The Spiderwick Chronicles

Reviewer: Alyice Edrich

The Movie

Starring

Freddie Highmore, Mary-Louise Parker, Nick Nolte, Joan Plowright, David Strathairn, Seth Rogen, Martin Short, Andrew McCarthy, and more.

Plot

A family moves into an inherited house and discovers a family secret so fantastic that their lives are forever changed.

Review

The Grace family moves into a mysterious, old, haunted house they inherited from an aunt who has long been sent to a mental institution and it couldn’t have come at a better time for Mrs. Grace—since her husband’s left her for another woman. The problem, however, is that the kids aren’t too thrilled about leaving their friends, let alone small town life, and unless things change drastically they’re going to make mom’s life a living you-know-what.

But no sooner do they settle into the notion that nothing good could come from living in a stuffy, old house in the middle of nowhere do they discover the biggest adventure of their lives. A family secret that can change the destiny of the world, forever!

In their great great uncle’s remnants, one of the boys finds a coveted family secret: Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You. And despite the seal which clearly states “do not read” the boy opens the book and discovers a fantasy world like none he’s ever read before, complete with boggarts, sprites, hobgoblins, trolls, fairies, sylphs, sprites, and ogres. Of course, disbelief sets in and he concludes that his great great uncle simply had a wonderful imagination.

That is, until the mystical world meets the real world. It’s then that he, and his siblings, discover that with a little help, they can see the mystical, invisible world that threatens their very existence—after all, the head goblin is hell-bent on ruling the world and now that he knows the whereabouts of Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You, he can do it, too!

The film is 97 minutes of pure suspense! You’ll find yourself jumping out of your seat, screaming at the screen, and laughing so hard you think you’ll pee your pants. (I know not a good visual, but I couldn’t think of another way of saying it, sorry!) The special effects were so well done that you don’t even realize they are special effects. The actors did a fantastic job of making you forget that you’re watching a children’s film. And the costumes and set design was brilliant. I truly believe this was the best children’s film of the year—err, young adult film of the year.

There is one caveat: toddlers and children afraid of the dark shouldn’t watch this film until they are much older. While it was made for children, it wasn’t made for the faint-at-heart.

Task

Your task is to borrow, or buy, book, The Spiderwick Chronicles, by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black and read it aloud as a family. Take turns reading pages or chapters, spending no less than thirty minutes a night on the book. It’s a great way to slow down and bond as a family and will open up hours upon hours of family discussion.

Order The Spiderwick Chronicles today!