"Usually when someone tries to kill me, it means I'm on to something," Nancy observes in a matter-of-fact way. She's promised her dad, though, and the inability to hunt down the intended recipient of an old letter from Dehlia found in one of her old books keeps Nancy up the entire night before her first day of class. When Nancy reaches school, it's a whole different field. She's a classic overachiever, out-answering, out-running, and out-constructing her peers. She makes a friend in Corky (Josh Flitter), a chubby twelve-year-old who admires her ("The ability to sleuth is an attractive quality in a woman.") and is constantly, sometimes annoyingly commenting on the situations in which he and his new friend find themselves. His sister Inga (Daniella Monet) isn't much of a fan of Nancy's conservative attire and attitude, and here's where the movie's second approach comes into play.

The mystery is the necessity, and the culture clash is the way to give the material a modern flair. The mesh never comes together satisfyingly. The movie jumps between scenes of Nancy's detective work and her new social life without grace, and most of the latter scenes feel like obvious filler. When the two worlds do occasionally meet, the results usually fair better. At Nancy's birthday party, she has to perform an improvised tracheotomy, complete with a disclaimer that only those with experience should attempt it. It's also amusing how Nancy must always drive the posted speed limit, even if she's chasing or being chased by someone who's tried to kill her. Less effective is a slow-motion sequence of Nancy trying to dispose of a bomb while Inga wonders out loud if Nancy and Ned are more than friends. With a few exceptions, the blending falls more in line with that scene, and an earlier scene in which Nancy is on hold with 911 for over an hour to report her stolen moccasins only to be laughed at seems a flash of what Fleming and Paulsen were actually attempting with the script.

Emma Roberts (who, I believe I am legally obligated to tell you, is Julia's niece) is just right for the role of Nancy—wholesome, perky, and charming—but her performance ends up being a sharp contrast to the movie she's in—wholesome, yes, but far less perky and charming. The ending of Nancy Drew promises a sequel, and one can hope it learns that Nancy Drew can exist in the modern world without it commenting on her or vice versa.