Customer Reviews:
Review.......2008-03-04
The five Children and it
This enthralling children's classic has been converted into blockbuster screens. An emotional adventure tells the tale of five children who when evacuated due to world war one find a secret tunnel in the forbidden greenhouse in their cousins manor. As the story progresses the children discover the sand fairy or `it' buried in the magical beach through the tunnel. 'It' helps the children discover that what they want isn't necessarily what's best for them in the long run. The fairy grants them one wish each day and due to their father being away at war their wishes are often far-flung and drastic, events quickly spin out of hand....
This movie is carried along by the young child star Freddie Highmore who also played Charlie in Charlie and the chocolate factory. His innocent boyish face portrays the hurt of losing someone closest to you in a way only a child could. Other famous stars include Kenneth Branagh (uncle) and Eddie Izzard (the voice of it).
As the movie is swept along the house bully Horace (Alexander Pownall) catches the fairy and tries to kill it for his collection. Will the fairy escape in time to stop the whole town being eaten by a rampaging T-rex and will `dad' ever come home.
Directed by John Stephenson this movie is a must see!
By Eleanor Daly 14
(4 stars)
Lovely.......2006-11-08
I was thoroughly capivated by this dvd. The story is fairly simple. City children are evacuated to the country to stay with their cousin. On arrival they are given free rein of the house, but are not to go to the greenhouse. Needless to say, it is the first place they explore. Inside exists a secret passage to a special beach, the home of the Sand Fairy, aka IT. IT grants wishes but, with a twist...
Kenneth Branagh is wonderful as the excentric uncle.
A lovely family movie.
Good but not particularly faithful........2005-12-04
On its own this was a good film. The basic premise is there, five children, an it and some wishes which fade at sunset. This was a fun, funny movie with the appropriate lump in your throat moments. I enjoyed it but wasn't so keen on how estranged Robert seemed to be from his brothers and sisters. Kenneth Brannagh and Zoe Wannamaker were topnotch of course and Eddie Izzard provides much amusement as It. This film isn't particularly faithful to the book by E. Nesbit, only a few basic points correspond at all and if you're looking for something that will compliment the book then you might be better off going for the BBC mini series. If, however you're looking for a fun movie to watch with the kids then I would definitely recommend this one.
A fantastic family film that everyone will enjoy.......2005-11-12
This film is a masterpiece that puts together information on wartime britain with the mischievous lives of children. It is about a group of children who discover a secret that has been hidden in the ground for thousands of years to be awoken. It was funny in some bits although it does have a moral which is cleverly hidden in the story. A must se for the whole family.
Charming little film since Pride and Predjuce!!!.......2005-09-16
This a spellbinding movie! Eddie Izzard is terrirc as IT And Freddie Highmore is wonderful as Robert the cheeky boy, and I am only 12 years of age! I saw Pride and Predjuce when I was six, and it was toally boring, this beats any film except Lemony Snicket's A Series Of Unfortunate Events, so get IT!
See you later, amazon!
Customer Reviews:
A very likable children's serial with strong period detail.......2005-12-01
This is a faithful retelling of Edith Nesbit's moralistic Victorian children's classic. This TV story is firmly set in her late Victorian/Edwardian era and has carefully re-created period detail. This serial is very gentle and occasionally moving to watch, being more amusing than laugh out loud funny. It's naturally far more 'The railway children' or 'The secret garden' than 'Spy Kids' (hardly surprising as Edith Nesbit also wrote 'The railway Children'). It's not unlike a Victorian 'Famous Five' adventure as the children are given freedom to move about on their own, under the common notion that the older children are 'looking after' their younger siblings.
The BBC series has stalwart British adult actors, although not an 'all-star' cast, and the children are excellent and likable leads. The wise old sand fairy [Psammead] hasn't quite got the puppet quality and script of the recent 2004 film version, but the creature is still very convincing and wise. This BBC series is from 1991, and generally it is far more consistent than the recent film. The picture quality and sound are also very good (better than the BBC Narnia DVD's). The six episodes provide plenty of time to get to know the children and develop the various storylines. The wish granting storyline is slightly moralistic, about learning from your mistakes, greed etc.., but it's all done in a very pleasant and gentle fashion with no preaching, and the children always have basically good intentions. This series was nominated for a BAFTA.
The sequel book to 5 children and it, 'The phoenix and the carpet' BBC all star adaptation from 1997 is also available on a DVD, sadly only in edited film form, via Amazon resellers (NTSC Region 1 only) and is worth a look. Fortunately this BBC 'Five children and it' DVD has all six half hour episodes presented seperately with their own titles and credits, so the scripted cliffhanger is retained, ensuring the correct pace for the viewer (and there isn't anyone prattling over the end title music and credits, or previews giving away the main plot elements from next weeks episode).
My 9 year old son watched all the episodes of 'Five children and it' in one go and really enjoyed it, although it took a while to get him to decide to view it as he felt he had already seen it, having seen the 2004 film. In fact the recent 2004 film version is so different it's more like a sequel, although ultimately this longer BBC serial is the more satisfying version. This DVD also has a few extra's like a quiz, photos, and interviews with the cast. So good value, and well worth viewing over a few quiete winter nights.
Enchanting, nostalgic loveliness on DVD.......2005-11-16
Exactly how I am the first Amazon customer to write a review of this fantastic title is quite beyond me! I rented this DVD a few months ago, having vaguely remembered it from my childhood. I didn’t expect to view it with the same sense of enchantment that I did when I was younger. However, right from the opening credits I found that I did! It completely takes you back to a gloriously innocent age when children said things like “Jolly Hockey Sticks!” and the height of childhood hedonism was having lashings of ginger beer! The five children in question have a series of adventures brought about through wishes that are granted by an obliging sand fairy. Of course the wishes aren’t exactly well thought through by the excitable youths and invariably go pear-shaped. This leads to them using another wish to cancel out the first and consequently a moral lesson is revealed. Some of the special effects are surprisingly palatable and, in many places, actually really good – a world away from the awful animation layered over live action that spoiled my enjoyment of a certain other BBC children’s title (namely ‘The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe’). If you’re toying with the idea of renting or buying this – don’t. Simply do it! You’ll be thoroughly glad you did.
DVD:
- Flower Drum Song [1961] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
- Follow That Dream [1961] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
- Fun And Fancy Free [1948]
- Garfield: As Himself
- Gerry Anderson's Four Feather Falls - The Complete Series
- Go Diego Go - Diego Saves Christmas
- Goldilocks And The Three Bears
- Groovy Greeks
- Gustav Mahler - Conducting Mahler / I Have Lost Touch With The World [2005]
- Gypsy [1962] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
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Five Children And It
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