of multiple antagonists: Not only is there the typical school bully and power-hungry principal to contend with, but Max and his cohorts are also plagued by an evil ice cream man and a stock market-crazed businessman who takes money from students and calls it an investment. A couple of cameos, a food fight, a dubbed martial-arts sequence, a jealousy angle and a good old-fashioned moral combine to bring everything to an entertaining denouement. Starring Alex D. Linz, Zena Grey, Josh Peck and Larry Miller. Directed by Tim Hill. Written by Jonathan Bernstein & Mark Blackwell & James Greer. Produced by Mike Karz. A Buena Vista release. Comedy. Rated PG for some bullying and crude humor. Running time: 87 min