Review of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016) by Sue J — 13 Jan 2017

The fantasy book Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children was written by Ransom Riggs and is the bases for the 2016 movie.  Following a terrible family tragedy, a young boy follows clues left to him by his grandfather's old photographs that take him on an adventure to an abandoned orphanage on a Welsh Island. The story is told through a combination of photographs and a narrative from the personal collection as told by the author. The book was supposed to be a picture book of photographs that Riggs had collected from various shops and stores, but it was suggested that he use the photographs as a guide to put together the narrative story. .

The story begins with Jacob Portman listening to his grandfather Abraham's stories about living with peculiar children in a special children's home run by Miss Peregrine; stories that Jacob as he grows up, doubts the accuracy and truthfulness of them.  But  when he sees a strange creature only he can witness, he begins to change his mind. While his grandfather Abraham is dying, he tells Jacob to "find the bird in the loop on the other side of the old man's grave on September 1940, and tell them what happened." Everyone believes that Jacob is going crazy especially with the story about seeing the monster and his mother and father take him to see Dr. Golan who suggests that Jacob visit Wales, the place where his grandfather said the children's home was and see for himself whether or not the stories are true. Searching the Welsh Island, Jacob finds the home and it is destroyed and deserted, forcing him to seek more information from the townspeople, including those at the Cairnholm Museum.

Jacob runs into a very mysterious girl whom he follows during a further investigation of the home. When Jacob reaches the bogs, he realizes that everything is different. While being chased by the people in the Inn, he is rescued by the girl, Emma Bloom, and Millard Nullings, an invisible boy and taken to the children's home where he is introduced to Bronwyn Bruntley, who is extremely strong, Claire Densmore, who's mouth is at the back of her head and that all of them were in a time loop, created by Miss Peregrine, an Ymbryne. Jacob learned that the creature who killed his grandfather were called a hollowgasts (failed experiments in immortality testing) and were after all the orphanages plus Jacob, like Abraham, were the only ones able to see the hollowgasts.

Another peculiar child was Enoch O'Connor, who was able to temporarily restore life by using the hearts from other creatures. Introduced to Victor, who was lying dead in his bed, was killed by a hollowgast at the start of the book. The evolved hollowgasts, called wights, are hungry for the power that the peculiar children possess. Along with Emma, Bronwyn, Enoch and Millard, Jacob went into an ice house where a dead man Martin was and Enoch using a sheep's heart brought Martin back to life to tell them that a wight killed him and not Jacob or the others. It is in this section of the book that the reader learned that Dr. Golan is a wight and Jacob to escape Dr. Golan decided to stay in the time loop. Unfortunately, Malthus, the hollowgast that killed Abraham continued to follow them, but Jacob managed to kill it. Dr. Golan kidnapped Miss Peregrine and warned the peculiar children not to attempt to rescue her. Nonetheless, they found him at a lighthouse, where he wounded Millard and they see both Miss Peregrine and Miss Avocet, another Ymbryne, trapped in a cage as birds. Dr. Golan threw the cage into the sea; Jacob shoots him, and both Jacob and Emma follow the bird cage into the sea, discovering a U-boat. Miss Peregrine is saved but Miss Avocet is captured and taken away. Miss Peregrine is unable to return to human shape. The peculiar children return to the destroyed home, while they search for th wights to help Miss Peregrine. Returning to the present, Jacob said goodbye to his father who had accompanied him on the trip to Wales and he, Jacob, returned to help search for the wights and hollowgasts.

The list of characters in this book consisted of 16-year-old Jacob Portman, who can see and speak to hollowgasts; Emma Bloom, who can make fire with her bare hands; Bronwyn Bruntley, the strong peculiar child; Enoch O'Connor, who can bring the dead back to life; Horace Somnusson, who has prophetic dreams; Fiona Frauenfeld, who can make plants grow or die; Hugh Apiston, who has bees in his stomach; Millard Nullings, the invisible man; Olive Elephanta, who is lighter than air and floats; Claire Densmore has an extra mouth in the back of head; Victor Bruntley has the same strength as his sister and his death is blamed on Abraham and Jacob until the end of this particular book. The Ymbryne were peculiar in that they were always female, could change into a bird, maintained as well as created the time loops and protected the peculiar children. They included Alma LeFay Peregrine, head of the school; Esmeralda Avocet, from the early mid-Victorian period; Miss Finch, who can transform into a finch; Balenziaga Wren, head of a menagerie of animals; and Millicent Thrush, who has a loop in London.

There are other characters that are not peculiars. They consist of Jacob's mother Maryann, his father Franklin, his aunt Susan and his grandfather Abraham.

The 2016 film Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is an intermediate adaptation of the book, adapted for the screen by Jane Goldman and was directed by Tim Burton. Miss Peregrine was played by Eva Green with Jacob played by Asa Butterfield, along with Ella Purnell as Emma. Terence Stamp plays Abe Portman.

The storyline of the film does not follow the novel exactly, but does not severely differ from it either. It starts with Abe Portman (played by Terence Stamp) who has told stories about his childhood fighting monsters and living during World War II at Miss Peregrine's Home at Cairnholm, Wales to his grandson Jake (played by Asa Butterfield). The children and Miss Peregrine (played by Eva Green) have paranormal talents and are referenced as peculiars. Receiving a call from his grandfather, Jake and his supervisor at the drugstore that his family owns only to find at his grandfather's home with his eyes missing. Jake is told by his grandfather to go to the loop in Cairnholm of September 3, 1943, and the falcon will inform him of everything he needs to know. It is here, as Abe dies, that Jake sees one of the monsters that suddenly vanishes.

Jake and his father Frank (played by Chris O'Dowd) go to Wales where Jake finds the destroyed children's home. While in the house, he is approached by some of the peculiar children sent by Miss Peregrine while she was in bird form. Going through a cave with the peculiars, he finds that he is in 1943 and the house is unbroken. Miss Peregrine meets him and tells him who and what she is (an Ymbrynes) and that she can manipulate time. All of the peculiars hide from being pursued, hiding in a time loop she has set up from September 3, 1943, and they live the same day over and over; thus, they do not age.

Jake is then introduced to the rest of the children, learns about Hollowgasts that only he, like his grandfather, can see as they are invisible and who are led by Mr. Barron (Samuel L. Jackson), a shapeshifter. They consume the eyeballs of the peculiars and when they have eaten enough, their eyes turn white and they become Wights. Miss Avocet (played by Judi Dench) arrives at the house and tells them that her home has been attack by Barron, her children have been killed and he (Barron) is attempting to repeat the experiment by using more Ymbrynes. To warn the peculiars who have moved out of the house, he is followed by a disguised Barron trying to find out the whereabouts of Miss Peregrine. He has also posed as Jake's doctor. He kidnaps Miss Peregrine taking her to Blackpool leaving Jake, her children and Miss Avocet behind. Unfortunately, Miss Avocet is killed, but Jake and the children manage to escape just as the 1943 raid destroys the house. The loop, however, closes, causing them to all remain in 1943.

Traveling on an old sunken ship, they go to Blackpool and fight Barron, his Hollowgasts and Wights, rescuing Miss Peregrine and the other Ymbrynes. Through deception, the children are confused; however, Jake manages to kill Barron and the hollowgast. Jake returns to Florida, where Abe is alive since the hollowgast who in present time had killed Abe was destroyed in 1943. Jake is then reunited with his friends thanks to the map given him by Abe. Jake, Emma (played by Ella Purnell) and all the children use the ship they found to look for another time loop.

This is an entertaining film, in the style we have learned to accept from the director, Tim Burton. Some continuity errors, script lapses, good CGI, with a complex plotline and story, handled well in Burton's hands. The music, particularly the end credits with Florence and the Machine added to the overall feel of the dark and sometimes gruesomely funny movie. It was a bit long, could have used a little more editing, but the attention to the details, particularly in the scenes from 1943 were handled well by the entire cast and crew. The fight scenes of the skeleton army and giant monsters in an amusement park was unnecessary and was not in the book and could have been eliminated. I was not fond of the makeup; however, the costumes appeared to be authentic for the time period.

I am a fan of Tim Burton, so I will be generous with this review and give the film a recommendation. GRADE: 3 of 5 crowns.