Harold

Spencer Breslin ("The Cat In the Hat") plays Harold, a 13-year-old boy whose very early male pattern baldness does little to stem his deeply-held sense of dignity and maturity even when his clueless mom (Alley Sheedy) moves Harold and his snotty sister to a new town. Harold finds a helpful ally in Cromer (Cuba Gooding Jr.) a junior high school janitor ready to help protect the dorky bald kid from some of the obvious abuses hurled his way. Breslin is the best thing about this myopic comedy that doesn't even get any humorous traction from the stereotypes it presses through its low-fidelity independent film filter. Most aggravating is the hackneyed character the Oscar-winning Cuba Gooding Jr. plays. It's a painful thing to witness.

Rated PG-13, 105 mins. (C-) (Two Stars)