“Okay this blog schedule is really going to hell, and you know what, I’m okay with that. A big part of the point of the move was to break out of my routine and if that means I’m not consistently getting to the movies and not consistently getting to my computer, but I’m living it up in the big city, then that’s a worthy trade off. But I still gotta get in at least one movie a week. I mean, I haven’t gone crazy.
Two things we all know to be true. 1-I love Tim Burton. 2-He’s been off his game lately. Therefore, I approached Miss Peregrine’s with caution. On the surface it looked like it had the magic that I love this man for, but so have some of the recent clunkers. I don’t think I even saw more than a single trailer, so other than the basic premise, I had no idea what to expect.
The film follows Asa Butterfield’s Jake, who sets off in search of answers after hearing his grandfather’s cryptic dying words. The journey leads him to Miss Peregrine, the caretaker at a home for children with special powers. Jake learns the truth about his past and the threats that face his future. Wow that line was cheesy.
Did it work? Yes and no. The most glaring issues were plot and pacing. The movement in the story was so plodding and slow. And then it just got really confusing. You just had to sort of go with it, lest an explanation drag things down even more. So all of that could have worked.
But not all was lost. We may not have reached Edward Scissorhands level, but these are the best characters and world that Burton has inhabited in a while. His whole mojo may not be back, but it’s a step in the right direction, and that gives me hope.
I also want to give an MVP award to Samuel L Jackson, who I have never seen have more fun than he did here, not even when working with Tarantino. He was seriously chewing that scenery like it was covered in sugar, and brought genuine life to an underwritten character. Runner up to Eva Green, typically hit or miss in my book, who really picked a role that works for her. Maybe won’t live on in infamy like Vesper Lynd, but has the potential to be as iconic. Oh Allison Janney, Judi Dench, Terrance Stamp, and Chris O’Dowd showed up too. My buddy and I had really funny reactions unexpectedly reading all their names in the opening credits.
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children – \m/ \m/ \m/”