The Spiderwick Chronicles

This is another of those fantasy films that serves its purpose in that it entertains the viewer, no matter what the age. It's not among the elite in its genre, but it is a story that hooks you in by the 20-minute mark and you just go along for the ride, mainly to see how things will turn out.

There is good suspense in here, enough to make adults care about what happens, not just kids. There also are some scary scenes that are probably too much for small kids, but fine for teens on up. In all, you get a good mix of horror, comedy, fantasy and drama all rolled into one odd (fantasy) story.

To me, the star of the film isn't Freddie Highmore or the otheer actors, or even the story.....it's the special-effects, which are very good and a lot of fun to watch, from little beings to monsters to fairies to whatever. I saw this on Blu-Ray and it really looks good. All of it is very colorful and entertaining to view, making this a film fun for both kids and adults.

I ordered this movie on the advice of a Swiss friend. I loved it from the first moment and have been lending out my copy to all of my friends. I can't recommend this movie highly enough.

I didn't read the books, but I would think this is an excellent adaptation, just under 2 hours long, which doesn't waste a minute to get the action going. Very clever foray into the world of goblins, fairies & ogres, I was consistantly entertained. Kids will certainly enjoy it, too.
Too bad it was released so early in the year; it will certainly be ignored at awards time. There were also some lukewarm reviews, which I don't understand.
The acting is, without exception, excellent. Freddie Highmore was perfection, as was Mary-Louise Parker, David Strathairn, Sarah Bolger & the wonderful Joan Plowright.
It was very easy to get absorbed into the goings-on, and I'm glad I made the decision to watch this film.

Maybe that's usually the case, but it's definitely true here. My husband hadn't read the books and he said he thought the movie was pretty good. I replied, "It's amazing how you can take the characters and major plot point but change everything else!" For me the real charm of the books was in all the little details that were changed or removed for the movie. I guess I'm spoiled after the excellent adaptations of the Harry Potter books and the Lord of the Rings. Oh well. At least if it isn't very good, it's short.

I like this movie. but the creatures were not that realistic looking and the story line was lacking. Could have been better.