What if Encyclopedia Brown grew up and had nothing to show for his brilliance but a pile of debt, social pariah-dom, and a substance abuse problem? This is the question asked by writer/director Evan Morgan in The Kid Detective, a film about the adult Encyclopedia Brown grows up to be.
He isn’t actually Encyclopedia Brown, but it’s impossible to distinguish Abe Applebaum (Adam Brody) from Donald J. Sobol’s fictional sleuth. I used to love these books as a kid, when I truly believed in the awesome power of a mind that knew ice melted and June has only 30 days. The whole thing seems like a bit of a cheat now … and that’s probably how this screenplay came to be: as a child, Abe (Jesse Noah Gruman) solved a series of seemingly inconsequential cases; earning him notoriety and free ice cream for life. As an adult, Abe is plagued by a disappearance that Abe-the-child never solved, a town bully once accused by the youngster, and a resentful ice cream shop owner. Abe has literally eaten into the ice cream profits for decades.
Abe is also plagued by bad relationships. His initial conquests earned him an upstairs office in the small downtown of this one-horse backwater berg. Twenty years later, Abe has the same office and continues to solve small cases, having never evolved to the big stuff. Even his parents are tired of his act.
Well, gee, what would you do? Imagine being twelve and suddenly getting a rep as the town genius. You help solve petty mysteries and the fandom grows; it earns you notoriety. Then a big case comes along that involves a person close to you. A person that disappeared forever. You can’t solve it, because nobody can. But you’re 12. And your inability to solve this case has hurt you in ways you cannot even comprehend. How do you develop? Wino? Junkie? Thrill-seeker? I could see any of those. Abe turns out to be a mild-mannered loser.
So one day, desperate client without another option turns to Abe with a big case. High school student Caroline (Sophie Nélisse) wants 
to find out what happened to her boyfriend. The problem? Abe is a loser and –let’s face it- a shitty detective – he has insight but no concept of procedure. Yet here is his big break, and he knows it. If Abe can figure out what happened to Caroline’s boyfriend, he might be able to turn his life around. If he doesn’t, the police academy ain’t exactly callin’, knowwhatI’msayin’?
The Kid Detective ranges between celebrating our mediocre hero and knocking him for his lack of good sense. At one point in the film, Abe successfully discovers an insight into the murder but gets stuck in a child’s closet for hours because he didn’t figure out how to gain the insight without doing something way illegal. I liked this film; I liked Adam Brody as our arrested development Encyclopedia Brown. I doubt there’s a decent sequel here, but I did want this character to grow up and become the crime solver he was born to be. He sure didn’t have any other calling. My guess is if you enjoyed Encyclopedia Brown as a kid (as I did), you might like this film as well.
As a kid, this detective was seen
To be brilliant if perhaps a little green
But when his friend was assaulted
His development halted
Now it’s the case of the thirtysomething teen
Rated R, 100 Minutes
Director: Evan Morgan
Writer: Evan Morgan
Genre: Fan fiction
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Donald J. Sobol, author of Encyclopedia Brown
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: The people who end up supporting the Encyclopedia Browns of the world
