Nell is an effective film, and a moving one. That is largely because of the strange beauty of Jodie Foster's performance as Nell, and the warmth of the performance by Liam Neeson, as a doctor who finds himself somehow responsible for her.

It is the first two-thirds, encompassing the discovery of Nell that spotlights Foster, Neeson and Richardson’s ensemble performances, that clinches.

The film Nell featured Miss Foster, and was a tour de force (whatever that may mean).

Jodie Foster's performance is much better than the movie, but Nell is still one of those movies you should see.