Better Nate Than Ever, the movie version, will soon be coming to Disney Plus. If you’ve read the book, you will certainly want to catch this new adaptation, and even if you haven’t yet enjoyed the novel, you should be sure to watch the movie for its fun plot, delightful characters, important lessons, and plenty of laughs.
The Plot
In the book by Tim Federle, which is now being adapted to film, Nate Foster is a thirteen-year-old with a dream. He wants to be on Broadway. When he and his best friend, Libby, hear about auditions for a new musical in New York City, Nate decides to take his chances. With Libby’s help and clever cover-ups, Nate takes his mom’s ATM card and his brother’s old cell phone and heads for New York. He discovers that auditions are not quite as straightforward as he always thought, but he loves the city even with all his misadventures.
The Characters
Nate is a loveable character even with all his foibles and sometimes poor decisions. He is a young teenager trying to discover who he is and to pursue his dreams. He gets into all kinds of mischief, but he has a good heart. Libby, too, is a delightful character who is much more practical than Nate and provides a balance for his impulsiveness. She is the thinker and the planner. It is easy to relate to these young characters even as you chuckle at their exploits.
The Lessons
Better Nate Than Ever contains some important lessons about life and relationships that can benefit kids and adults alike. Nate, for instance, has to learn that things are not always as they seem. Nate, in fact, is quite naive as he heads off to New York City, and he gets an eye-opener about what life is really like in the New York theater world. Libby, too, learns some lessons as she decides that perhaps she and Nate can’t handle things as well as they thought. She wisely calls in Nate’s Aunt Heidi for support, realizing that asking for help isn’t a bad thing.
The Laughs
Finally, Better Nate Than Ever the film is bound to offer plenty of laughs, for the book certainly does. Nate finds himself in all sorts of unlikely yet humorous situations, and he describes them with a dry wit. Nate can even look at himself in a comical light, making his audience chuckle with him about his failures and successes.
So if you’re in the mood for an enjoyable movie, check out Better Nate Than Ever on Disney Plus, coming in the Spring of 2022.
