Faith Heslin

I watched this film when it came out and now having rewatched it at almost 20 years old it’s still just as fun to watch. It’s not meant to be a film about a kid mourning the loss of his parents, it’s about him finding his place in the world and accepting the fact that it’s okay to be different and stand out from the crowd much like his uncle who encourages him to be weird and quirky. A lesson which people these days should remember no matter how cringey that feels. This film has everything that a Halloween type film could want, it’s got elements of horror no different to Harry Potter which are well balanced by the subtle humour acted by Jack Black and Cate Blanchett and as for Owen Vacarro his acting is brilliant for a young kid playing in a movie when at times he acts terrified and also amazed by the magic he is learning. Anyone complaining about potty humour and the simple script writing forgets that this film isn’t written for awards or for anyone to win best actor of the year let alone it being a 12 therefore it’s directed towards kids, I can tell that everyone had fun filming this film and to be honest anyone complaining about this film either never had a fun Halloween growing up or lacks whimsy in their life and to that I suggest finding some as much like the characters in this film, you will find fun in the world around you.