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Under the Mountain
Not to be
mistaken for Escape from Witch Mountain, even though this film has some
parallels, Under the Mountain is based on the novel of the same name by
New Zealand author Maurice Gee and is a relatively above average
children/family action adventure film.
The two main protagonists in
Under the Mountain are twins, Rachel (Sophie McBride) and Theo (Tom
Cameron) who just lost their mother in a car accident. Unable to come to
terms with his grief, his father sends them to Auckland where they stay
with their uncle Cliff (Matthew Chamberlain), aunt Kay (Micheala Rooney)
and cousin Ricky (Leon Wadham).
Although initially, the twins are
apprehensive about their country move but as they explore the surroundings,
they soon stumble upon a strange mystery that dates back to the 1800’s.
This strange mystery is Mr. Jones (Sam Neil) who has the ability to
control fire around the volcanoes of Auckland.
The twins soon learn that
they are destined to help Mr. Jones who has been searching for these
twins since 1879 and are required to defeat the Gargantuans, monster
like creatures whose goal is to enslave the Earth for their masters, the
Wilberforces.
At times, the children feel like the characters out of the
recent Disney movie, Escape from Witch Mountain but interestingly
enough, this is actually a more believable plot in terms of science
fiction and fantasy. At times the story may be clichéd and over the top
but the actors in the film, especially McBride, Cameron and Neil really
captured the hearts of their characters which easily allowed you to form
a bond with them. You actually cared for the characters.
Audio/Video
Director
Jonathan King (Black Sheep) also makes good use of New Zealand’s amazing
landscapes and the cinematography is visually quite impressive with some
amazing use of colours. This in turn relates well to the widescreen
presentation with sharp images, vibrant colours and a perfect transfer
to DVD. The soundtrack really rumbles at certain points that uses the
surround sound technology well as does the immersive soundtrack.
Special
Features & Final Thoughts
In
terms of extra, Under the Mountain contains commentary by Jonathan King
and writer Matthew Grainger, a Making of Feature and some other
trailers. It’s definitely a movie that can be watched by the entire
family and considering that school holidays are coming, this is
definitely a must have buy or rental. Recommended! |
