(aka Wait, that’s Keira Knightly?)
Honestly, I just wasn’t feeling it. And I wanted to like it, I really did. I actually got to see a 15 minute advanced preview of this movie at Disney World earlier this year, and I was pretty stoked to watch it after that. Alas, what was exciting and enticing as a 15 minute teaser was more deficient and disappointing as an hour and forty minute feature film. I was mildly entertained by Keira Knightly’s portrayal of the sugar plum fairy (complete with an extremely high voice as sugary sweet as her costumes), but her rapidly fluttering gossamer wings just couldn’t carry the burden of this movie. The special effects were nice, and the imagery was nothing short of magical, but the plot itself fell flat, and I just couldn’t work up any real emotional attachment to any of the characters. On top of that, this movie had some pretty disturbing scenes for a family film. The sinister clowns are creepy enough, but the mouse king (entirely made up of many writhing, squirming mice) is downright terrifying. If you (like me) were hoping this would become a new Christmas classic to enjoy each year, I say you’re better off sticking to the oldies but goodies. My personal faves are National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Die Hard, Gremlins, & Love Actually. The Christmas season just isn’t complete without watching these movies.