Akito HirataInkheart
March 24th 2010 02:06
This fantasy is as misguided as its characters
Blurring the lines between reality and fantasy often makes for an intriguing cinematic experience and in Iain Softley’s latest effort, Inkheart, the real world and the realms of fantasy do meet at a point of hybrid transformation.
Based on the bestselling book of the same title by Cornelia Funke, Inkheart charts the adventures of a young girl called Meggie (Eliza Hope Bennett) and her father Mo Folchart (Brendan Fraser), who has an extraordinary gift for bringing book characters to life when he reads aloud. The only catch is that for every character brought to life from a book, a real person disappears into its pages.
The undeniably imaginative concept is unfortunately something that Softley has not owned or mastered in a visual sense, and its creativity is further stifled by a miscast and largely uninteresting lead of actors.
Brendan Fraser doesn’t command the screen at all. The energy and exuberance brought to his previous, more memorable roles in George of the Jungle and each of The Mummy installments is virtually non-existent. Ironically enough, Cornelia Funke has revealed that Fraser inspired the character of Mo from the very beginning of her writing process, which only makes it all the more disappointing.
Helen Mirren is misused in her role as Meggie’s great aunt, where she’s been given very little to work with. Furthermore, the portrayal of Meggie by child actor Bennett can be described, at its best, as being passable.
Apart from its dreary acting, the film also suffers because of its drawn out screenplay. Coming in at 106 minutes, Inkheart is unnecessarily long for what is essentially a children’s movie. Softley has missed the mark with something that had the potential to be truly original and enthralling.
2/5 STARS
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