User reviews

Grace Stirs Up Success was a simple movie at it's heart, a cute story of a girl who discovers that her hobby can become a dream come true. For Grace, baking is second only to her family, and even with some relations living overseas and basically strangers, she can still find, and be, herself. I just wish they'd cut out all that giggling. It was sorta unrealistic and got on my nerves. And my sister's nerves; she had to go bake some cookies to feel better. From its cool pastels to warm smiles, this movie served up a delicious array of charming characters and a story with a surprising amount of heart. That just wouldn't have been there without Uncle Bernard. And a certain little je ne sais quoi...

Grace stirs up success was a good movie and the type you can watch again. The only complain is that Grace is supposed to be 9 and she bakes like an adult and looks like a teenager more then 9. Another thing is if there family is wealthy enough to go to Paris how come Grace's parents don't buy Grace's grandparents a new oven. They don't seem poor not to go to Paris and have that rich house. In all the movie was good and it would be most interesting for girls

The ninth film in the 'American Girl' series, in that, fourth straight film for the director. Honestly, I have not seen all the films in the series, but I enjoyed those I've watched. This is a decent movie for all, especially for the families with the kids to watch on the weekend. I was not expecting it to be a fantastic, because children's films have certain limits and I know that very well. Usually the filmmakers push for a G or a PG tag for their product, that's why a film like this always appears to be so cheerful, and at a time silly as well.

A typical 'American Girl' movie, but only the theme was different. This time it is about the baking. A young girl Grace is passionate in baking who thinks one day she's going to take over her grandparents' bakery. In the summer holiday, she's forced to drop her all the plans with her two best friends, after an unexpected visit to aunt's in the Paris is decided. There she meets her cousin Sylvie who's not friendly and uncle who runs a small bakery with the quality foods. The cultural difference makes her to struggle to understand the French way of baking, but in the end she overcomes it and decides to take it back to the home to save her grandparents' troubled bakery.

"Take risks. That's how you make amazing things happen."

In the several occasions I had postponed watching this for no reasons, but finally I saw this now. To declare it is a good or a bad movie is a very tough decision, but I can say I enjoyed watching it. Not all the adults going to like it, because there are too many scenes that feels so stupid for the matured people like us, especially the dog parts that makes us to say 'whaaat?'. But that is usual and expected in 'American Girl' films, so you have to ignore it if you decide to try it. There won't be any similar issues with the children, especially the girls who are the ones going to enjoy it more than anybody of us.

A simple movie about baking, that means it is not going to demonstrate how to bake bakery items for us, but still it inspires the kids. One thing is for sure, after watching this you will definitely feel you want to taste a delicious cupcake. Most of the cast was new to me, except Virginia Madsen. But everyone was good in their respective roles, especially the new face who played the title role. This is not an easy movie to suggest, but if you got a young girl in your house like a niece or a daughter, definitely worth it to show them and a reason for us to join them, especially to know how much they adore it.

6½/10

The first - and, so far, only other - review of this movie sounds as if it were written the the pr guy in charge of promoting this movie. Take it for what it's worth.

I'm not going to try to guess how this movie will go over with its intended audience, young American girls who buy AG dolls. My reason for watching it was to see how it depicts Paris and French culture, and that's what I'll restrict my comments to here.

Unlike *Passport to Paris*, for example, the awful Olson twins movie aimed for largely the same audience, this movie doesn't really do much with Paris or the Parisians. There is a quick - very quick - bicycle tour of the famous Parisian monuments 25 minutes into the picture. Other than that, most of what we see of the city is the inside of Grace's aunt's VERY luxurious apartment in Paris and her French husband's HUGE pastry shop on the rue de la Paix, one of the most expensive shopping districts in the French capital. This is the world of those who have money, lots of money.

We don't see much of Parisians, so we don't deal with the stereotypes on which some American comedies set in Paris play. Grace's French half-cousin isn't "snooty," despite what the pr person wrote in the previous review. She's just unpleasant to Grace, until Grace wins her over.

What I found more interesting is that, despite Grace's repeatedly proclaimed love of bakery and her desire to shine in her uncle's pastry shop, she makes NO effort to learn about French pastry while she's in Paris. This is shown in two ways.

First: When Grace tries to interest the owner of a luxury hotel, the Palace de Paris, in her uncle's pastry, she presents him with macarons. As you may know, these have been chic here in the States for the last several years. There's nothing to macarons, however, and in France they are mostly for children, because of the bright colors and jam fillings. They aren't desserts, they're just a quick snack, like cookies. Nonetheless, when the hotel owner finally breaks down and agrees to hire Grace's uncle, it is his macarons that impress the (adult) patrons at the hotel's July 14th garden party.

Second: when Grace returns to the U.S. and decides to save her French grandparents' French bakery, located somewhere in New England, she transforms it into a shop that specializes in cupcakes - not something you find in the average French bakery - and macarons. In other words, she turns a representative of French cuisine into a store that caters to American children's desires for sweets. She saves the French pastry shop by turning it into an American sweets shop.

And when she competes in the junior pastry chef contest back in the States, her first idea is to make a pineapple upside-down cake, which she had learned how to make before she left for Paris.

When she can't make that, she ends up winning with a tower of macarons, again something for children - though I suspect children might be put off by the lavender color.

This movie teaches the sort of moral lessons modern children's movies are expected to teach, and that's fine. The trip to Paris is a waste, though, because Grace learns nothing there that she could not have learned here at home.

From this adult's perspective, the movie, at 107 minutes, is also way too long.

Grace Stirs Up Success (2015) marks the acting debut of the one and only Olivia Rodrigo. This is also the first American Girl movie I've ever watched and it was decent.

Positives for Grace Stirs Up Success (2015): Olivia Rodrigo is easily the highlight of this movie and from the moment she shows up, this girl is just oozing with such a nature charm and charisma to herself. Now admittedly, I haven't been a fan of Rodrigo until October when I watched the GUTS World Tour on Netflix and since I've instantly become a fan of hers. I really enjoyed Virginia Madsen as Grace's mother and she does bring a bit of legitimacy to the movie. I did have some fun with some of the side characters. And finally, the cooking sequences were a lot of fun to watch.

Negatives for Grace Stirs Up Success (2015): There are a number of side characters that annoyed me with their antics. And for my final negative, the movie is way too long for its own good.

Overall, Grace Stirs Up Success (2015) is a decent enough movie for kids and if you're a fan of Olivia Rodrigo like me, then you'll have some fun with this movie.

American Girl's latest movie outing (and the fourth to be directed by Vince Marcello) surprisingly takes us away from America and into the iconic streets of Paris as budding baker Grace (Olivia Rodrigo) helps her French family, and of course, learns more about herself in the process.

Though some American Girl fans have lamented the change in direction of recent AG movies (which favor more sparkles, colors, giggles, and modern settings over the historical settings of Samantha, Felicity, etc.), Grace Stirs Up Success is still just as sweet and heartwarming as anything to come from American Girl. The values are very strong, with this film in particular focusing on using your talents for the benefit of others (unlike Disney Channel fare, which usually has an unpleasant "it's all about me" taste).

Olivia Rodrigo is terrific as the ever-vivacious, ever-organized, and occasionally klutzy Grace, and her relationship with her snooty French cousin is both touching. . .and funny. There is definitely more outright humor in this film than any previous AG movie, with some pratfalls, whipped cream, and clumsy antics on hand; again, perhaps a departure from American Girl's more serious historical pieces, but still just as fun and just as sweet-spirited. Music and songs also play a very prominent role, as they did in both Isabelle and Saige.

As usual with Vince Marcello's AG movies, the visuals are extremely colorful, looking like a world of dolls and doll houses, as if we are seeing the world that a girl might be imagining as she is playing with her American Girl doll. These films are first-rate family films, with excellent values that are seldom taught in modern children's entertainment. Thanks, American Girl!

As if it wasn't bad enough already - then they introduced Master Chef Junior into the mix. What a complete joke.

This movie teaches the sort of moral lessons modern children's movies are expected to teach, and that's fine. The trip to Paris is a waste, though, because Grace learns nothing there that she could not have learned here at home.

From this adult's perspective, the movie, at 107 minutes, is also way too long.

The good things - the stories about friendship , the grandparents and the love of grnddaughter, the crumbs of Paris, Virginia Madsen presence and, not last, Bonbon.

Bad - maybe too much.

Sure, it is a film for girls and for kids.

But , really, can be macaroons the key for succes in the case of Masterchef Junior ?

A French restaurant is saved by American cuisine. Really ?

The capital of France is reduced at food. Correct is it ?

Sure, superficial can sound reasonable about this film.

But, with high generosity, can define it as pretty.