<P> Film critic Caryn James cited the film as being part of a "trend toward stronger, more realistic themes in children's films," specifically its representations of death, specifically that of a young child . David Kehr of the Chicago Tribune wrote of the film: "If My Girl helps stimulate family discussions of death and loss, it will certainly have done some good in the world . But at the same time, its aesthetic interest is virtually nil...Though My Girl seeks to stir large, devastating emotions, Zieff seems afraid to touch on anything too difficult or unpleasant, lest it alienate his audience . The results are curiously gutless and unmoving, as Zieff finds himself stuck with a sentimentality without substance, a poetry without pain ." Peter Rainer of the Los Angeles Times was similarly critical of the film's "syrupy" elements, concluding: "The mixture of winsomeness and deadpan frights in My Girl ought to be weirder and more interesting than it is . After all, a girl who survives a household where bodies are embalmed in the basement is the kind of plucky heroine that movies about kids need right now . Or movies about adults, for that matter ." </P> <P> Janet Maslin of The New York Times was critical of the screenplay for being made up of "loose ends bound together only by intimations of mortality and family crisis," summarizing: "It's not hard for the maudlin My Girl to make its audience weepy at the sight of America's favorite kid in an open coffin . But it is difficult for this film to mix the sugary unreality of a television show with such a clumsy and manipulative morbid streak ." Variety noted: "Plenty of shrewd commercial calculation went into concocting the right sugar coating for this story of an 11 - year - old girl's painful maturation, but (the) chemistry seems right ." </P> <P> The soundtrack of the film contains several 1960s and 1970s pop hits in addition to the title song (by The Temptations), including "Wedding Bell Blues" (The 5th Dimension), "If You Don't Know Me by Now" (Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes), "Bad Moon Rising" (Creedence Clearwater Revival), "Good Lovin"' (The Rascals), and "Saturday in the Park" (Chicago). When Vada gets upset, she plugs her ears and sings "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", the Manfred Mann version of which is also included on the soundtrack album . In addition, Vada and Thomas J. play "The Name Game" and sing "Witch Doctor" in the film, and Vada has posters of the Broadway Musical Hair, The Carpenters, and Donny Osmond on her bedroom wall . </P>

Where's his glasses he cant see without his glasses