The Spiderwick Chronicles

DVD review (region 1 & 2)
Directed by Mark Waters
Starring Freddie Highmore, Mary Louise Parker, Sarah Bolger, Nick Nolte, David Strathairn, Seth Rogen (voice), Martin Short (voice)
Release date Out now

The Grace family, twins Jared and Simon (Highmore) and older sister Malory (Bolger), move into their mum’s (Parker) inherited New England house. Jared soon discovers their great-great-uncle’s (Strathairn) field guide - the key to a fantastical world of goblins and fairies lurking in the Spiderwick Estate. Together with his siblings and their new mystical friends, Jared must protect the book from the clutches of evil shape-shifter Mulgarath (Nolte) and save the fairy world from destruction…

Tired of boy wizards, golden compasses, bridges that lead to extraordinary lands and money-spinning adaptations of children’s books? Paramount obviously thought not with this year's release of The Spiderwick Chronicles – the film from the series of kids’ books of the same name. The DVD’s out to buy just in time for the summer holidays; but is it worth the investment?

Freddie Highmore’s really got his work cut out here, playing twin teenagers (one troubled and angst-ridden, the other sensible and dull), and, thankfully, he does it rather well. For if it wasn’t for Highmore’s engaging dual performance and some chuckle-worthy voice work from Knocked Up’s Seth Rogen, Spiderwick would pretty much fall flat on its face.

The CGI creatures look impressive, but they’re so over-used that they soon lose their power, and unlike in films of a similar ilk, the world the goblins inhabit lacks scale and exploration. There is no real grounding for the world’s mythology or any reference to reality beyond the Spiderwick Estate, meaning that everything that happens feels a little inconsequential. So what if the fairies are destroyed? Give Mulgarath the goddam book and let this whole hoopla be over with!

With the exception of Rogen’s bird-guzzling pig goblin, the supporting cast doesn’t hold its own against Potter’s pickings. Nick Nolte’s Mulgarath is no Voldemort, while the usually brilliant Mary Louise Parker is under-used as the children’s slightly pathetic mother.

Although the cute goblins and enthusiastic teen heroes – Bolger’s Malory wields an impressive fencing foil – might be enough for a very young audience, slightly older viewers will probably soon tire of the formulaic plot. James Horner’s soundtrack is also a bit of a cheat - it's clearly a rehash of his work on 1995’s Casper.

The behind-the-scenes material is mostly standard fare, but the DVD does include an entertaining interactive version of Arthur Spiderwick’s Field Guide. Sarah Herman