Artemis Fowl (film)

2020 film by Kenneth BranaghTemplate:SHORTDESC:2020 film by Kenneth Branagh

***Artemis Fowl*** is a 2020 American science fantasy adventure film based on the 2001 novel of the same name by Irish author Eoin Colfer. Directed by Kenneth Branagh, from a screenplay co-written by Conor McPherson and Hamish McColl, the film stars Ferdia Shaw, Lara McDonnell, Josh Gad, Tamara Smart, Nonso Anozie, Colin Farrell, and Judi Dench. It details the adventures of Artemis Fowl II, a twelve-year-old Irish prodigy who teams up with his faithful servant, as well as a dwarf and a fairy, in order to rescue his father, Artemis Fowl I, who has been kidnapped by another fairy looking to reclaim an item the Fowl family has stolen.

Originally intended to be launched as a franchise by Miramax in 2001, the film languished in development hell with several writers and directors attached until Walt Disney Pictures revived the project in 2013. Branagh was hired in 2015 and filming began in 2018.

*Artemis Fowl*'s intended 2019 theatrical release was delayed to 2020, and then cancelled in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, it was released digitally worldwide exclusively on Disney+ on June 12, 2020. The film received negative reviews from critics, who criticized the film's plot, dialogue, characters, visual effects, and changes made to the source material.

## Plot

On the coast of Ireland, a media frenzy descends on Fowl Manor, where a stolen collection of world-famous relics is linked to wealthy businessman, Artemis Fowl. Arrested at the manor, Mulch Diggums is interrogated by British intelligence and claims that his employer has stolen the powerful "Aculos". Offering to prove the existence of magic, Diggums tells the story of Artemis Fowl, Jr.

Three days earlier, Artemis, a twelve-year-old genius, lives at Fowl Manor with his widowed father Artemis Sr, who goes missing from his boat, accused of the theft of several priceless artifacts found aboard. Artemis Jr receives a call from a hooded figure. Holding his father captive, the hooded figure gives Artemis three days to recover the Aculos, which Artemis Sr. has stolen and hidden. Domovoi "Dom" Butler, Artemis' bodyguard, shows him a hidden library where generations of Fowls have catalogued proof of the existence of magical creatures.

Deep underground in Haven City – home to a civilization of fairies – Mulch, an oversized dwarf thief, encounters Lower Elements Police reconnaissance (LEPrecon) officer Holly Short as he is taken to prison. Commander Julius Root dispatches the LEPrecon force to search for the Aculos, the fairies' greatest resource. Foaly, LEPrecon's centaur technical advisor, discovers an unauthorized creature has reached the surface. Holly is sent to investigate, despite the fact that her father, Beechwood Short, stole the Aculos and was killed. In Martina Franca, Italy, Holly intervenes as a rogue troll attacks a human wedding party. Using a "time freeze", LEPrecon subdues the troll and wipes the humans' memories.

Dom's twelve-year-old niece Juliet arrives at the manor. From his father's journal, Artemis learns that Beechwood brought the Aculos to Artemis Sr. to keep it from the hooded figure, revealed to be Opal Koboi, a fairy planning to wipe out humankind. Artemis sends Dom to stakeout the Hill of Tara. Holly, determined to clear her father's name, disobeys orders and flies to the Hill of Tara, where she finds Beechwood's ID tag, but is captured by Dom and imprisoned inside the manor.

Root and an army of LEPrecon officers seal Fowl Manor in a time freeze, but Artemis and Dom fight them off using Holly's equipment. Artemis demands the Aculos in exchange for Holly's release, forbidding fairies to enter his home while he is alive. Bound by fairy rules, Root retrieves Mulch from prison, offering him a reduced sentence to infiltrate Fowl Manor. Mulch tunnels inside and breaks into Artemis Sr.'s safe, finding the Aculos, while Artemis frees Holly and asks for her help. Lieutenant Briar Cudgeon, a spy for Koboi, seizes command of LEPrecon and releases the captured troll into the house, jamming all magic inside.

Mulch swallows the Aculos as Artemis, Holly, Juliet, and Dom evade the troll, which is subdued. Pushing Artemis out of the troll's way, Dom is mortally wounded. Against orders, Holly's fellow officers unblock her magic, and she revives Dom. Mulch and the LEPrecon army escape as the time freeze collapses. Left with the Aculos, Artemis refuses to give it to Koboi, and Holly agrees to use it to rescue Artemis' father. As Koboi attempts to kill Artemis Sr., Holly summons him to Fowl Manor.

Artemis Sr. tells Holly that her father gave his life to protect the Aculos, giving her a list of Koboi's accomplices. Holly returns the Aculos to Haven City, where Root, back in command, directs her to investigate every name on the list. Artemis calls Koboi, promising to come after her. Mulch's interrogator offers him freedom in exchange for help capturing Artemis Sr., but Mulch reveals that Artemis arranged his arrest to prove the incident to the authorities, and confirms the existence of magic on camera. As the interrogator calls for backup, the Fowls' helicopter rescues Mulch and, joined by Holly, they fly off.

## Cast

* Ferdia Shaw as Artemis Fowl II, a 12-year-old human criminal mastermind, with exceptionally high intelligence.
* Lara McDonnell as Holly Short, an 84-year-old elven reconnaissance officer of the Lower Elements Police (LEPrecon), whom Artemis kidnaps to hold to ransom.
* Josh Gad as Mulch Diggums, an imprisoned *dwarfus giganticus* gentleman thief who agrees to work for the LEP.
* Tamara Smart as Juliet Butler, Domovoi's 12-year-old niece and protégé, and Artemis' best friend.
* Nonso Anozie as Domovoi "Dom" Butler, Artemis' trusted servant and bodyguard, whose family has served the Fowls for generations.
* Colin Farrell as Artemis Fowl I, Artemis' absent father and criminal mastermind.
* Judi Dench as Commander Julius Root, Holly's 802-year-old commanding officer in the LEP
* Emily Brockmann, Jessica Rhodes and Charlie Cameron as Opal Koboi, credited as "Shadowy Female Figure"
* Nikesh Patel as Foaly, a centaur and the LEPrecon division's technical advisor.
* Joshua McGuire as Briar Cudgeon, a power-hungry lieutenant in the LEP
* Chi-Lin Nim as Trouble Kelp, a captain of the LEP
* Lewy Xing as Grub Kelp, a corporal of the LEP
* Adrian Scarborough as the Goblin Chief
* Vincenzo Nicoli as the Goblin Sergeant
* Conor MacNeill as the Goblin Lieutenant
* Adam Basil and Taylor James as the Troll
* William Moseley as Italian Man

In scenes that were filmed but not used, Miranda Raison portrayed Angeline Fowl, Artemis' deceased mother, and Laurence Kinlan portrayed Beachwood Short, Holly's deceased father and a former member of the LEP. Hong Chau appears as a fairy blackmailed by Artemis in a deleted scene that takes place in Ho Chi Minh City.

## Production

### Development

Miramax Films (owned by The Walt Disney Company at the time) purchased the film rights in conjunction with Tribeca Productions in 2000, before the novel was published. Plans were first announced for a film adaptation of the series in 2001, with Lawrence Guterman signed to direct, Jeff Stockwell to write, and Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal as producers. In 2003, Eoin Colfer stated that a screenplay had been finalized and that casting was due to start the same year but expressed skepticism over whether or not this would come to pass. The film remained in development hell, in part because of disputes over the rights between The Walt Disney Company and Harvey and Bob Weinstein, who were leaving Miramax. During this time, Jim Sheridan, his daughter Naomi Sheridan, and Colfer co-wrote a non-commissioned screenplay, and it was reported in 2011 that Jim Sheridan was negotiating to direct and had met with Saoirse Ronan to possibly star in the film.

In July 2013, Walt Disney Pictures announced that they would produce an *Artemis Fowl* film with The Weinstein Company, covering the events of the first and second novels of the series, with the screenplay written by Michael Goldenberg.

On September 1, 2015, *Variety* reported that Kenneth Branagh had been hired to direct the film for Disney, with Irish playwright Conor McPherson as screenwriter and Harvey Weinstein, Judy Hofflund, and Branagh as producers. On September 12, 2017, Disney announced that the film adaptation would be released on August 9, 2019. The following month, Disney removed Weinstein as producer of the film and terminated its production partnership with The Weinstein Company following the exposure of Weinstein's criminal sexual misconduct.

### Casting

On September 18, 2017, it was reported that Judi Dench was in talks for an undisclosed role. On December 20, 2017, it was announced that Irish newcomer and grandson of Robert Shaw, Ferdia Shaw, had been cast as Artemis Fowl II, alongside Dench as Commander Root, Josh Gad as Mulch Diggums, Lara McDonnell as Captain Holly Short, and Nonso Anozie as Butler. Colin Farrell was added to the cast as Artemis Fowl I during reshoots, and his involvement was revealed through the second trailer in March 2020.

McDonnell's casting as Short brought accusations of whitewashing, given the character in the book series is described as having dark nut-brown skin of a coffee complexion. Similarly, Anozie's casting as Butler was criticized, as the books describe him as a Eurasian who can pass as Japanese and Russian; and because the character's physical description of terrifying anyone in his presence, combined with his backstory of his family having served the Fowl family for centuries, was seen with Anozie's casting as embodying several stereotypes of African Americans and Africans, in particular the "scary black man" and "black servant" tropes.

Author Eoin Colfer filmed a cameo appearance as an extra. Describing his one scene, filmed in Northern Ireland, Colfer said, "I walked across a field with a lot of other people. It wasn't too taxing – although I did manage to get it wrong a few times. The only direction they gave was: 'Walk across the field and don't look at the camera.' I must have looked at the camera about 20 times. I have a new respect for actors."

### Filming

Principal photography commenced on March 12, 2018. The film was shot in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Scotland, Italy, and Vietnam. Fowl Manor was built at Longcross Studios and was designed to last for the production of sequels, but had been torn down by May 2020. Many changes were made from the source material, which Colfer has stated that he supports.

## Release

### Streaming

The film was originally scheduled for a theatrical release on August 9, 2019 by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. In May 2019, the film was pushed back to May 29, 2020. Later however, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cinema, the film's theatrical release was cancelled and it was exclusively released on Disney+ on June 12, 2020. *Vulture* wrote that "given Disney's continuing commitment to theatrical openings for its megabudget event films... it's impossible to read *Artemis Fowl*'s Disney+ debut as anything but an abandonment of faith." In November of 2020, *Variety* reported the film was the 18th-most watched straight-to-streaming title of 2020 up to that point.

## Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 8% based on 171 reviews, and an average rating of 3.70/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "A would-be franchise-starter that will anger fans of the source material and leave newcomers befuddled, *Artemis Fowl* is frustratingly flightless." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 31 out of 100 based on 33 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews."

Richard Roeper of the *Chicago Sun-Times* gave a positive review of 3 out of 4 stars, writing that the film "does a marvelous job of capturing the decidedly Irish tone of the adventure" and features a "wonderful and diverse collection of characters."

*Comic Book Resources* summarized that critics were generally "blasting the film for not being entertaining enough and [for] poor execution." Kate Erbland of *IndieWire* gave the film a "D+" and noted that it "lacks an effective star, good effects, general coherency, and any sense of actual magic." David Rooney of *The Hollywood Reporter* wrote that the film "becomes a wearying slog, with too little reason to invest in the bland characters amid all the chaos." Peter Debruge of *Variety* called the film "tortuously long at just 93 minutes" and "downright awful." Scott Mendelssohn of *Forbes* wrote that the film "fails on a fundamental level of 'Is this movie fun?' and 'Do I want to spend any more time with these characters?'" and described it as "one of the worst YA fantasy movies ever."

## References

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1. ↑ Watch Artemis Fowl | Full Movie | Disney+.
2. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>Katz, Brandon (December 31, 2019). "Which Movies Are Most Likely to Bomb in 2020?". *The New York Observer*. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
3. ↑ Libbey, Dirk (June 11, 2020). Artemis Fowl Reviews Are In, Here's What Critics Are Saying. *CinemaBlend*.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chancellor Agard (June 10, 2020). A timeline of the 'Artemis Fowl' movie's 20-year journey to the screen.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Lee, Chris (2020-06-10). What Happened to Artemis Fowl?.
6. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>Court, Ayesha (August 8, 2002). "Author's 'Fowl' play includes sequel, movie". *USA Today*. Retrieved February 5, 2013.Template:Dead link
7. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>"Miramax Has Rights To Make Movie Of Book Artemis Fowl'". *Star-News*. February 19, 2003. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
8. ↑ The ol' 'College Try' (April 3, 2001).
9. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>"A moment with ... 'Artemis Fowl' author Eoin Colfer". Seattle PI. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
10. ↑ The 'Artemis Fowl' movie took 19 years to get made (2020-06-12).
11. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>"Irish fantasy role raises Saoirse's elf esteem". *Irish Independent*. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
12. ↑ Artemis Fowl Film Attracts Director Jim Sheridan And Star Saoirse Ronan. Bleeding Cool.
13. ↑ Vejvoda, Jim. Disney, Harvey Weinstein Team for Artemis Fowl Movie Adaptation.
14. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>Kroll, Justin (September 1, 2015). "Kenneth Branagh Developing 'Artemis Fowl' Adaptation for Disney". *Variety*. Retrieved September 3, 2015.
15. ↑ Artemis Fowl.
16. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
17. ↑ Template:Cite magazine
18. ↑ Michelle Lema (December 20, 2017). The Cast for the Upcoming Live-Action Adaptation of Artemis Fowl Has Been Announced. Oh My Disney.
19. ↑ Ben Travis (March 2, 2020). Artemis Fowl Trailer Reveals Colin Farrell Casting.
20. ↑ Baron, Reuben. 'Disney May Have Missed the Point of *Artemis Fowl*.
21. ↑ Andrews, Farah D.. 'Artemis Fowl': the trailer for the Disney adaptation has dropped and fans have questions.
22. ↑ Agrawal, Aarushi. *Artemis Fowl* movie review: Adaptation of fascinating books reduced to Hollywood's formulaic young adult fantasy.
23. ↑ Bernardoni, Angela. *Artemis Fowl* on Disney+: Give Reasons Why We Could Do Without It (it).
24. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>Alberge, Dalya (December 14, 2019). "It's Die Hard with fairies ... and a walk on part for the author in Artemis Fowl film". *The Observer*. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
25. ↑ Trumbore, Dave (March 12, 2018). Disney's 'Artemis Fowl' Officially Starts Production for Director Kenneth Branagh.
26. ↑ 'Artemis Fowl' set visit: Inside Disney's next blockbuster franchise (en-GB).
27. ↑ Artemis Fowl author supports the changes in Disney's movie.
28. ↑ Disney announces dates for new Star Wars movies, MCU Phase 4, and more (May 7, 2019).
29. ↑ Spangler, Todd (April 17, 2020). 'Artemis Fowl' Premiere Date on Disney Plus Set as Movie Goes Direct-to-Streaming.
30. ↑ Bridge, Gavin (November 4, 2020). DATA: 'BORAT 2' SECOND ONLY TO 'HAMILTON' IN MOST-WATCHED U.S. SVOD MOVIES OF 2020.
31. ↑ Template:Cite Rotten Tomatoes
32. ↑ Template:Cite Metacritic
33. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>Roeper, Richard (June 11, 2020). "'Artemis Fowl' review: Disney+ brings wondrous fairy land into your home". *Chicago Sun-Times*. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
34. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>Nolan, L.D. (June 11, 2010). "Disney+'s Artemis Fowl Is Absolutely Tanking on Rotten Tomatoes". *Comic Book Resources*. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
35. ↑ <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>Erbland, Kate (June 8, 2020). "'Artemis Fowl' Review: This Incomprehensible YA Adaptation Is Destined to Be Forgotten". *IndieWire*. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
36. ↑ David Rooney (2020). 'Artemis Fowl': Film Review.
37. ↑ Debruge, Peter (June 11, 2020). 'Artemis Fowl' on Disney Plus: Film Review. *Variety*.
38. ↑ Mendelson, Scott. Review: 'Artemis Fowl' Is One Of The Worst YA Fantasy Movies Ever.

## External links

* Official website
* Template:Disney+ movie
* *Artemis Fowl* at IMDb

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