Review of The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008) by Steven N — 09 Jun 2009

I knew absolutely nothing about "The Spidewick Chronicles" going into this film, short of the fact that it was based on a children's novel. It's because of this that I had no idea what to expect.

The story is about a group of kids who move into a run-down estate with their on the brink of divorce mother and find themselves being pulled into a world filled with fairies and goblins and various other slimy, growling things, that are looking to bite their heads off.

What surprised me most about the film was the violence. Don't get me wrong, it isn't "Robocop" or "Hostel" or anything, but at the same time, it isn't a Disney film either.

It's a bit dark, and if I were eight years old, maybe even a bit scary. I like the fact that the movie takes a chance, and does things a little bit differently in that way. The story does however feel a bit rushed.

Things are obviously being left out that maybe shouldn't have been left out, and because of it the script feels a little jumbled. Also, some of the performances could have been better. (All I'm saying is that i've seen more interesting child actors in Jello Pudding Pop commercials.

) The well designed monsters, the dark caves, and the slimy goo more than make up for the few failings of the film though and mostly I found "The Spiderwick Chronicles" to be an enjoyable diversion, and I think it's more than worth one-hundred and one minutes of your time.

(Unless maybe you're only going to live another one-hundred and one minutes.) I enjoyed it a good deal more than any of the Harry Potter films thus far, though maybe that isn't saying all that much.