This fantasy/family film crams a five-volume series of novels into an hour and a half movie that’s coherent and satisfying. Twin nine-year-old brothers and their teen sister have moved into a remote family estate with their mother (Mary-Louise Parker). English Freddie Highmore, employing two perfect American accents, plays both the mischievous Jared, who first discovers the hidden creatures in and around the house, and the placid, brainy Simon.
The story concerns these creatures, who range from tiny fairies to a giant griffin, but most concerns the efforts of the evil ogre and his assisting goblins to acquire a book that is in the house. Woven through this is Jared’s resentment at his mother for moving away from his old home and his father. There isn’t time for these themes to be explored in depth, or even to learn much about all of the different creatures that are introduced. It’s too small of a film to seem like a classic of the chidren’s fantasy. I didn’t feel pulled into another world, as with Wizard of Oz, or Chronicles of Narnia. But I did stay interested despite some familiar elements, and the movie will likely please kids old enough not to be scared of the gruesome, shape-shifting villain.
IMDB link
viewed and reviewed 2/16/08
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