‘The House with a Clock in its Walls’ review: Mischief in sheep’s clothing

Oggs Cruz

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‘The House with a Clock in its Walls’ review: Mischief in sheep’s clothing

Photo Credit: Quantrell Colbert/

'The House with a Clock in its Walls' surprises even if it doesn’t need to

It’s quite ingenious.

Pairing Eli Roth, a director who is most famous for movies of unsavory reputation like Hostel (2005) and The Green Inferno (2013), with John Bellairs’ 1973 children’s novel about an orphan who gets adopted by a warlock is a risk that is very much worth taking.

For sure, Roth, who has more than once spoiled mainstream sensibilities with very graphic images of not just blood and gore but also pain, has the capability to transgress the lackluster field of the children’s film.

Definitely, the world doesn’t need another kid’s flick that looks like a Chris Columbus snooze-fest, and for all its problems, The House with a Clock in its Walls has a very distinct mischievousness to its amiable designs.

Personal stamp

Clearly, Roth knows where to put his personal stamp.

The titular house is a spectacle. While it at first glance, it seems to be just an album of special effects where every wall has a marvel to behold, a closer look will reveal a much more sinister charm – one that almost doesn’t fit the normal trappings of a kid’s flick.

It isn’t enough that there is a hedge griffin. That hedge griffin also needs to be shown defecating on the pool. One only needs to see how Roth has designed the demon that transforms the film’s villain from being a best bud to a megalomaniac to be assured that The House with a Clock in its Walls isn’t just fluff. There are elements here that are the stuff of the most indelible of nightmares.

Verily, the tricks of the film aren’t just to please the eyes of kids.

DIFFERENT. Owen Vaccaro (Lewis Barnavelt), Jack Black (Uncle Jonathan) and Cate Blanchett (Mrs. Zimmerman) in 'The House With A Clock in Its Walls.'

They’re there to imprint the idea that the world isn’t just niceties and magic. Danger is around. This isn’t the type of danger that we can all grow accustomed to, the one that befits the innocence of children.

The fact that Jack Black goofs around like the way he does in Richard Linklater’s School of Rock (2003) doesn’t mean that everything and everyone is safe. Roth’s film balances its adolescent appeal with a visual style that doesn’t pander to parents’ expectations of what is safe for their children.

The House with a Clock in its Walls surprises even if it doesn’t need to, and it is during those times that it teeters towards more adult territories that it really leaves a mark.

Realm of adults

The most important thing about The House with a Clock in its Walls is that while it concerns itself with the emotional struggle of an orphan to fit in, its primary conflict is one that exists within the realm of adults.

The very cause of the end-of-the-world scenario here is war, one that the main character doesn’t understand but is forced to come to grips with because he finds himself in the middle of his uncle’s ongoing feud with a deceased ex-partner.

Roth handles the theme quite deftly by slowly but surely enlarging the scope of his fantasy. The film starts as a seemingly innocent caper that thrives with its ability to appreciate a child’s sense of curiosity and wonder when faced with out-of-this-world scenarios. Then the film curiously evolves, morphing that magic into the very source of its exploration of humanity’s capacity for evil.

DIFFERENT JACK BLACK. Jack Black shows his different side in the film.

Even the child’s own dilemmas, from his abject loneliness to his being subjected to a peer’s two-facedness and bullying, melds elegantly with the film’s darker overtones.

However, the film never loses its vibrant appeal or its wonderful sense of humor. Everything moves quickly. All of its scares are effective without being wimpy.

Kowtow to juvenilia

QUEEN CATE. Cate Blanchett plays Mrs. Zimmerman, a brilliant witch with a tragic past, in 'The House With A Clock in Its Walls.'

Truly, The House with a Clock in its Walls is a curious delight. It is a children’s flick that doesn’t kowtow to juvenilia. – Rappler.com 

 

Francis Joseph Cruz litigates for a living and writes about cinema for fun. The first Filipino movie he saw in the theaters was Carlo J. Caparas’ Tirad Pass.

Since then, he’s been on a mission to find better memories with Philippine cinema. 

 

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