The Spiderwick Chronicles

STARRING: Freddie Highmore, Sarah Bolger View Trailer RELEASE DATE: 02/14/2008 DATE SCREENED: 01/31/2008 The Verdict GOOD - See it in the theater

The fantasy film genre has been a disappointment lately, with films like The Golden Compass and Bridge to Terabithia not living up to my expectations. I was completely unaware of the impending release of The Spiderwick Chronicles. This film, based on a children’s book series of the same name, was flying completely under my radar. It turns out that this $100 million dollar movie has been advertised on Nickelodeon since the end of last summer.

The Spiderwick Chronicles is the story of three kids, twins Jared and Simon and their older sister Mallory, whose lives have been uprooted, as their parents separate and their mother moves them from NYC to a creepy old house in the middle of nowhere. The house was owned by a deceased relative named Arthur Spiderwick. Jared is the more rebellious and angry of the siblings, so when strange things begin to happen in the house he is the one who is blamed. Jared discovers a book, Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide, and it details a world of faeries, goblins, ogres, and other creatures. This is a world juxtaposed with our own, but outside of normal human perception. When Jared discovers the book, a creature assigned to protect it reveals himself to him. Nobody in the family will believe Jared when he says that the things in the book are true. Jared soon makes the mistake of taking the book outside, where it is seen by goblins who have had the house under surveillance for years, waiting for an opportunity to grab that book and give to an ogre named Malgrath. The house is surrounded by a circle of magic that protects it, so the book can only be snatched by the goblins outside of the circle. While the mother is at work, the kids are attacked by the goblins once they wander outside of the circle. The kids band together to protect themselves, with Mallory’s fencing skills coming in handy. A friendly creature gives the kids the ability to perceive this world on their own, and they set out to find a relative who may know how to destroy the book. A few pages are taken by the goblins along the way. One of the pages details the magical circle of protection. Mulgrath plans an all out assault for that night, now that he can concoct a potion to take down the magical wall. Mom comes home just in time, and the entire family, plus a couple of the “good” creatures, must stand their ground to protect the book.

This film was such a pleasant surprise. It has all the crucial elements of a good fantasy film. You have kids who stumble into a magical fantasy world of creatures, some of whom are good and some of whom are bad. The kids are then put in dangerous situations that they must fight their way out of without the help of their parents. The film has humor, and the kids have good chemistry with each other. The twins are actually played by one actor, Freddie Highmore, but he does an amazing job making the characters different and the special effects are seamless. The special effects team did a great job on this movie. Small children may find The Spiderwick Chronicle too scary, but this is a film that most families can enjoy together. And unlike Golden Compass, there is actually an ending. A very satisfying ending. This film has restored my faith in fantasy films, and I’m looking forward to even bigger and better things from the upcoming fantasy epic Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.