The Spiderwick Chronicles (film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Spiderwick Chronicles |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Mark Waters |
| Produced by | Mark Canton Larry Franco Ellen Goldsmith-Vein Karey Kirkpatrick |
| Screenplay by | Karey Kirkpatrick David Berenbaum John Sayles |
| Starring | |
| Music by | James Horner |
| Cinematography | Caleb Deschanel |
| Editing by | Michael Kahn |
| Studio | Nickelodeon Movies The Kennedy/Marshall Company Atmosphere Pictures |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | January 31, 2008 (Hollywood) February 14, 2008 (United States) |
| Running time | 95 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $90 million |
| Money made | $164.2 million |
The Spiderwick Chronicles is an exciting fantasy adventure film from 2008. It is based on the popular book series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi. The movie was directed by Mark Waters. It stars Freddie Highmore, Sarah Bolger, Mary-Louise Parker, Martin Short, Nick Nolte, and Seth Rogen.
The story takes place in the old Spiderwick Estate in New England. It follows three children who find a special guide to fairies. They soon meet many magical creatures like goblins, ogres, and brownies.
Nickelodeon Movies produced the film, and Paramount Pictures released it on February 14, 2008. The movie made about $162.8 million worldwide, costing $90 million to make. Critics generally liked The Spiderwick Chronicles. Many praised Freddie Highmore for playing two different characters. The film became available on DVD and Blu-ray on June 24, 2008.
Story of the Film
In 1928, a man named Arthur Spiderwick writes a field guide about the many fairies he has met. After finishing his book, he hides it. He fears Mulgarath, a shapeshifting ogre who wants to use the book's secrets for evil.
Eighty years later, Helen Grace and her children, Mallory, Jared, and Simon, move into the old Spiderwick estate. Jared is upset about moving. He would rather live with his father. Jared finds a hidden dumbwaiter and discovers Arthur's secret study. There, he finds the Field Guide. Jared tries to tell his family about the book and the magical creatures, but they do not believe him.
The next morning, Jared meets a brownie named Thimbletack. Jared calms Thimbletack with crackers and honey. Thimbletack was angry because Jared opened the book he was supposed to protect from Mulgarath. Thimbletack gives Jared a special holed stone. Looking through it lets Jared see the invisible fairies. Thimbletack also tells him about a protective mushroom circle around the house.
Jared then sees goblins kidnap Simon. The goblins are led by Redcap. Simon is taken to the goblins' camp. There, he meets Mulgarath, who is disguised as an old man. Jared sneaks into the camp. He meets Hogsqueal, a hobgoblin. Hogsqueal spits in Jared's eyes, giving him the power to see fairies without the stone. Hogsqueal wants revenge on Mulgarath for hurting his family. Mulgarath lets Simon go, telling him to bring the Book. Jared finds Simon, and they argue over the book. The goblins chase them back to the house. Mallory uses her fencing foil to fight off the goblins.
The children decide to visit Arthur's daughter, their great-aunt Lucinda Spiderwick. Simon distracts the goblins while Mallory and Jared escape through an underground tunnel. A troll sent by Redcap chases them. They barely escape when a truck hits and kills the troll. Jared and Mallory meet the elderly Lucinda in a special hospital. She is surrounded by sprites. Lucinda tells the children they must find her father. She says he needs to destroy the book. She also tells them Arthur has been held by sylphs for eighty years. Just then, Redcap and his goblins attack through the window. They manage to tear some pages from the book before being chased away. Mulgarath is happy to find information on how to break the protective circle among the stolen pages.
While Helen is driving home, she and Jared argue. Jared is angry that Helen does not believe him. He tells her he hates her and does not want to live with her. Later, Hogsqueal tells the children Mulgarath's plan. Jared, Simon, and Mallory use the book to call a griffin. The griffin takes them to the sylphs' home. There, they meet Arthur. He has not aged and does not know how much time has passed. Jared asks him to destroy the book. But they find out Thimbletack switched the pages. He kept the real Book safe. Arthur is relieved until Jared says Mulgarath knows how to break the protective circle. Arthur tells Jared the sylphs will not let them leave. They know too much about fairies. Arthur helps them escape by distracting the sylphs with the fake book.
Back home, the children finally convince Helen about the truth. Meanwhile, the goblins finish spreading their potion. It breaks the protective circle as the full moon rises. The family defends themselves with kitchen knives. They also use tomato sauce and salt bombs, which are deadly to goblins. They manage to defeat the goblins in an explosion of tomato sauce. Suddenly, the children's father, Richard, appears. However, Jared attacks him, revealing it is Mulgarath in disguise. Mulgarath chases Jared and the Book through the house. He corners Jared on the roof. Jared throws the Book. Mulgarath turns into a raven to catch it. But Hogsqueal suddenly grabs and defeats Mulgarath. Afterwards, Jared and his mother make up.
Several weeks later, the family brings Lucinda to visit the house. The sylphs arrive with Arthur. They allow him a short visit now that the Book is safe. However, Arthur cannot stay long. He will disappear if he remains. Lucinda asks to go with him. She is transformed back into a child. The Grace family watches as the sylphs take Arthur and Lucinda away.
Main Characters
- Freddie Highmore plays the Grace twins:
- Sarah Bolger as Mallory Grace: Jared and Simon's older sister.
- Mary-Louise Parker as Helen Grace: The children's mother.
- Nick Nolte as the voice of Mulgarath: An evil shapeshifting ogre and the leader of the goblins. Nolte also plays Mulgarath when he looks like a human.
- Ron Perlman as the voice of Redcap: A mean and grumpy goblin general. He is Mulgarath's second-in-command.
- Andrew McCarthy as Richard Grace: Jared, Simon, and Mallory's father, who does not live with them. McCarthy also plays Mulgarath when he is disguised as Richard.
- Joan Plowright as Lucinda Spiderwick: The daughter of Arthur Spiderwick.
- Jordy Benattar plays Young Lucinda Spiderwick.
- David Strathairn as Arthur Spiderwick: The author of the guide and owner of the mansion.
- Seth Rogen as the voice of Hogsqueal: A bird-eating hobgoblin who wants revenge on Mulgarath for hurting his family.
- Martin Short as the voice of Thimbletack: A loyal house brownie. He changes into an aggressive boggart when he gets angry.
Other Media
Video Game
A video game based on The Spiderwick Chronicles was made by Stormfront Studios. It followed the story from the books and the movie. Vivendi Games released it under their Sierra Entertainment label. The game came out on February 5, 2008, just before the movie. It was available for Nintendo DS, Wii, PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 2. The game was rated Everyone (E10+) by the ESRB, meaning it is suitable for ages 10 and up.
See also
In Spanish: Las crónicas de Spiderwick (película) para niños
