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NELL [1994. Directed by Michael Apted. Cast Jodie Foster, Liam Neeson, Natasha Richard son. 20th Century Fox. 1 1 3 mins.] f Js Chalk up this movie as a star vehicle all the way. But at least Nell's producer, Jodie Foster, turns in a bona fide star's performance. Her backwoods title maiden of this improbable story tums what should have been an unwieldycharacterstudyintoacompellingdrama. For Ae is one of those rare nstances where a single personality keeps us ri veted to the screen long after our interest should be utterly exhausted. When Doctor Jerome Lovell (Liam Neeson) investigates the death of an aged eccentric matron in the Smoky Mountains near Charlotte, andaccidentally turns upayoungwoman speaking what seems to be speech-impeded gibberish, we know we're traversing grounds that are psychologically slippery. By Lovell's reckoning - and from what we observe of Nell's behavior in the first hour of the film - we've got ourselves a live 2Oth century feral girl-child. Unable to communicate with other people, she is quickly turned into psychologist Paula Olsen's (Natasha Richardson) bid for a doctorate at Charlotte University. Between matchmaking Lovell and Olsen, Nell is forced overthe course of the next three months to cope with adapting to modern times and modern mores. Her adventures take her from an enforced stay in a mental ward to a pivotal competency hearing in front of a North Carolina judge. The story of savage or abandoned children and adults is, of course, an oíd tale - mostly of 18th and 19th century legend. In European cinematic hands, Wemer Herzog has his brilliant Every Man for Himself and God Against All (The EnigmaofKas-perHauser); while FrancoisTruffaut has his tough-love Wild Child. And in all fairness, the continentals seem to be a little less sympathetic with these sorts of social misfits t han Americans. Closerto home is Robert Mulligan's haunt named "Boo" Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird andHalAshby's hilariously vacuous Chance n Being There. Nell, innocuous darling that she is, falls roughly somewhere nbetween "Boo" and Chance. Just cali it goodold American purity of heart. We've got an undeniable soft spot for those who can't (or won't) selves. Therefore, although director Michael Apted s British, his sensibilities avidly buy into the American myth of diminished child-like innocence. Between his stunning shots of untainted mountain vistas and his even more strategie gauzing of Foster dancing soulfully in moonlight, Apted keeps an angelic halo on the proceedings at all times. Besides, he obviously has his work cut out for him. For despite Foster's rather amazing ability to convey a wisely vacant simplicity, she still insists upon looking like a movie heroine. Apted does a good job given that his star is also his boss. Yet when push comes to shove, Nell is difficult to believe in. Lucky for her, she's a winsome twenty-something who's also inherited some of the most beautifully valuable land on the other side of the Appalachian mountains. After all, she could haveotherwise been another countryside Granny Clampett...like her Mom. ..and who, presumably, would want to see a feature-length movie about someone like that? Foster should be commended for personally seeing this project through completion, but the final results are definitely a judgment cali. For those who like their movies lathered in syrup, Nell may be just the right tonic. For others with a little more of a tough streak, the film may be rough going between heart-wrenching public displays of affection and an unlikely guileless wisdom. I RATING KEY ft Acting H Cinematography Direction K Editins d Narrative Sound Special Effects When a symbol appears following a tle, ;l implies that the corresponding category is a strength of the movie.