Stuart Little is a 1999 live-action film, based on the novel of the same name. It combines live-action and computer animation. The screenplay was co-written by M. Night Shyamalan and Greg Brooker, with uncredited script doctoring by David O. Russell and Billy Ray.
Michael J. Fox is the voice of the titular character. Geena Davis and Hugh Laurie star as Eleanor and Fredrick Little, with Jonathan Lipnicki as Stuart’s big brother George and Nathan Lane as the voice of the family cat Snowbell.
The film was released on December 17, 1999 by Columbia Pictures, and was rated PG by the MPAA for “brief language”.
Plot
The film opens with Mr. and Mrs. Little (played by Hugh Laurie and Geena Davis) and their son George (played by Jonathan Lipnicki) on the day of adoption. While George is at school, the parents go to the orphanage where they see many kids, but fall in love with one mouse named Stuart (voiced by Michael J. Fox), who knows almost everything about the other children due to having been at the orphanage for so much time. He only talks to them for a minute or so, but they knew he was right. “Then you’ll meet one of them, talk to them; somehow, you’ll just know,” is what he told them. Despite the warnings of Mrs. Keeper (the woman in charge), who said that humans shouldn’t be adopting mice, as it may not work out, the Littles decide to take Stuart and adopt him as their second son.
Immediately after getting home Stuart meets George and Snowbell (voiced by Nathan Lane) the family cat. Although neither are happy to see him, Snowbell tries to eat Stuart and George is generally unimpressed. That night, Snowbell visits Stuart and requests that he keep a low profile, so as to avoid getting seen by the other cats and damaging Snowbell’s image (the alley cats would laugh forever if they heard that there was a mouse with a pet cat).
Over time Stuart gradually becomes part of the family, but also earns Snowbell’s wrath when Snowbell’s friend, Monty the Mouth (voiced by Steve Zahn) visits for food. As Snowbell tries to keep him from seeing Stuart, Stuart makes a scene trying to get a cereal box from a cupboard. When he sees him and Stuart says, “I’m also a member of this family,” Monty doesn’t stop laughing. Enraged, Snowbell tries to kill Stuart, who narrowly escapes by jumping into the basement. Here, Stuart learns that George keeps a playroom and the two play together for a while; George finally coming to like having Stuart as his brother. Stuart finds that George keeps a toy car just his size, which was kept in a lego garage. They decide to work together to finish George’s homemade model boat, the Wasp, for the Central Park Boat Race the following week.
Snowbell, however, isn’t finished. He and Monty go to an alley that night to visit Smokey (voiced by Chazz Palminteri), a Mafia Don-like Russian Blue who is the leader of the alley cats. Since Snowbell doesn’t want Stuart killed, he makes a plan with the alley cats to remove Stuart from the house.
On the day of the 92nd annual Central Park boat race, the Wasp is finished, and they arrive at Central Park. But, one problem comes after another when George finds that Anton, (A boy larger than Stuart with a boat capable of knocking other boats into the water,) is present at the race. Then, Stuart has trouble carrying the remote, and it’s stepped on by a stranger. So, to save the day, Stuart pilots the boat himself. While George tries to make Anton lose concentration, Stuart takes the lead, and narrowly wins the race. The family have a party to celebrate winning the trophy.
The celebration is short lived however, as during the party that night, the Littles are visited by Reginald and Camille Stout (voiced by both Bruno Kirby and Jennifer Tilly), a mouse couple claiming to be Stuart’s parents. After discussion Stuart sadly decides to leave with his real parents, taking a the small car with him as a goodbye present from George. Just then, Snowbell returns home satisfied.
Stuart and his parents arrive at a small castle on a golf course which is revealed to be their home. Stuart, still miserable, does his best to settle in. Three days later, the Littles are visited by Mrs. Keeper whom they had asked to do a little background research on Stuart. She tells them that, according to the records Stuart’s parents died years ago. They had been grocery shopping. She told them, “They were shopping in the canned food aisle, and there was an unsteady pile of cans – it collapsed. Cream and mushroom soup, two for one sale. That’s a very ugly soup.” The Little’s realised that Stuart had been kidnapped – and they call the police.
A terrified Snowbell rushes to the alley and warns Smokey and the others about the Littles’ discovery. Smokey then decides that the only way to rectify things is to scratch him out. Or, in other words, kill him. They call a meeting with Reginald and demand that he and Camille hand Stuart over. But the Stouts, having grown to care for Stuart, reveal the truth and advise him to escape before the cats find him. Stuart does so after telling his “fake parents” goodbye.
Meanwhile, the Littles decide to place “missing” posters around the city to get help in finding Stuart. Stuart meanwhile is on his way home. While going through Central Park, is ambushed by Smokey and a few cats. He succesfully manages to evade them by driving his car into the sewer, but at a high cost: he loses the car and his luggage while escaping the storm drain.
Eventually, Stuart finds his way home just as the Littles leave to hang the posters. The only one home is Snowbell, and he tells Stuart a lie about how the Littles are enjoying life without him. Proving his story by revealing that Stuart’s face has been cut off the family photo (really done so to enlarge Stuart’s face for the posters). Tears falling from his eyes, Stuart leaves home yet again.
Later on Monty visits Snowbell and informs him that Smokey and the others have spotted Stuart in the park. Reluctantly, Snowbell joins them and is ultimately the first one to find Stuart, sitting alone in a bird’s nest. Snowbell captures Stuart and is ready to drop him to the cats, but he turns on them at the last moment and decides to rescue Stuart. The cats give chase, and eventually corner Stuart hanging from a tree branch. The cats group together on a lower branch to catch Stuart, but Snowbell breaks it at the last minute and sends the cats into the water below. Smokey sneaks up behind Snowbell and attempts to murder him, but Stuart releases a thin branch that hits Smokey in the face and knocks him into the water. Enraged, Smokey walks off only to be mauled and killed by dogs upon turning a corner. Monty and the other cats get out of the water, all wimpy and embarrassed. “Not bad for a house-cat!”
Snowbell and Stuart walk home and Stuart shares a warm reunion with his family, telling them that Snowbell helped him home. The Littles bring Stuart and Snowbell inside, and close the windows, ready for bed.
