Movie review #2: Inkheart

Have you ever read a book and wished you could enter the world on the page? Maybe reflected on how cool it would be to extract something interesting from the story and then bring it into the real world. So cool. Super cool right?

Just imagine you could ask for anything in the world to appear in front of your very eyes. Cool ey? I mean who wouldn’t want to have Harry Potter’s Firebolt 2000 broomstick (we can just zoom right to where we wanna go just like that) or maybe his very own Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory (wow) or even get to ask our very own legendary Hang Tuah on what's his real problem actually? Okay, too much there.

You’d think a movie centered on that very premise would be, at the very least, exciting to watch. However though, in the case of Inkheart, it’s a dismal disappointment. Or maybe just a little. Oh well, maybe I expected too much. Expected way too much magic.

I went to watch this movie last Thursday on a whim. We were sluggishly strolling along the rows of posters when my eyes suddenly caught the screen and then ‘Come! There’s a cool one at 2.20pm!’ And the moment I said that out loud, it was 2.25pm.

This movie is basically centered around Mo acted by Brendan Fraser, a bookbinder with the gifts of a "silvertongue"; where when he reads aloud from a book, its characters enter the real world.

But.

There's always a but there. His gift also works in reverse, causing real people to disappear into the pages. About ten years ago, his wife went missing as he read to his daughter Maggie. He has searched for a copy of this rare book, Inkheart, everywhere to bring his wife back.

I can’t really say much about this one here ‘cos in a way, like I said earlier I expected more, in terms of the magic and stuffs coming out from the pages and all. From all the characters, I love the one played by Helen Mirren, the type of grand nanny who you’d hate to love eventho she continuously and fussily talks to herself.

But the most important thing, I had my share of fun and entertainment and managed not to think about the real world for awhile there.

I have to add some more that the best part of Inkheart is its devotion to literature. Capricorn (acted by Andy Serkin, the guy who played the gay editor in this flick movie 13 going on 30. I cracked my brain trying to recall where the hell I saw that face before..lol) has imprisoned a host of characters from other children’s books; like the flying monkeys and a unicorn and a crocodile with something ticking in its belly. There are also glass slippers, Huckleberry Finn’s raft and a gingerbread house in the main hall from Hansel and Gretel.

All I’m saying is that, it is pretty ironic that this kind of movie intended to inspire children to read and write would itself be so poorly written. Once in awhile you could see it is messy. Despite a solid cast (remember that they have award winner Helen Mirren), impressive production values and an intriguing fantasy concept, Inkheart ends up as cinematic mediocrity.

Why don't you judge it for yourself? I promise you it's alot better than The Day.. er.. you know. LOL