Creepy

Rating: Null/10 (14 November 2004)

Just had to write to say that my 4-year-old daughter, who LIKES scary movies, started whimpering 20 minutes into this one and asked to go home... This is a 4 year old film buff who watches Wizard of Oz, Black Stallion, Secret of Roan Inish, Castle in the Sky, etc, all the way through without batting an eye. But this one really freaked her out.
Why? It's an assault on the senses. It's as fast, vertiginous and noisy as a roller-coaster ride. The story and idea themselves are creepy- it's a peculiarly adult fantasy, not a child's -- and the fact that the characters are so realistically rendered only makes it creepier... the kids seem more like the "not quite right" zombie children of a Stephen King horror movie, than like book illustrations come to life. As in the first "Final Fantasy" movie, the illusion of life is powerful enough that it strains the suspension of disbelief that cartoons normally have, and in its place creates the uneasy feeling of not being sure *what* we are watching.. only that it's *something that was never meant to be alive* which is really disturbing and freaky. And scary, for a kid.
It's a shame because obviously a lot of loving care and technical brilliance went into this very expensive movie.. but as family fare, it's a total misfire.