Freddie Highmore, that thoughtful and engaging young actor who delighted us opposite Johnny Depp in both “Finding Neverland” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” takes his first leading role in “Arthur and the Invisibles” opposite a bunch of tiny little animated creatures whose unremarkable qualities equal their lack of stature in this part- live-action/part-animated adventure tale.
Director Luc Besson (“La Femme Nikita,” “The Fifth Element”) might have been better off making a film with just the live-action characters. But the film is based on the children’s books he wrote, and then what sense does that make, when in the books there are the Minimoys, the tribe of “invisibles” that provide all the onscreen action required of a children’s movie.
Arthur (Highmore) lives out in the country with his grandmother, played by Mia Farrow. The two are sad and lonely – Arthur’s grandfather, an industrious adventurer, has been missing for years – and foreclosure looms over the farm unless Granny can come up with some fast cash. The ramshackle old house filled with Grandpa’s treasures, plus the bucolic acres of land, are a child’s paradise, and Arthur indeed finds ways to keep busy, with his trusty dog – the requisite pal for lonely boys everywhere.
Upon hearing of Granny’s financial woes, Arthur decides to look for the supposed treasure – a bag of rubies – hidden on the farm, but he can’t do it alone. Through Grandpa’s notebooks, he learns about the Minimoys who dwell in the back yard, and must decipher a series of clues in order to gain access to their mini-kingdom. Arthur moves swiftly from one clue to the next, which is to everyone’s advantage – especially an audience full of children awaiting some cartoon action.
Inexplicably, a tribe of Africans appears, all painted up and holding spears, to aid in Arthur’s transport to the wee kingdom, where there are punked-out people creatures, troll-like animal creatures and nefarious, alienlike villain creatures. The people and animal creatures live in harmony against the villains, led by the evil Maltazard (voiced by David Bowie, whose cartoon alter ego recalls his Ziggy Stardust days, at least visually).
Arthur’s mini-self bears little resemblance to his live-action self, a sweet-faced boy of 10, who plays fetch with his dog and fantasizes about adventure. His animated self has a spiky shock of platinum blond hair, extreme Spock ears and a crush on the king’s hottie daughter, Princess Selenia (voiced by the 40-something Madonna, which makes the crush kind of creepy).
Though children will likely enjoy this film, the action, such as it is – there are some good chase scenes as Arthur et al. weave their way through the gargantuan blades of grass, etc., on the backs of mosquitos and in toy cars – isn’t enough to sustain interest for adults.
There are too many things out of whack here, and too many unanswered questions. Why, for example, does Arthur have an English accent? Why have his parents (who do exist and seem to live in a distant city somewhere together) left him to live with his grandparents? Why do the Minimoys exist in a seemingly futuristic world while Arthur and his granny live in 1960s Connecticut?
These and other disjointedly derivative elements make for a big mini-mess despite the charms of the live-action sequences. What might have been better entertainment would have been if the Minimoys transported back with Arthur and became human-size, and then they all had a barbecue in the back yard to celebrate saving the farm, with the Bowie and Madonna characters providing a rollicking jam a la “Shrek.”
“Arthur and the Invisibles” ** RATING
PG for fantasy action and brief suggestive material|1 hour, 42 minutes|CHILDREN’S|Directed by Luc Besson; starring Freddie Highmore, Mia Farrow, and the voices of Madonna, Robert De Niro, David Bowie and Snoop Dogg|Opens today at area theaters.
