"No, I am definitely not going to call you Midnight Cowboy."

A quote from my ten-year-old niece Megan will help explain the appeal Holes has for kids: "I like how all the adults were so evil." Fortunately, the movie has a lot more going for it than plucky youngsters battling bad-guy grown-ups. Its intricately plotted story and likeable, believable characters draw in kids and adults alike.

Holes tells the story of Stanley Yelnats IV, who lives with his parents and grandfather in a cramped apartment. Stanley has grown up with the story of how the Yelnats men are cursed, thanks to his "no-good, pig-stealing great-grandfather," and indeed this seems to be true as the movie begins with him being arrested and convicted of a crime he didn't commit. In the film's shockingly harsh justice system, Stanley's punishment for stealing a pair of shoes is eighteen months in a juvenile work camp. There the boys are forced by the aforementioned evil adults to dig holes all day, every day, in the hot desert sun. It's allegedly a character-building exercise, though it soon becomes clear that the warden (Sigourney Weaver) is looking for something.

The mystery of exactly what she's after plays out both in the present and the past. The movie flashes back to infamous bandit Kissin' Kate Barlow (Patricia Arquette), then further back to her past as a sweet schoolmarm falling scandalously in love. Younger children may be confused by the shifts back and forth in time but older kids and adults will appreciate the richness of the story.

"Hey, check it out, Zero. Someone's reading a review about us."

Parents should be warned that the movie contains some violence, mostly implied but unmistakable. Director Andrew Davis (The Fugitive) handles it well, keeping it intense but not too intense and never playing it for laughs. There's more at stake here than in many kids' movies; as the warden turns from mean to murderous, Stanley and his best friend Zero are genuinely in danger.

I liked the casting, both of adults and children. Weaver, as well as Jon Voight and Tim Blake Nelson as the warden's minions, are menacing without becoming total caricatures of evil. Arquette and The West Wing's Dulé Hill are sweet as the ill-fated lovers. The kids, though, are the real finds, especially Shia LaBeouf as Stanley and Khleo Thomas as Zero. They and the rest of Camp Green Lake's residents aren't your typical excessively-cute movie children. They look and sound like real kids, particularly since Louis Sachar, who adapted his own novel for the screen, doesn't load the script up with sitcom-style snappy comebacks or dialogue that sounds more like an adult.

Holes is worth checking out, even if you don't have any children to take. With its smart story and appealing characters, it's a rare treat: a movie that pleases kids as well as the grownups who buy their tickets.

Gorilla Pants rating: 3 out of 4 bananas