A teenage girl discovers her father has an amazing talent to bring characters out of their books and must try to stop a freed villain from destroying them all, with the help of her father, h... Read allA teenage girl discovers her father has an amazing talent to bring characters out of their books and must try to stop a freed villain from destroying them all, with the help of her father, her aunt, and a storybook's hero.A teenage girl discovers her father has an amazing talent to bring characters out of their books and must try to stop a freed villain from destroying them all, with the help of her father, her aunt, and a storybook's hero.
- Awards
- 1 win
- Meggie
- (as Eliza Hope Bennett)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaBrendan Fraser was Author Cornelia Funke's personal choice for the role of Mo, as he was her inspiration for the character. She even dedicated the second novel of the trilogy to him and sent him a signed copy. The producers originally wanted a bigger Hollywood star, but on the insistence of Funke, they gave in and accepted him in the role.
- GoofsMo has been looking for a copy of the book for nine years and apparently never thought of contacting the author until his daughter mentions it. We don't know what he did during the nine years. He might have tried to contact Fengolio but failed. He may have thought that his story was too hard to believe - who would believe that his wife was trapped inside the book? He may have saved it as a "last resort" item in case he never found a copy for that reason. Then, during the time-frame of the movie, he decided to try it because he had proof (Dustfinger) and it was an emergency.
- Quotes
Meggie Folchart: Having writer's block? Maybe I can help.
Fenoglio: Oh yes, that's right. You want to be a writer, don't you?
Meggie Folchart: You say that as if it's a bad thing.
Fenoglio: Oh no, it's just a lonely thing. Sometimes the world you create on the page seems more friendly and alive than the world you actually live in.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Troldspejlet: Episode #40.13 (2009)
- SoundtracksMunich Schmankerl
Traditional
Performed by The Bavarian Band And Chorus
Courtesy of Sheridan Square Entertainment, Inc.
The movie itself is loosely based on Funke's book. That's right, "book." It is actually NOT based on all three books, but rather, just as the title implies, the initial Inkheart. The elements I could not identify were never in the book. So...If you're a book fan and are unable to separate the literary story from a film adaptation, you WILL be disappointed. But honestly, if you're looking for something that bears more than a slight resemblance to the book, you still may be disappointed by the omissions, rearrangements, and substitutions.
But do let me say that Brendan Frasier is a wonderful Mo. The casting choice of Eliza Hope Bennett as Meggie was a bit of a surprise, but she is lovely and does very well as Meggie. Paul Bettany is a beautifully tragic Dustfinger. Wow, what a performance Bettany gives! I was also surprised by Helen Mirren's casting as Aunt Elinor, but she was a capable and endearing Elinor. I was even impressed by Rafi Gavron's Farid. I can't wait to see where HIS career leads him. He has great promise. They, and the supporting cast, were wonderful. Not one stiff performance. Andy Serkis was also good as Capricorn. I can't say he was "awesome," as he was not nearly as scary as the literary version, and seemed somewhat of a victim of his own circumstances herein, but he was enjoyable, nonetheless.
If you have never read the books, however, you may find this as I did; an enchanting lovely fantasy with enigmatic characters and a slick execution style. I enjoyed this work far more than I should have, considering the plethora of WIDE variances from the literary source.
All in all, while Inkheart is a highly enjoyable film, it is NOT the book. My advice? Watch the movie. Love the movie. Then read the book and find a hundred new reasons to love it again.
It's still fun, it's still wonderful, and it's still enchanting.
It rates an 8.2/10 on the movie scale.
It rates a 3.5/10 on the adaptation scale.
It rates an 8.4/10 on the fantasy scale from...
the Fiend :.
- FiendishDramaturgy
- Feb 1, 2009
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Ink Heart
- Filming locations
- Hever Castle, Hever, Edenbridge, Kent, England, UK(Elinor Loredan's Italian lakeside home)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $60,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $17,303,424
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $7,601,379
- Jan 25, 2009
- Gross worldwide
- $62,803,180
- Runtime1 hour 46 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1