Kitty!

Only a couple minutes into Duma, the latest film from Carroll Ballard, king of mature-minded animal flicks (The Black Stallion, Fly Away Home), one thing becomes abundantly clear: Baby cheetahs are really, really f-ing cute. Their fur is all mottled and super fluffy. Rather than meowing, they make a little bird-like peep. We totally want one.

But there are more reasons to catch Duma---held over at the Northwest Film Forum for another two weekends of matinee showings---than all the cute baby animal porn. Ballard is known for making "kids' films" that don't talk down to either children or adults, truly a rarity in the age of Are We There Yet? and any Disney flick with Tim Allen. Additionally, Duma's got a great cast, featuring perpetual fake husband and wife duo Campbell Scott and Hope Davis as the parents of young Xan, played by twelve-year-old Alex Michaletos, who makes a solid acting debut. Eamonn Walker (best known for his work on Oz) rounds out the cast as Rip, the Jim to Xan's Huck as they usher a cheetah raised by Xan's family back to the wild. Action/adventure-related wackiness ensues, all to the backdrop of some stunningly beautiful African vistas. Ballard's always had an eye for cinematography, and here he effortlessly captures the majesty of both the South African landscape and the animals who inhabit its various ecosystems.

It's a shame then that such a well-made film can't get a proper theater release. After a few test runs a year ago in smaller markets like Phoenix and San Antonio, Warner Brothers decided that giving an overwhelmingly critically-acclaimed film a wide theater release wasn't worth the marketing money. And we're sure they know best. After all, it's not like their independent wing paid a mere million bucks for the distribution rights to some little French movie about flightless birds that ended up with an impressive gross, strong DVD sales, and an Academy Award. So it seems that the NWFF run is your one chance to catch this film on the (relatively) big screen. Stupid sexy Hollywood.

Duma plays at the NWFF March 18th, 19th, 25th, and 26th at 2pm.