The Spiderwick Chronicles (Widescreen Edition)

The movies were shipped at a very low price and in an orederly and fast method. The quality of the product was also excellant. I appreciate doing business with you.

Visually appealing even if the story deviated significantly from the novels, THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES is bound to entertain young and old alike (but perhaps more the old).

Starting with the visuals, Tippet Studios and ILM worked exceptionally well together to put out some very vivid visual effects. The creature creations were both interesting and sometimes creepy and since this was a large part of what we see as the audience, I found that I was pretty well glued to my TV screen as I watched the DVD.

Although the kids in the film are much older than the kids in the books, I found this change acceptable and not irritating like some Spiderwick purists (and I think it's okay to be a purist as long as you look at the film as a whole and not in snippets).

The story is that of the Grace family and their inheritance of an old mansion belonging to a (supposedly) deceased family member, Arthur Spiderwick (David Strathairn, Good Night, and Good Luck). Strange things abound inside and outside this seemingly ancient place. But Helen Grace (Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds) isn't interested so much in the place as she is getting away from her husband who's run off and left her with their three children. Mallory (Sarah Bolger) is the eldest and is the only daughter. Jared and Simon (Freddie Highmore, The Golden Compass) are twin boys but couldn't be more different. Simon is a self-proclaimed pacifist, while Jared is the belligerent and self absorbed one who finds the new home initially appalling and can't wait to be picked up by his father.

The house eventually reveals its secretive past: a place where Arthur Spiderwick discovered we humans are not alone in the world. Beautiful and sometimes terrible things lurk in our periphery -- and sometimes they are combined. This combination is quickly revealed when Jared finds a special reference book written by Mr. Spiderwick that explains each creature that hides in this peripheral land. With the book comes great danger. Knowledge of them is the primary problem, unless these special creatures want you to see them. And such is the case with Thimbletack (voiced by Martin Short) who initially is supposed to protect this book from prying eyes but fails to keep it out of Jared's hands. Thimbletack can also change from a caring creature to one of great disrespect and upset when things don't go the way he plans (note: keep honey nearby to reverse this process). But Thimbletack isn't the problem; it's Mulgarath (Nick Nolte, Peaceful Warrior), an ogre that desires the book and its secrets so that it can rule everyone and everything. And with him are his goblins and beasts that are tenacious in their pursuit of the book.

But can three kids convince their mother that this newfound world is real? And dangerous? Looking through rounded stones and getting "spit in your eye" helps to see them, but what of Mulgarath, the shape-shifting ogre that learns many secrets when pages from the Chronicles are ripped out and passed on to him?

The Grace's new house becomes the battleground, and the kids realize they need help and information. So they head out to see their great Aunt Lucinda (Joan Plowright, Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont) who has been confined to a looney bin ever since she revealed to those around her that her father (Arthur Spiderwick) had been abducted by some of the creatures in this nearly invisible realm. Geared up with new and important ideas on how to fight Mulgarath and his legions, the Grace kids race back home and prepare for battle (which includes salt and tomatoes ...are we making pasta here?). But can the kids win against overwhelming odds? Of course they can ...with a little help from unknown quarters (gryphons, old men who aren't old, and Hogsqueal, a bizarre being with an infatuation for birds).

Most important to this story is that it is a modern one. It isn't ancient history or trying to be old-English style. There are cell phones and new cars and plenty of modern items that let the audience know when and where they are.

The acting is okay, but Joan Plowright shines as the superstar even though she's not given much screen time. I'm pretty fond of Freddie Highmore and his performances in August Rush and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but here he was just "okay."

The big winners in every sense, though, were the special effects and the scenery. It really pulled the viewer in and made you believe in the things you were seeing; no small task nowadays.

I would warn parents, though, that the PG rating is very well deserved. The violence is ever-present, as are the stabbings of small, evil creatures. It could also be a bit unnerving for kids to see a young boy being dragged off into the wilds by initially invisible creatures. Just a warning for those with real young ones.

Besides that, this is a very good film. Something to watch for on Blu-Ray disc since the visuals are so stunning.

Great Movie for a family movie night. I would not allow children younger than six or so watch it though, as it does have some mildly scary characters. We loved it though!

the movie was so cool i wish every should see the movie i loved that it was cool even my kids loved it so mush.

A decent movie. I did not read the books so this is based solely on the movie.

Based on many of the reviews here I expected a fun, family movie suitable for my 5 year old. No way. I'm glad I saw it first because I'll put it on the shelf and let her see it when she is older.

I thought we would see people interacting with fairies, elves and other amazing but good hearted creatures. There wasn't enough of that. But our disappointment isn't just about the monsters, conflict and peril. My little one actually loves a good fantasy movie with odd creatures and she likes a little carnage of the computer generated fantasy sort. She loves Narnia. She would be OK with a lot of this in Spiderwick because she can clearly see it is fantasy.

I think one problem is that we don't get to see much of the "good" creatures. The main one is a brownie and he also has a dark side to himself. The "bad" creatures are the ones that get the most screen presence. The main settings, the house and woods, are consistently foreboding and dark as well.

But it is the social-emotional lives of these two dysfunctional families that makes this film a little too dark for young children. Each family is dealing with the father's abandonment and these sad relationships come across with a sense of reality despite the plot and fanciful creatures. The script and acting makes the relationships seem more real than the ones lets say in Harry Potter. I mean Harry's uncle and aunt are strongly painted as caricatures for ridicule. Even my daughter think they're funny although on a certain level they could be considered child abusers of the worst sort.

So I think this is too dark on a number of levels for small kids. I'm thinking 10-15 is a better minimum age. However if you think your child would enjoy seeing a 12 foot high evil monster turn into the family's father and say "I love you" to "his" son only to get stabbed by the son, go for it!!

Otherwise fantasy film fans will want to take a look. There are a couple of twists I found really fun although most of the plot was not quite so imaginative. For our family it was also a significant negative that there are no subtitles. In the end I'm sorry I bought a new copy so early. I wish I had waited for it to arrive in the $5 bin at Blockbusters.