The Spiderwick Chronicles

The Spiderwick Chronicles is a story a mysterious Spiderwick mansion and a boy who accidentally opens a magic book, and now the ogre and other creatures are coming to get the book and kill the humans while the boy has to undo what he has done.

What catches attention is the music that adds up to the suspense as well as other emotions in the film. Other than that, almost all else are satisfactory - the children's acting, animation, and cinematography. The script is super fast-paced that there's no time to engage the audience emotionally. The dark scenes annoy more than create suspense. Overall, it's still an entertaining film.

This fantasy-adventure film fits the young target market; it's amazing how the author could give life to fairies and ogres and at the same time bring across the message of love always present in parents and children. But the film can be for adults as well, especially the parents. Separated parents should think hard on the consequences of their action, not only from their own point of view, but also from the innocent who would be most affected by the separation - the children carrying unhealed wounds in their whole lives while waiting patiently to be healed.


Rating: 3.5/5

Juno

A young girl of 16 makes a bold move to face her pregnancy.

Juno McGuff (Ellen Page) is that one tough lady, strong-willed and possessing that wit that even her boyfriend feared her.

The best aspect of this film is the script - it is seamless, witty, and entertaining. It gave a very serious issue a light touch without compromising the very heart of the problem. The script goes well with the characters, especially Ellen, who carried the film to its success in the box office. The special effects was there but it was not necessary.

Here's a way to tackle the issue of teenage pregnancy. Unfortunately, the first alternative is always abortion. One should ask the question, "Why not other alternatives?" The greatest part is the whole experience of pregnancy as it moves through time and how people are affected by the life inside the mother's womb. The baby must be someone very very special. He is as special as the dynamics of life itself.

The audience should be forewarned about the other values set by the film, such as the active sexual lifestyle and taking interest in violent films.


Rating: 3.5 / 5

Fool's Gold

Photo courtesy of: marineteam.net

This is a film about an estranged man and woman recently divorced, who are on to some hidden treasure that no one else knew about and believed.

Casting's perfect for this movie with lots of adventure, comedy, action, and romance for Matthew McCanaughey and Kate Hudson, with Matthew bordering between overacting and being a heartthrob. Kate on the other hand is a natural; you can feel in her the tension between love and disappointment. The script has some nice comedic punchlines and the underwater scenes are superb. Other than that everything seemed glued to the typical feel-good conventions.

Unfortunately, "Fool's Gold" is simply what it is. One might expect that it would be much more than hidden treasures; no other than love to be exact. Sad to say, after capitalizing on love's theme, the film wants to get the best of both worlds, reverting back to the world of fools, and the fools are not just the characters' longings, but the potential audience lured to this false sense of happiness.

Rating: 3/5

Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber on Fleet Street

This is a story of a man who goes back to London to take revenge on someone who took him away from his loved one.

Using creative technology, the film manages to getting an intriguing look in its presentation. It also capitalizes on ever popular Johnny Depp as the infamous Sweeney Todd, a mystical figure who despite of his dark character, has the ability to sing well! How can you ever despise the guy? The music is dark, appropriate for the movie. The only thing is it may really be dark physically as well as dark inside the characters' hearts.

Vengeance always leads to a dead end; the only thing is how it leads to its tragic ending, which is after all the core of classic theaters. But this film is darkness in its very core, and the music pushes everything to their limits. Morally speaking, it is quite the same thing, when all characters, including children, seemed to have lost the very core of what it means to be human. And for Sweeney Todd, the world does not seem to have any hope at all.

Watch it with utmost care for your innermost sensibilities. Definitely not recommended for young people.

Rating: 2/5