DAKOTA > THEY SAID

Here you can read some of the wonderful things that others have to say about Dakota.

Elle Fanning - Her sister

"She is so sharp and hyper and funny."

"Dakota is my favorite actress."

Coworkers

"Dakota possesses a real strength and wisdom that is well beyond her years... She often came to me after a take, saying, 'I think I could go farther; I think I could give you more.' To know the range of her talent at 7 years old is just astounding and we were lucky to have her in the film." [Jessie Nelson, director of 'I Am Sam']

"The more spontaneous, the more real and chaotic it is, the better for Sean [Penn], because it keeps his performance very alive. He never wants things to get too staid, or set. He wants to keep it fresh and alive. The edge is where he feels comfortable living. And it's remarkable that a six-year-old like Dakota could take that ride with him, and hold her own in every scene with him." [Jessie Nelson, director of 'I Am Sam']

"Dakota Fanning is a little miracle child. She is the sweetest, most professional, and even at times would feed the other three actors their lines for them." [Mimi Polk Gitlin, producer of 'Trapped']

"Dakota, the little girl, is so there and so really believable in terms of her fear and anxiety. She's phenomenal. I mean, I've seen her do things that I've been really astounded with, astounded that a little child can put herself to that place with such confidence and ability." [Kevin Bacon, 'Trapped' costar]

"Dakota Fanning is remarkable, she's like an 8-year-old acting machine. I've never actually met a kid like her before. She comes to set in the morning, she hugs everybody, she's always happy. She never did anything remotely close to behavior that you'd expect from an 8-year-old. She was like 8 years old going on 40. And she came in every day, knew her lines, and you could give her an adjustment, like 'Hey, Dakota. What about if you tried it like this?' She'd go, 'Sure,' and she'd do it. She'd do exactly what you wanted. I worked with kids before, but I never worked with a kid like her. She's amazing. And her mother, too, Joy, is just terrific. You've heard horror stories about stage mothers before. This mother is the antithesis of that. She's just normal, down-to-earth, feet-on-the-ground person. Really terrific. I can't say enough about those two." [Jeff Woolnough, director of episode eight of 'Taken']

"She was the light of the set, she brought a real fresh vision to the whole project. Dakota is so passionate about acting and she so loves it and her family is so supportive and protects her, it was a joy to work with her." [Eric Close, 'Taken' costar]

"She loves life, she loves childhood, she is such a kindred free spirit, ball of sunshine, energetic joy. She also has a very old soul and she is extremely wise and so bright, sharp and intelligent. And, as far that's concerned, you can talk with her about anything in the world, and she utilizes all of her wisdom and all of the beautiful morals that her extraordinary family has taught her, in her acting." [Brittany Murphy, 'Uptown Girls' costar]

"She has a wisdom only a zillion past lives could account for" [Brittany Murphy, 'Uptown Girls' costar]

"She is extraordinary at being 9. She loves life, she loves childhood, she is such a kindred spirit, ball of sunshine, energetic joy. She also has a very old soul, and she is extremely wise, and so bright, sharp, and intelligent. She's just one of the greatest, most balanced, grounded humans I've ever met in my entire life. I love her." [Brittany Murphy, 'Uptown Girls' costar]

"Oh Lord, she's the best at being nine that I've ever seen. She is so wildly intelligent. I could eat up all the time in the world to speak about Dakota. Dakota is a ray of sunshine and obviously wise beyond her years. Her soul is so old and beautiful. She is so there and intuitive of other people. That's one of the attributes that makes her such a brilliant actress, her hyperawareness to other people's feelings and her openness. But aside from that, you could talk to her like your best girlfriend, but you can't forget she's nine. She is nine years old and she has the most adorable, hysterical sense of humor. She's as funny as the day is long. She's a giggle bunny and will do cartwheels with me. She's very much nine, but a very, very old soul. She's so intelligent." [Brittany Murphy, 'Uptown Girls' costar]

"Dakota is love, light, joy and happiness, with a soul only past lives can account for. She has a brilliant talent as an actress, but she's even more talented at being a humanitarian. She spreads sunshine wherever she goes." [Brittany Murphy, 'Uptown Girls' costar]

"I'm happily upstaged by them. Spencer's a boy genius and little Dakota's a combination of Judy Garland in Wizard Of Oz and Meryl Streep. She's so sweet you just want to bite her face. Not break the skin - just gnaw." [Mike Myers, 'The Cat in the Hat' costar]

"I get along great with my sister and I got along great with Dakota. Dakota was a great girl to work with. She was always very prepared and it’s the same with my sister who is also an actress." [Spencer Breslin, 'The Cat in the Hat' costar]

"She's a sweetheart as you'll see if you've talked to her already. She's a bright young woman and she's just a joy to be around. You can't not like her." [Denzel Washington, 'Man on Fire' costar]

"We were together a lot, just the two of us, especially in the car, so there's a lot of time to talk and joke. It was just the way you get to know anyone else. She's a very engaging and interesting person and a very smart young woman. You start having little conversations. She's very professional." [Denzel Washington, 'Man on Fire' costar]

"This girl's for real. When she looks at you in a scene, she is looking through you. You can't catch her play acting. She knows why she's saying a line and you know her mind is going a mile a minute." [Denzel Washington, 'Man on Fire' costar]

"Twice in my career, I can remember doing a scene and finding myself just watching the other actor. Once was with Gene Hackman, and once with Dakota" [Denzel Washington, 'Man on Fire' costar]

"She saved my butt — I couldn’t find another child actor who could go toe-to-toe with Glenn. That’s why so many people turn to her." [Rodrigo Garcia, director of 'Nine Lives']

"She's definitely an old soul. She's a precociously talented kid. She's not a diva. She's not one of these horrible monsters and hopefully she never will be." [Glenn Close, 'Nine Lives' costar]

"She seems to have level heads around her. She is very gifted and professional and not intimidated by the daunting aspect of all the technical stuff raging around you. She's one of those gifted people that come along every now and then." [Glenn Close, 'Nine Lives' costar]

"These days, Dakota is so in demand that she no longer auditions for films, a rarity among child actors. Given her track record, it would have been insulting for her to read for the part. We thought maybe there’s another Dakota. It didn’t take long to realize what the playing field was like. She’s in a league of her own." [John Polson , 'Hide and Seek' director]

"Dakota is a wonderful, special, gifted actress and one of the most professional I’ve worked with." [Robert DeNiro, 'Hide and Seek' costar]

"You just forget that she's a child. There's nothing childlike about her. She's an immature grownup. She's very smart and very together. I had a great time working with her." [Famke Janssen, 'Hide and Seek' costar]

"She's like a little woman. I mean, we all joked about how she was much more mature than any of us were." [Elisabeth Shue, 'Hide and Seek' costar]

"There’s no way she’ll lose her head or be swept away by what she’s accomplished. She’s remarkably grounded and mature." [Elisabeth Shue, 'Hide and Seek' costar]

"She intuitively understood the project and has this wonderful, wise quality." [Jessica Yu, director of 'The Realms of the Unreal']

"Dakota is unaware of how talented she actually is. During filming, she quickly understands each scene or situation, measures it against how she'd really react, and acts the truth every time." [Steven Spielberg, director of 'War of the Worlds']

" I think we all agree that Dakota Fanning has a gift. And she has an incredible extraordinary gift that, thanks goodness, she does not question, and she actually doesn't know how to answer questions about it. And that is also her gift: that she's unaware of how talented she is and how quickly she understands a situation in a sequence, how quickly she sizes it up, measures it against how she would really react in a real situation, and tells you the truth every time I say 'Action!' She just tells you the truth. It's extraordinary to see how consistent she is in her pure, unadulterated honesty."[Steven Spielberg, director of 'War of the Worlds']

" You can have a laugh with her. She's got impeccable manners too." [Steven Spielberg, director of 'War of the Worlds']

"She's just lovely. She's just enormously talented and so fun to work with also. Steve and I had so much fun. It was her birthday and we had pink balloons and Cold Stone Creamery ice cream. You can have a laugh with her too. She's a unique talent." [Tom Cruise, 'War of the Worlds' costar]

"She's just a really terrific person. She has impeccable manners too. She'd write thank you letters and it's just very sincere." [Tom Cruise, 'War of the Worlds' costar]

"She is great. She is a very talented actress. Just personally, a sweetheart and funny. We laughed a lot. She is a really unique person. The scenes that we had together were very good and I want to work with people and hopefully create an environment where I want people to thrive and do well and she absolutely was there every take for me. I just love her. She is a sweetheart." [Tom Cruise, 'War of the Worlds' costar]

"Her relationship with acting is so direct and simple. In rehearsals, other actors get sort of stunned, and you can see them thinking, 'Okay, hold on, I can match this 11-year-old.'" [David Koepp, writer of 'War of the Worlds']

"I guarantee you, (Dakota) is the best actress I will work with in my entire career." [Kurt Russell , 'Dreamer' costar]

"She is just a gem of a person, wise beyond her years, and much more mature than a lot of the adult actors I've worked with in my life" [Freddy Rodriguez, 'Dreamer' costar]

"She is a true professional, I love her. She is exceptional. She's a woman trapped in a young girl's body, in a way, because she's so professional and so refined as an actor." [John Gatins, 'Dreamer' writer-director]

"She is a little girl. Her playful spirit is very much alive when she's not working. Even when she is working, she comes and she runs and hugs everybody in the morning, and her beautiful smile just sort of forces everybody, pushes them, to open up to the day." [Elisabeth Shue, 'Dreamer' costar]

"I was really so excited and thought, 'If there's a part, I don't care what it is, I'm going to do it just because I love her so much.'" [Elisabeth Shue, 'Dreamer' costar]

Review Experts

"Dakota Fanning is amazing as young Lucy, and exhibits qualities more natural than virtually all child performers I've seen in my lifetime. She's also the cutest little actress this side of Shirley Temple." [Jamey Hughton, review of 'I Am Sam' at allmovieportal.com]

"If there's a reason that the word 'precious' is so often used as an adjective to describe a child, that reason is Dakota Fanning. I'm not even related to her, but after watching her in this film I wanted to approach everyone outside the theater with pictures in hand so I could brag about how special she is. 'Adorable' doesn't do her justice... Credit the work of Sean Penn and Dakota Fanning for elevating the film above the schmaltz." [Michael Elliott, review of 'I Am Sam' at christiancritic.com]

"Seven-year-old newcomer Fanning is an absolute revelation - you can't tear your eyes off her when she is on screen, and she matches Penn tear for tear. Refreshingly, she is neither precocious nor winsome, and exudes an easiness in front of the camera belying her tender age." [Michael Black, review of 'I Am Sam at thisisbradford.co.uk]

"Thanks to fine performances by Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer and a young actress named Dakota Fanning, the film transcends its inherently manipulative premise... As Lucy, newcomer Fanning is a world-class scene stealer. She excels at both the temperamental behavior of a child character and the surrogate-adult behavior of Sam's mental superior." [Joe Williams, review of 'I Am Sam' at allmovieportal.com]

"Who steals the movie? It's not Penn or any of his big-name co-stars; it's Dakota Fanning, playing little Lucy Diamond. She takes over every scene she's in, whether it's with Penn, Pfeiffer, or an extra. Expect big things to come from this little girl in the future." [Paula Hopkins, review of 'I Am Sam' at home.nycap.rr.com]

"The cast is good all the way around, but the gem here is the little girl, played by Dakota Fanning, who absolutely stole my heart... Dakota Fanning captures the purity, innocence and humility of a child who just, simply, loves her dad." [Hooman, review of 'I Am Sam' at radioalice.com]

"Dakota Fanning, who plays the 7 -year-old, is every bit as compelling, and even more heart-melting. She's not just bright, she's odds-defeatingly angelic, especially when her eyes show concern for her loving but, as she already can see, limited dad." [Jay Carr, review of 'I Am Sam' at ae.boston.com (Boston Globe)]

"Dakota Fanning, the seven-year-old wunderkind portraying Lucy, is eerily convincing as a young girl who is mature and insightful beyond her years - a smart and needed juxtaposition against Penn's struggling Sam." [Glen Oliver, review of 'I Am Sam' at filmforce.ign.com]

"A special mention should also go to Dakota Fanning, who plays Sam's daughter Lucy. She displays a remarkable talent, showing expressions of love and sympathy with far more conviction than many adults working in Hollywood today. This kid has a bright future." [Matt Day, review of 'I Am Sam' at electronicreality.co.uk]

"Sam's daughter, named Lucy Diamond after one of his favourite Beatles' tunes, is played by seven-year-old Dakota Fanning, whose wide-eyed, wise and patient expressions are more than just the cute looks coaxed from many child stars. Fanning does an excellent job conveying the conflicting emotions experienced by a child who loves her father, but is confused and frustrated by his limitations and her own desire for something more than he can give her." [Elise Weightman, review of 'I Am Sam' at reviews.media-culture.org.au]

"...the real find of the film is young Dakota Fanning. This kid is dynamite as the intelligent and uber-cute Lucy. A veteran of the small screen at age 7, Fanning has made the jump to the silver screen and already has two more films in the can. Watch this kid!"[Blake Wright, review of 'I Am Sam' at comingsoon.net]

"Dakota Fanning is outstanding, as well. Given that Lucy and Sam are at the same developmental age, their roles are fluid. Lucy, who (not surprisingly) is more serious than most children, often finds herself cast as the parent. Fanning pulls it off without seeming overly precious or precocious--not an easy feat. This is a remarkable young actor." [Carlo Cavagna, review of 'I Am Sam' at aboutfilm.com]

"I was very impressed, though, by Dakota Fanning, who plays Lucy. I am a long-time critic of the sort of child actors Hollywood usually employs; I mean, I know that it's not easy for a little kid to be a great actor, but the sort of sickly-sweet hammy overacting employed by the likes of Haley Joel Osment has always irritated me. It is, however, a delight to see a truly great child actor: Fanning is a great example of this rare breed. I can't wait to see her in something else." [Mino, review of 'I Am Sam' at nofreelist.com]

"Dakota Fanning is absolutely gorgeous as Sam's daughter Lucy. She simply lights up the screen, and is a superb child actor." [Pearly, review of 'I Am Sam' at nofreelist.com]

"The perhaps overly-sentimental tone of this film is made bearable by the outstanding performances of the cast, most especially Dakota Fanning as the adorable Lucy." [Andy Gough, review of 'I Am Sam' in The Northern Rivers Echo (echonews.com)]

"Playing Sam's daughter Lucy is an extraordinary young actress named Dakota Fanning. A mixture of juvenile and adult to Sam's pure child, Fanning is exceptional. And being only the age of 7, Fanning even manages to hold her own against the likes of Penn and Michelle Pfeiffer. Not a small feat... Go to see it for the genius acting by Penn and Fanning..." [Brian Orndorf, review of 'I Am Sam' at filmfodder.com]

"Remember the name Dakota Fanning. She delivers a mesmerizing performance that is guaranteed to garner her many leading roles to come. She has that magical spark in her eye and her working chemistry with Penn allows their performances to rise above the screen." [Frank Wilkins, review of 'I Am Sam' at home1.gte.net]

"As 7-year-old Lucy, what can be said about newcomer Dakota Fanning other than that her performance is the best of someone as young as she since 4-year-old Victoire Thivisol's powerhouse turn in 1997's "Ponette." Fanning is not just an adorably cute child, but also surprisingly unaffected and touching. She has some of the most difficult scenes in the picture, and handles each one like a pro who has been doing this far longer than her age suggests." [Dustin Putman, review of 'I Am Sam' at themoviekid.com]

"But it is Dakota Fanning as Lucy who would walk away with the movie if Penn's performance were not so strong. She never strikes a false note, never resorts to the mugging so common with child actors, and gives a luminous performance as a bright, clear-eyed girl whose world is being torn apart." [Lowell A. Hagan, review of 'I Am Sam' at gospelcom.net]

"Fanning provides the only truly nuanced performance in the film. She is sweet, intelligent and especially genuine, a most difficult task for child actors." [Wesley Lovell, review of 'I Am Sam' at apolloguide.com]

"...a little girl named Dakota Fanning, perhaps the most adorable girl ever burned onto celluloid. As the title character's daughter, she elevates every scene she appears in, making the film at least a little more tolerable than the usual Hollywood handicapped-trumping-adversity trash... if you do see it, pay attention to that Dakota Fanning. Like Haley Joel Osment's performance in The Sixth Sense, her work stuns you with its thoughtfulness..." [Bradley Steinbacher, review of 'I Am Sam' at thestranger.com]

"Aside from Penn's excellent performance, there is also Dakota Fanning as Lucy. I often find children in movies to be either cloyingly annoying or far too obnoxious. Here Fanning displays warmth and a touching innocence that makes this one of the best performances by a child I've ever seen." [Judge Patrick Naugle, review of 'I Am Sam' at dvdverdict.com]

"I was the most impressed with young Dakota Fanning. She is amazingly mature in her acting, while always managing to capture the innocence of her youth. On top of all that she is a beautiful little girl." [Heather, review of 'I Am Sam' at twirler.ws]

"Dakota Fanning is brilliant. I can not wait to see what this little girl does next. Mind you, it doesn't hurt her performance that she has an aunt who is 'the same way as Sam' (taken from her interview on the DVD). She plays Lucy really well. The gamut of emotions that this little girl goes through in this movie is amazing, and she pulls each one off to a T." [Mercy, review of 'I Am Sam' at mercysspot.ath.cx]

"I can't go on about the movie without first also congratulating Dakota Fanning, a truly inspirational child actor. Those eyes, your heart just melts looking at them. Dakota plays Sam's loving daughter 'Lucy Diamond', yes, you got it...'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds'. Penn and Fanning have a brilliant chemistry between them, and I think Fanning actually helped Penn 'bring out the inner child' in himself." [Laura Alber, review of 'I Am Sam' at ez-entertainment.net]

"Dakota Fanning is wonderful as Lucy, adding an intelligence and dignity so rarely found in child actors."
[Matt Saha, review of 'I Am Sam' at bullz-eye.com]

"Newcomer Dakota Fanning cannot be forgotten. She adds vitality, spunk, and sentimentality to this movie in her performance and is one to look out for in the future." [Camilo Arenivar, review of 'I Am Sam' at currentlyplaying.com]

"The standout performance here is Dakota Fanning, the 7 year old girl playing Penn's daughter. One of the best performances by a child actor I have ever seen." [uncredited review of 'I Am Sam' at weyburn.net]

"A film like this is obviously built around placing a child in danger, and though that can easily become an over-wrought and exploitive tool, Mandoki and Iles use Fanning's Abby almost sparingly in comparison. Fanning, however, is such an impressive young actress and her scenes with Marvin are so intense and well-played that any more of her would have been completely unsettling. I can't recall seeing a child actor convey genuine fear and terror more convincingly, and it is her performance that gives the kidnapping scenario real dramatic depth." [Rich Rosell, review of 'Trapped' at digitallyobsessed.com]

"It is however, the youngest actor of the troop who comes within a hair of upstaging all of her older counterparts. This is also not the first time that young actress Dakota Fanning has come close to being the best actor in a movie despite being so young. If you are impressed with her here, then you simply need to see 'I Am Sam', where she is given an even more difficult role and pulls it off with the perfection of a veteran. She is simply a gem, and the heart of why you will keep a keen interest in "Trapped" is to see her safe in the end." [uncredited review of 'Trapped' at reelcriticism.com]

"Fanning is so believable as little Abby that as she cries out for her mother or runs in fear from her captor, you'll find yourself wincing at her every move." [Holly McClure, review of 'Trapped' at crosswalk.com]

"Dakota Fanning as Allie Keys, a remarkable 10-year-old girl portrayed by a remarkable child actor... It is Fanning who carries the series in the final going, convincingly playing a 'special' child who desperately wants to be a normal kid but knows she's destined for something extraordinary." [John Levesque, review of 'Taken' at seattlepi.nwsource.com]

"Dakota Fanning steals the show, simply owning every scene she is in. She plays a young girl who is unexplainably wise and knowing beyond her years, and she does so perfectly, with eyes that look old and full of knowledge and understanding we could never grasp, as if she is seeing something you aren't. It's rare when a child actor can pull off wisdom, but she does." [Eric San Juan , review of 'Taken' at dvdinmypants.com]

"...but it is young Dakota Fanning who steals the show. She is remarkably self-assured for her age, and is easily a match for any of the adult actors with whom she shares screen time." [Chris Gould, review of 'Uptown Girls' at dvdactive.com]

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