Karry Best movie of this year hands down!

Hellen I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

PodBill Just what I expected

Tobias Burrows It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

nuthillproductions We live in an age where literacy is on the wane. The reviews of this film clearly are from people who do not realize the book was produced in 1946 and was popular in an era when people commonly used their imagination and did not expect to be told what to feel as is common in film. It predates the books about Narnia(1950) but not The Hobbit (1937). This was an era when children's literature was in a renaissance that lasted for decades. I remember loving the atmosphere of enchantment set by the book when I read it as a child and was surprised to see it had been filmed. The caustic reviewers should inform themselves about this form of literature in order to know what they're talking about. I'd like to see the film despite the fact that film productions often deal with subtle nuances from books like Jack the Ripper performing surgery. The Narnia stories thus far are amazingly well done all things considered and there is a lot to consider.

Amy Adler In London, young, almost-a-teen Maria (Dakota Blue Richards) has just lost her father. Her nanny, Miss Heliotrope (Juliet Stevenson) tries to comfort her. When the will is read, Maria is dumbfounded to find out that she must move to the countryside and live with an unknown uncle, Benjamin (Ioan Gruffudd) at a remote estate called Moonacre. With no other choice, Maria and Miss H make the journey. Immediately, her uncle's gruff manner upsets the young lady. Yet, over the course of the next few weeks, magical things begin to happen to Maria. Elves appear and tell her of Moonacre's curse, that is, a pearl necklace was stolen from the Moon Princess long ago, by Maria's relations. In order to break the spell, the gems must be returned and are said to be hidden somewhere on the premises. Can Maria find them? The young girl also has to deal with dangerous, evil neighbors who inhabit a dark castle beyond the woods that separate the two properties. This family, headed by a horrid man (Tim Curry) wants to capture the girl to prevent her from breaking the curse. Also, living in the woods, is a beautiful lady (Natascha McElhone) who was once in love with Benjamin. Unhappily, their engagement went awry and the two are mild enemies, at present. But, since this beautiful woman knows the woods, can she help Maria in her fight against the wicked castle? This is one very lovely film, as beautiful as the moon, as they say. The art direction and special effects are superb, making the movie enchanting to watch. Also fine is the cast, from the stars to the supporting members. With very fine sets, costumes, script and direction as well, why wait for the moon's next appearance? Get this one today!

Yuliya11 Whatever you do, if you liked the book, don't see this movie. The whole idea of the book is rather ruined in order to make it appeal to people who didn't read the wonderful book. Starting with the fact that it isn't actually a fantasy book. So many things are added simply to make it seem more "magical" when that isn't what the book was about, and many things are just entirely wrong or tossed out so there isn't confusion when an idea was really quite simple. Everything is overdone to the extreme. The simple elegance in the description in the book is lost. I would only recommend seeing this movie if all you want is a run-of-the mill fantasy princess movie. I wouldn't say it has spark or shine at all. Don't expect anything new or a decent depiction of the wonderful story and world created by Elizabeth Goudge.

sun_rises_down Firstly, I haven't read the book. In a way it works for my advantage allowing me to criticize the movie solely based on what was presented there and not be distracted by what was left out compared to book etc. I can think of two kinds of fairy tales: one is the kind you love when you're 7 but think it utterly stupid and childish when you're 30; the other type is the kind you find magical no matter how old you are. This movie here could've easily belonged to the first group but turned out to be something more valuable. The bicycle has been invented and now it's all about how you do it, not what you do. The whole movie in its being is one big cliché, BUT they have successfully managed to turn that weakness into a strong point. This could've easily been a cheesy Raspberry candidate and I am very picky about my fairy tales and fantasy and I was not disappointed. Several aspects made the story believable, starting from the level of acting and ending with props. When it comes to acting, the weakest link in the bunch was Natascha McElhone, who didn't always seem to be in it as much as the others (e.g the cursing part, people seem to agree on that part mostly). I was thoroughly impressed by Ioan Gruffudd, going from cold to heartbroken definitely moved my cruel heart. The milieu and the special effects were outstanding. No Lord of the Rings, don't get me wrong, but there was no half-hearted effort in that area. The Moonacre Manor and the many other scenes were picturesque and the costumes far-enough-out-of-the-box creative, mixing the traditional with a modern touch in perfect balance. All in all, I was left feeling satisfied and enriched and I reckon this movie deserves a rating above 7 of 10 the least, for it certainly wasn't a mediocre experience.