MirrorMask (2005)

I'm sorry but in a land whith so many stairs... how did you get so FAT!?

Genre: Adventure Drama Family Fantasy (USA, UK)

Starring: Stephanie Leonidas, Gina McKee (Croupier)

Directed By: Dave McKean

Overview: In a place split into light and dark, a young girl searches for the mask that will mend this world and send her home back to her own.

Acting: There was a touch of BBC melodrama from time to time. The acting overall was fine and good, but I didn't find it to be spectacular, though I was impressed with the Dark Queen. She was pretty sweet.
Rating: 7

Cinematography: The visual aspect of this film was obviously of primary importance. The CGI was incredible, my favorite scenes being the those floating giants among that land of staircases, and the panoramic landscapes full of sparkling towers and leaking shadows. Oh, it's pretty. Even the regular world is neat to look at, given that our hero lives in a circus.
Rating: 10

Script: The writing was decent, very suitable for children, but I found from time to time that it didn't spark the imagination nearly as much as the world itself did. You'd think Gaiman would have done better at writing the thing, but then I'm horribly reminded of Neverwhere, his mini-series that I spat upon in my *Worst Hits * list last year.
Rating: 7

Plot: The story overall was a little too basic for me. Yes the world was cool, the motives were believable, but the whole sick mother / evil queen connection was weak, the stuff that happened between plot development was very filler, and though overall a simple little tale, I didn't find it very rich or memorable.
Rating: 6

Mood: The universe is gorgeous, rich, immersive. The only problem I had with it was how that world paralleled this one. The bridge between the two was a little weak. The special effects are super cool, and you will definitely be impressed with the transformation scene, with the clockwork mannequins signing the Carpenters' "Close to you". AMAZING look.
Rating: 9

"Does it feel warm to you? I'm a little warm, what does my temp gauge say?"

Overall Rating: 78% (MirrorMask Shines)

Aftertaste: I ran into a friend a couple of days later and he felt the same way as I did, but we were certainly in concurrence about the girls we saw this with. The women seem to love it, and not because it's some romantic girly film. Either way, they liked it more than us guys. We thought it was fine.