When I was a kid, I never really had a good spooky movie made for my age group. Sure, we all loved watching Hocus Pocus and Gremlins and The Nightmare Before Christmas, but those had come out when I was just a baby. I never got to see one in theaters until I was much older, unless you count Casper (but that was played for laughs and not scares). Now, kids get the chance to go to the theater and see movies that entertain adults, but can actually provide a few spooks for the young ones (without causing irreparable damage). Monster House is a great example of this. So is ParaNorman. And to a lesser extent the Goosebumps movie. I've always been a big fan of horror movies, but a horror movie for kids, that adults can also enjoy has got to be one of the most difficult things a writer can be tasked with. And who the hell knew that the one guy who figured it out in 2018 would be the gore-king himself, Eli freakin' Roth?
So far, The House With a Clock in its Walls has gotten middling to somewhat high reviews from critics. It wasn't exactly spitting hot fire upon its release and I feel like I stopped seeing advertisements for it awhile ago, leading me to believe the studio had lost faith in it. But, I thought it was a whole lot of fun. It made me wish I was a kid just so I could watch it through kid glasses and get scared at things that don't scare me now that I'm an adult. It's a movie that once a young boy or girl watches, it's going to be their go-to Halloween movie to scare them throughout their childhood, and then watch every year as an adult (like we all do with Hocus Pocus) for nostalgia's sake.
The story revolves around Lewis (Owen Vaccaro), a weird little fourth grader whose parents have just been killed in a car accident. His eccentric uncle Jonathan (Jack Black) invites Lewis to come live with him. Jonathan's house is old, and gothic, and filled to the brim with ticking clocks, and old creepy marionettes, and eerie statues, and, oh yeah, furniture and walls that are sentient. Jonathan winds up revealing to Lewis that he is a warlock (or as Lewis puts it - "a boy witch"). He teaches Lewis spells and the two bond over these "training sessions". There for the fun, is Jonathan's right-hand woman (and a witch herself), Florence (Cate Blanchett). But the house holds a deep, and potentially deadly secret. At night, Jonathan searches the inside of the house for a clock put there by its previous owner - a clock that when it finally finishes its countdown, could mean the end of all mankind. It's up to our new unlikely trio to find it and put a stop to the evil once and for all.
THWACIIW is a lot of fun, even for parents (and lonely adults who still like kids movies). Eli Roth, and writer Eric Kripke have crafted an enjoyable little Halloween haunt for children to both laugh at, scream at, and want more of. Jack Black, like always, is the most watchable person on screen. He brings his weirdness and his outlandish style of comedy to bring the eccentric Jonathan to life. He's wacky, but he's also very kind. Naturally, he's where most of the humor comes from. Cate Blanchett is as wonderful as everything she's ever been in. Seriously, I could watch her eat tofu and be mesmerized by her beauty, and class, and style, and essence. Their back and forth flinging of insults at one another is some of the best stuff in the film. Newcomer Owen Vaccaro is perfect as little Lewis. He's super weird, so he and his uncle bond almost immediately, but it's harder for him to make friends his age. When he makes major mistakes with his magic in an attempt to impress a kid at school into being his friend - it makes sense. He's also a broken kid. With his parents gone, his entire world is shattered and he carries that pain throughout the movie, not an easy task for a ten-year-old. There's certainly big things for this kid on the horizon.
For those of you with kids, the movie is very funny. They'll be laughing their heads off at all of the little fun things around the movie that are played for laughs. Jack Black's entire character, an armchair that acts like the family dog, an tree hedge that refuses to use "the litter box". So, there's plenty of that in the film. The scares come aplenty too. There are just a couple of images and moments that may be TOO scary for young, young kids, but nothing kids over 8 can't handle. In fact, I applaud Eli Roth for going just a little bit darker than I thought he would've. He actually wanted to give these kids a movie that could make them feel actual fear. He doesn't pander to his intended audience. Instead, he steps into their shoes and gives them what he believes will scare them without scarring them.
Sure, some moments in the movie are a little juvenile. And there are a few running gags that are scatalogical in nature and won't appeal to adults, but for the most part, the film is one I'd happily label fun for the whole family. Kids will be happy they get their scary movie and adults will be transported back to their former selves thinking how much they would've loved it if it had come out when they were kids. I really hope they plan on making more of these, because this movie is a franchise in the making.
B
No comments:
Post a Comment