Overview

“Inkheart” is a solid fantasy film. From start to finish, the movie unfolds with a deliberate, concise narrative that evokes a sense of wonder and excitement. Admittedly, there isn’t a great deal of depth or any Oscar worthy performances, but the film’s strength is that it doesn’t try to be more than its subject matter. This isn’t the kind of film you tell people that they *have* to see it … but if fantasy is your thing, or you happen to be along for the ride, there’s quite a bit to enjoy with only a few relatively minor points of contention.

Analysis & Criticism

Perhaps the most intriguing element to the film is how well it portrays the power of words, of stories … of text – though, let’s not forget the irony in the fact that a story about books is being told through film. The “magical” powers of a select few, called Silvertongues, who can turn literary characters to life simply by reading out loud are handled fairly well. And, for the most part, these magical elements become merely a vehicle by way the main story – of adventure, sacrifice, and derring-do – is told. Put simply, the fantasy is neither blatant or gratuitous and is nicely blended into the rest of the film.

The main character of the story is a man named Mo (Brendan Fraser) who, years earlier, inadvertently used his “Silvertongue” power. At the time, his power resulted in some characters from a book called Inkheart being brought to life while, at the same time, his wife became trapped in the story. Ever since then, Mo has searched for another copy of the book so that he can “read out” his wife – to literally rescue her from being trapped within the pages of the book. Fraser’s turn as Mo is predictably enjoyable, if not particularly stellar. He certainly does a competent job of carrying the film, but don’t look for a surprisingly artistic performance.

Mo is joined by his daughter, Meggie (Eliza Bennett) and Dustfinger (Paul Bettany), a character from the Inkheart book. Bennett’s performance is a pleasant surprise as a young girl, wondering what happened to her mother, and struggling to come to terms with her own emerging power as a Silvertongue herself. Bettany is likewise enjoyable as a character who tries to do the right thing, but whose selfish streak often gets in the way – much to the dismay of Mo and his family. The film’s main villain, Capricorn, is performed with great enthusiasm by Andy Serkis.  And, as an aside, it’s nice to see Serkis (aka Gollum) get a chance to play a character that isn’t replaced by CGI.

The story itself is rather briskly paced, only bogging down on a couple of occasions as our heroes travel back-and-forth to and from Capricorn’s castle. There’s an economy to the narrative with important plot points established early. The final climactic scenes are a culmination of the various plot threads. What’s refreshing is that, unlike many children’s films, or even fantasy films, there is an explicit attention to detail which serves the film quiet well.

Another strong point is its visual effects which, from start to finish, blend into the live action without seeming to be glaring or overly cartoonish – a distinct possible liability for fantasy films that rely too much on CGI. In Inkheart’s case, the CGI is used judiciously and becomes an asset, rather than a detriment – even if “The Shadow” looks eerily like a Balrog.

Indeed, the film’s primary criticisms stem from its stylized and somewhat obscure subject matter. This isn’t an epic story, nor is it especially memorable. And, as a result, it’s not likely that this film will reach a broad, diverse audience. But to the film’s credit, it will likely be viewed favorably by the audiences it does reach.

Overall Grade: B

Inkheart is a classic children’s-based, fantasy film. There’s enough here for more mature audiences to enjoy – from literary references to the struggle by Mo to reunite with his wife – while younger viewers will be wowed and awed by the visual effects, brisk action sequences, and vivid characters.

Topics: Fantasy, Film Review
Filed under: Film

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