 |
|
| Home · Reviews · Interviews · Contests · Blog · Forums · Follow Us On Twitter |
|
by R.J. Carter Published: June 21, 2009
Translating such an adventure into a film was inevitable. However, what was also inevitable was that the effort would, by necessity of the media involved, cheapen and weaken the story, through loss of gestalt. Which isn't to say that director Iain Softley doesn't give it a good stab, bringing together all the characters and the core of the plot. And while I never figured Mortimer (portrayed by Brendan Fraser) as anything like an action hero (at least not until the sequels), I... ah, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Fraser's character, Mo, is a silvertongue -- a person gifted with the unique ability to read aloud from books and have the literary elements come alive, taking on a physical presence. He discovers the ability quite by accident when he reads from the book Inkheart, and reads to life the dark villains of the piece -- Capricorn (Andy Serkis) and his murderous partner, Basta (Jamie Foreman), as well as the morally-flawed fire juggler, Dustfinger (Paul Bettany). However, Mo's power comes at a price -- for when things are read out of the story, things are simultaneously read into it, and Mo loses his wife, Resa (Sienna Guillory) in the accidental process. Unable to control exactly what goes in or out, Mo resolves never to read aloud again, and even forbids his daughter, Meggie (Eliza Hope Bennett), from doing the same, lest he lose her as well. Meanwhile, Mo utilizes his connections as a professional bookbinder and restorer of antique volumes to search the world for another copy of Inkheart so he can try to save Resa. The catch is that Capricorn finds he gets along quite well in this new world, and has also been looking for copies of the out-of-print volume, burning them as he finds them so that he can never be read back into his old world. Despite its failings, "Inkheart" the film does have its memorable bits. Bennett performs quite well, despite it never quite being explained why she has a British accent while being raised from a toddler by her very American father (I suppose she was born with it), and seeing great-aunt Elinor (Helen Mirren, in a bit of perfect casting to character) charge in on a unicorn after riding cross-country on a motorcycle is definitely worth seeing. The special effects are dazzling, and if one never read the book they might very well enjoy the film. But Funke's volume is so very densely layered that the post-read viewing points out more that's missing than what is there, moreso than with most film adaptations, despite the necessity. This is unfortunate, as it likely negates the potential for adaptations of the remainder of the trilogy -- although since it's actually best presented as a book, lack of future films isn't really a bad thing. This DVD version comes with a digital copy code for downloading the film to your PC or Mac device. The double-sided disc includes both widescreen and full-screen versions of the feature film. Additionally, there's a bonus segment introduced by Funke, "Eliza Reads to Us." Here, Eliza Hope Bennett reads the closing segment of the Inkheart novel, a scene that was not included in the film, complete with illustrations by Funke. Previews on this disc include "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," "Ace Ventura Jr.: Pet Detective," and "Green Lantern." |
|||||||||||||||||||||||
| Copyright © 1997-2010 Burlee LLC. All rights reserved. | Reprints | Privacy Policy | Disclosure | About Us/Contact Us | RSS Feed |