Review: "Inkheart"
Sunday, January 25, 2009 at 10:21AM | By Franck Tabouring 
Seen on: January 24, 2009
The players: Director: Iain Softley, Writer: David Lindsay-Abaire, Cast: Brendan Fraser, Paul Bettany, Jim Broadbent, Helen Mirren, Andy Serkis, Eliza Bennett.
Facts of interest: Based on the book by German author Cornelia Funke.
The plot: Fraser plays a man who has the ability to bring characters out of books by reading them aloud.
Our thoughts: Iain Softley’s “Inkheart” is a painful bore and one of the most slow-moving family adventures I’ve seen in a long time. The main story line is convoluted and mostly illogical, the characters lack depth, and the plot features only a couple of mediocre action sequences that are simply too short to impress.
Based on the novel by Cornelia Funke, the film tells the story of Mo Folchart (Brendan Fraser), who possesses the ability to bring characters from books to life by reading them aloud. After Mo accidentally unleashes a ruthless fictional character planning to take over the real world, he must find a way to send the evil back into the book before all hope is lost.
The basic premise of “Inkheart” really sounds appealing, but what the filmmakers have done with this adaptation is downright disappointing. Instead of launching into a fantastic adventure filled with perilous dangers, all Mo and his daughter Meggie (Eliza Bennett) are doing during the movie’s 105 minutes is engage in endless dialogue.
I usually don’t go on a hunt to discover what makes or doesn’t make sense in a kids’ flick, but there’s one thing here that really struck me as absurd: Mo spends nine years looking for a copy of the book that drastically changed his life, but never during that period did it cross his mind to track down its author. Considering that’s exactly what the characters are doing later in the film, you cannot help but question Mo’s intelligence.
Anyway, even though the plot of “Inkheart” collapses early on and fails to get back on its feet, the film’s technical aspects deserve at least a little praise. Solid visual effects come into play mostly when Mo reads someone or something out of a book, and they definitely look good enough to help erect a generally dark atmosphere. Unfortunately, that’s not enough to overshadow the film’s flawed story line.
Some thoughts about the cast: Paul Bettany and Jim Broadbent deliver fine performances, but Fraser, Bennett and even Helen Mirren just try too hard for my taste. Even Andy Serkis, who plays the main villain, comes across as more laughable than threatening.
Freaky quote: “This is the story you've been waiting to hear." – Brendan Fraser
The final word: Don’t go see “Inkheart” if you plan to read your kids bedtime stories in the near future. Depending on how young they are, they may just throw all their books out the window. On the other hand, taking them to see this snooze may be an excellent way of putting them to sleep right away.
Article by Franck Tabouring
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Reader Comments (4)
You obviously missed the main point of the movie! Movies and books, to most readers and viewers, seem to be at opposite ends of a spectrum. This delightful and engrossing film seeks to bring those two disparate mediums together for a brief two hours. It succeeds largely because of the fine performances by all the talented players with nary a deux-ex-machina to ruin the spell.The choices made were made from a writer's point of view, and not scribbled by some out-of-touch film executive with greed and sloth their only concerns.It is a film made by someone who writes, to be seen by someone who likes (or loves) movies. Pull your head from your *** and re-view this gem with a better eye on the plot and the wonder of film and not the jaded, crepuscular gaze of a fool who is paid (or NOT) to "see" films for their critical flaws.
Mike,
We do not tolerate moronic profanities here, but what the heck, I am in a good mood today. In case you still don't know it, a review is a personal opinion, and I quite simply did not like the film. I enjoy every genre and always walk into a movie giving it the same chance, but this one bored me to death. Deal with it. If you adored it so greatly, then I am utterly happy for you. To every cinemagoer his own opinion, but I guess you need more time to figure that out.
And by the way, I wish I'd get paid to do this:)
Well, he does have a point. The movie is very rushed, and barely follows the storyline of the book. The beginning starts in a completely different way that the book, the sequences are all changed in the middle, and at the end (spoiler) not only does Resa get her voice back (which doesn't happen until the second book) but Dustfinger goes back (also in the second book) AND, Gwin and Farid stay behind, which doesn't happen AT ALL! The way this is put together, you would think they were trying to AVOID having to make the two sequels that should be needed, Inkspell and Inkdeath. Did the scriptwriter even READ the book? Sheesh!
A quick clarification, I was saying that Franck had a point, and Mike, you should read the books and THEN see what you think of the movie!