Magic Camp (2020)

I think I would have reached the inevitable conclusion eventually, but it was about a third of the way into Magic Camp when I realised exactly what it is. My girlfriend had been listening to my viewing choice and asked if Jack Black was a lead character. It was not. It was Adam Devine, playing a magician named Andy. Except he isn’t doing his magic act. He is a driver. And ends up given a chance to shape some young minds at the titular Magic Camp he had so much success at in his youth. The kids who end up being led/taught by Adam are a mismatched bunch who need to find their confidence and tap into their potential. Magic Camp is School Of Rock, but with magic in place of rock music. 

Andy is a main character, the adult encouraged to remember what he so loved about a life full of magic by the camp owner (Jeffrey Tambor). The actual REAL main character is Theo (Nathaniel Logan McIntyre), a kid who is a real whizz with a deck of cards. He also really misses his father, who passed away, and thinks that both his mother and little brother don’t sense the wonder and skill as much as his father always would. Lessons are to be learned, the various kids involved in the storyline make friends and enemies, and Andy gets to air some of his grievances with ex-partner Kristina Darkwood (Gillian Jacobs), even if he perhaps can nowadays admit that Abracaduo was a terrible name for their act.

Although it took about seven people to write this thing (how? how does something so formulaic take seven main credited writers??), Magic Camp benefits from being directed by Mark Waters. If you recognise the name, that's because he has probably directed a few films you have enjoyed. The House Of Yes, Freaky Friday (2003), Mean Girls, and, errrr, Mr. Popper's Penguins are some of them. He's well-suited to material that focuses on the journey of the kids while also allowing for plenty of time with the older characters sorting out their lives. The script is decent, don't get me wrong, I just struggle to think of seven people hammering it into shape.

Devine is someone I can like or loathe, depending on the movie. He's in good form here, working well with the kids. McIntyre is a decent lead, playing the usual notes that any Disney child actor is required to play, and Jacobs is perfectly fine, if wasted, in her supporting role. Tambor is a lot of fun, appearing at just the right times to offer pearls of wisdom, and Rochelle Aytes and Aldis Hodge both do well enough as Theo's loving parents, one being deceased and shown in flashback only. Most of the young cast do well, but I'll single out Isabella Crovetti, who made me properly laugh with her turn, playing a young girl who is obsessed with the idea of performing magic tricks with bunny rabbits. Cole Sand is also a LOT of fun as Nathan, a kid who can actually work magic with numbers.

It's all very paint-by-numbers stuff, but it's all done in a nice and entertaining way. And the moments showing magic being performed feel authentic. Everyone gets their moment, a number of running gags have solid pay-offs, and the predictable ending surely indicates a sequel coming along some time (that I will absolutely watch).

6/10

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Vampire Academy (2014)

Marketed as being from the director of Mean Girls, Vampire Academy serves as a sobering reminder that a movie is not made by the director alone. He needs a talented team around him, including a great writer, and a decent cast. Neither of these things are present here.

The plot goes thus: Rose Hathaway (Zoey Deutch) is a sorta-vampire who protects nice vampires (in her case, it's her BFF Lissa, played by Lucy Fry) from attack by nasty vampires. They both attend the titular vampire academy, which is ruled over by headmistress Kirova (Olga Kurylenko), and Rose attempts to further her training under the watchful eye of Dimitri (Danila Kozlovsky) while Lissa tries to make life easier for both of them by using magic on those who decide to give them a hard time. And that's quite a few people, although it's hard to figure out just who is the most serious about actually causing any harm to Lissa.

I've probably made Vampire Academy sound better than it really is with that description. Or, if you think I've made it sound pretty dull, I may have got it just right. It's an unexciting, unfunny movie, the kind of tick-the-boxes stuff that makes you feel annoyed while it plays out in all of its smug glory.

Deutch is hampered by the fact that she's not Ellen Page. I'm sorry, but she looks and sounds so much like her that it's impossible to watch the film and not imagine she was the second choice for the role. Fry may not call anyone else directly to mind, but she's eminently replaceable in her role, having no great charisma that shines through. Kozlovsky at least knows that he's there to be the eye candy for the girls, both onscreen and off (I guess), which is more than can be said for the likes of Kurylenko, Gabriel Byrne and Joely Richardson. All three of the relatively bigger names appear for no other reason than to slightly embarrass themselves, although they all have the sense to take roles that don't involve a lot of screentime. Sarah Hyland is the only person who I actually liked seeing onscreen, and she somehow managed to overcome the writing that made her character development painfully obvious.

I'm unfamiliar with the source material (novels by Richelle Mead), but the screenplay by Daniel Waters just doesn't work at all. There's a mythology that already feels stale and overdone, compared to the many other vampire and Young Adult movies to come out in recent years, there's a lack of genuine wit, and there's a lack of . . . . . . . .  well, anything to make this a movie worth your time. I'm not sure how much of the script would have been left in if the director hadn't been his own brother, Mark Waters, therefore both men can share the blame for the bad final product.

It lacks style, tension, a sense of fun. Thankfully, there's just enough technical competence to make it bearable, but that's it. I'd rather rewatch Twilight, THAT'S how bad it is.

3/10

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The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008)

I couldn't tell you the exact facts and figures involved but it seemed to me that, when it was released, The Spiderwick Chronicles didn't do all that well at the box office. I hope it did okay but it certainly didn't create any major excitement and talk of big new franchise opportunities. That's a shame because it's a very enjoyable family film. The same thing happened to Lemony Snicket's A Series Of Unfortunate Events (another family film I also enjoyed a lot). Hmmm, I hope I'm not jinxed.

Anyway, to the movie. The Spiderwick Chronicles. Young Freddie Highmore takes on two roles here, playing twin brothers Jared and Simon Grace. After their parents separate, the two boys, along with their older sister (Sarah Bolger) and mother (Mary-Louise Parker) move into the Spiderwick Estate, an old and run-down house in the middle of nowhere. Jared is convinced that his mother is to blame for this family split and he reacts with anger and insolence, resenting every minute of his new life. That all changes, however, when he discovers a book filled with details of many magical creatures living in the area. He doesn't believe any of it, of course, until he actually sees the creatures for himself. There are quite a few nice, sweet creatures to be observed but, sadly, also a number of nasty baddies out to cause harm and get their hands on the book in order to deliver it to their master, an ogre named Mulgarath (Nick Nolte). Jared must keep the book safe at all costs, which isn't going to be easy unless he enlists the help of his family. Will anyone believe him?

Based on the books by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black, this is an imaginative, consistently entertaining adventure that mixes great special effects with a great cast all portraying nicely rounded characters. Freddie Highmore is a very talented young actor and gives two great performances as Jared and Simon, Sarah Bolger is very likeable as Mallory and Mary-Louise Parker plays a very understanding and loving mother. Nick Nolte isn't onscreen physically for very long but he's excellent whether voicing Mulgarath or portraying him in human form. There are also roles for the likes of the great David Strathairn, the great Joan Plowright and the . . . . . ummm . . . . pleasant Andrew McCarthy. They may not be seen onscreen but Martin Short and Seth Rogen provide some enjoyable vocals for a couple of creatures that are on the side of good.

Three people, including John Sayles, worked to adapt the screenplay and the end result is well balanced. There are moments that may feel a bit intense for younger children but there are also many moments of comedy, spectacle (a flight on a griffin is a particular highlight) and sheer wonderment to keep everyone happy.

Director Mark Waters has given audiences a couple of poor movies in his career but he's also responsible for the remake of Freaky Friday, the great Mean Girls and, his first film, The House Of Yes. The Spiderwick Chronicles easily sits alongside that lot and I think that my high rating here could easily rise after future repeat viewings.

8/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Spiderwick-Chronicles-Blu-ray/dp/B001B6CCD0/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1353725018&sr=8-6