Beautiful fairy tale with a tang of cinema humour

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2008)

No, the film is not a comedy, more of a darker fairy tale, but there are certain scenes that clearly point to other movies. For example Claire Danes and Charlie Cox standing on the prow of the air ship as it hits the water. It must have been hard for the actors not to raise their arms. Also when Michelle Pfeiffer used a voodoo doll; very Eastwick of her.
The story is almost standard: you get the prince(s), the princess, the witches, the hero, the evil king, the pirate... all the tarot cards are there. The effects are good without being terribly flashy, the actors seem to have been chosen for their match to the role rather than using Hollywood stars (pun intended) to bring people in the cinemas.
However, what makes this film good is that it puts the story in the foreground and the actors, soundtrack, special effects and whatnot remain where they are supposed to: as props for telling it.
Bottom line: good fairy tale, both for children and adults, and a very well done film.