|
|
Author
|
Topic: Spiderwick Chronicles, The (2008)
|
David Stambaugh
Film God
Posts: 4021
From: Eugene, Oregon
Registered: Jan 2002
|
posted 02-17-2008 07:13 PM
Early matinee today at Regal 15 in Eugene, #2, in 35mm. Looked *really* good, very high-quality print (at least by current standards). Sounded good too. Show started rough: wrong lens, masking changed twice, maybe it was moved from another house. One of the trailers played with no audio at all, not sure what was up with that. The feature looked and sounded great though.
I liked it a lot. Good story, beautifully photographed (by Caleb Deschanel ASC), special effects very well done (mostly ILM). Score by James Horner, and the music over the end credits reminded me a lot of the end-credit music he did for "Cocoon". Didn't much like Mary-Louise Parker as the mom though. Nick Nolte didn't have to get made up for his character.
A solid 3.5 out of 5.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
Stu Jamieson
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 524
From: Buccan, Qld, Australia
Registered: Jan 2008
|
posted 04-05-2008 08:21 PM
The latest in a long string of kiddie fantasy flicks (including Terabithia, Golden Compass, Eragon, Narnia etc), The Spiderwick Chronicles's central plot revolves around a hidden cabal of forest-dwelling beasties who are awoken by the foolhardy reading of an aged manuscript and subsequently launch an offensive on the keeper of the said document. Yep, with a plot scarily reminiscent of Sam Raimi's seminal horror flick, this is The Evil Dead for kids, and true to form the film is quite scary for the children it's aimed at (the little girl sitting next to me spent the film on her father's lap). This is not necessarily a bad thing though, after all kids like being scared too, but parents of especially timid children ought to be warned.
What follows is a cliché-ridden, logically flawed film which only a child (with limited cinematic experience) can believe. The movie is replete with a creepy house with secret passages and hidden rooms, a distant "crazy" relative who turns out to be a paranormal expert, damaged children resulting from parental separation who inevitably muster the inner strength to become heroes, there's even a rooftop chase sequence. But all this is largely forgivable given its intended audience and besides the film possesses enough fun to engage adults through to its end, if only to witness the highly amusing and innovative means by which the bad guy is inevitably deposed.
If you can accept its mythology on face value despite how silly it is, then there's fun to be had here and it's timeless metaphor for the personal price of obsession and the reckless and egoistic pursuit of science makes it a worthy viewing for kids.
7.5 out of 10.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
All times are Central (GMT -6:00)
|
|
Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classicTM
6.3.1.2
The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion
and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.
|