The most frequently encountered criticism, here on the website as well as elsewhere in external reviews, is that "The House with a Clock in its Walls" doesn't have real target audience! Supposedly the special effects and spooky moments are too frightening for children, whereas the story is said to be too childish for adult audiences. Nonsense! You want to know who it's for? For weird and moderately twisted children of all ages; - like your truly!
Today, at age 40, I am a hardcore horror fanatic. As a 7 to 12-year-old, I was already hooked on dark & macabre children's movies, and preferably those with long and imaginative titles, like "The Watcher in the Woods", "Island at the top of the World" or "Something Wicked this Way comes". "The House with a Clock in its Walls" would have fit perfectly among my childhood favorites. Correction! It STILL fits perfectly among my favorites, and now also my own children (aged six and eleven) show a fascination. Perhaps the target audience for films like these isn't very large but we are devoted fans, to say the least.
"The House with a Clock in its Walls" was a more than pleasant surprise! The story, neatly adapted from John Bellair's novel by Eric Kripke, is playful and compelling. There is suspense, comedy, family sentiment, valuable life-lessons (most notably: it's okay to be different), and the special effects are top-notch. I never was much of a Jack Black fan, but he's tolerable here, and he's formidably supported by Cate Blanchett and Kyle McLachan. With this film, Eli Roth demonstrates that he evolved a lot since "Cabin Fever", and that he's capable of more than repulsive torture-horror.
