Too many style clashes.

Rating: 5/10 (31 March 2007)

A very well done film. Beautiful to watch, creepy, interesting, exciting, a very decent piece of work. But. What is it? Let me rephrase that question. Who was this film made for? The older adult audience or the younger child audience? I ask this because this film is both which doesn't really work does it. How can you have a family film with swearing, violence and people slicing other people's faces? Also how can you have an adult film which is clearly a family film about a child in a fantasy adventure. Is it a family film or an adult film? It's neither and that really spoils the film.
Also You've really got two different films going on here which really isn't needed and doesn't do this film any favours. You've got the fantasy film with the girl and also this war film with the adults. Both plots run parallel and sometimes meet. Fair enough but is that really needed? Do you need the war for the fantasy or the fantasy for the war? Now you see what I mean by style clashes. Why do you have both adult and child films locked into one? It doesn't work. You don't need the background setting at all for the fantasy part of the film. It could have been set anywhere at anytime and still worked. You also don't need the fantasy for the war. It may be a small complaint but to me it just ruins what could have been a good film. Pity really.