[1] Digger (Adam Hann-Byrd), a 12-year old boy, is sent to live with his aunt Anna (Barbara Williams) and uncle Sam (Timothy Bottoms) when his parents break up.
He befriends Billy (Joshua Jackson), a dying boy who has an eerie connection with nature, while his widowed grandmother Bea (Olympia Dukakis) enters a new romance with Arthur (Leslie Nielsen).
[4] Michael Reid of the Victoria Times-Colonist praised the film's cast and cinematography, but called the film a "downer" that didn't have "enough action to hold our interest en route to the summary of life's lessons.
"[2] Peter Birnie of the Vancouver Sun wrote that "while Digger is that rare find, a family movie filled with positive values, it's also paced so slowly that kids could get bored.
The script by Rodney Gibbons is guilty of making too much of the metaphysics between the boys, leading us in ethereal directions when what's needed is a stronger plotline.