MOVIE REVIEW : ‘Andre’: A Seal That Wins Approval : Based on the true story of a performing sea lion, this uncontrived offering is a quintessential family film.

“Andre” is as irresistible as the adorable baby seal from which it takes its title--and could prove a worthy successor to “Free Willy.” It is the quintessential family film: appealing to all ages, insulting to the intelligence of none, and going out of its way to avoid an aura of contrivance. Like all good straightforward movies, everything that happens grows out of the character and nature of the people involved. What’s more, these people seem unusually real for the genre--even the good guys aren’t perfect. That “Andre,” which begins in the summer of 1962, is based on a real story surely has to help.

When Harry Whitney (Keith Carradine), harbor master for picturesque Rockport, Me., and his younger daughter, Toni (Tina Majorino), encounter a freshly orphaned baby seal with great big dark eyes and a perplexed, scared expression, what can they do but try to nurse it back to health? Through trial and error they succeed. In no time Andre, as he is named by Toni, becomes part of the family. But the father and daughter’s relationship with Andre does not stop there, for Andre becomes a performer of remarkable intelligence and skill, and finally such a tourist attraction, he’s invited to appear on “The Ed Sullivan Show.”

Andre’s vibrant, larger-than-life presence has to have an impact on the Whitneys in particular and Rockport in general, and that’s the heart of the matter. Adapted by Dana Baratta from a book by Lew Dietz and the late Harry Goodridge--the Goodridges are the real-life family who took in the actual Andre--the film counterpoints Andre’s eerily anthropomorphic high jinks with a serious consideration of the possibilities and limitations of relationships between humans and animals.

On an everyday level, the Whitneys discover that if Andre brings joy, he has plenty of potential for generating grief as well. One suspects that Baratta has dabbled in a bit of dramatic license, but if so, it’s all to the good, for the film’s moments of adventure and danger develop from credible situations.

Right away the family dog is put off by Andre, who exerts his territorial imperative with as much ease as he wins most hearts. Harry’s older, teen-age daughter, Paula (Aidan Pendleton), probably already chafing at the close bond between Toni and their father, eventually comes to feel, not without some justification, that he cares more for the seal than for her.

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Because Harry’s a laid-back guy to start with, his growing fascination with studying Andre’s intellectual capacity not only jeopardizes his family life but finally his job. In particular, Harry incites the rapidly escalating enmity of Billy (Keith Szarabajka), a hard-drinking, struggling fisherman and a single father barely able to provide for his son (Joshua Jackson), who is fast becoming Paula’s boyfriend. An honest Yankee, Billy admits forthrightly that he envies Harry for his decent-paying job; his inviting, mellow old home; his attractive wife (Chelsea Field), as strong as she is good-humored, and, to top it off, the newfound celebrity Andre has brought Harry.

Animals and children, especially one as beguiling as 9-year-old Majorino, are notorious scene-stealers, but Carradine really does hold his own. That’s thanks to George Miller’s astute direction (he’s the “Man From Snowy River” Miller, not the “Mad Max” one, though both are Australian), Carradine’s own charisma and talent, and a very well-written role. Indeed, the linchpin of the entire film is Harry’s rock-solid marriage with Field’s Thalice, whose capacity for understanding is matched by her forthrightness with her husband and children, which include Shane Meier as her lively son Steve.

Tory, a 10-year-old sea lion that performs at a California theme park, and his trainer Suzanne Fortier, deserve no end of credit for making Andre such a charmer. Although the film ends on a note of finality, it’s hard to believe that we’ve seen the last of Andre.

* MPAA rating: PG, for mild teen mischief, mild violence and language. Times guidelines: Its language is very mild; the film is suitable for all ages.

‘Andre’

Keith Carradine: Harry Whitney

Tina Majorino: Toni Whitney

Keith Szarabajka: Billy

Chelsea Field: Thalice

A Paramount Pictures presentation of a Kushner-Locke production. Director George Miller. Producers Annette Handley, Adam Shapiro. Executive producers Peter Locke, Donald Kushner. Screenplay by Dana Baratta; based upon the book “A Seal Called Andre” by Harry Goodridge and Lew Dietz. Cinematographer Thomas Burstyn. Editors Harry Hitner, Patrick Kennedy. Costumes Maya Mani. Music Bruce Rowland. Production designer William Elliott. Art director Sheila Haley. Set decorator Barry Kemp. Running time: 1 hour, 34 minutes.

* In general release throughout Southern California.