Mo (Fraser) is hiding a dark secret from his 13-year-old daughter Meggie (Bennett) about how her mother (Guillory) disappeared a decade ago. The problem is that when Mo reads aloud, characters enter and exit the pages. On the hunt for a rare book while staying with a dotty aunt (Mirren) in Italy, they stumble into a fire-juggler (Bettany) who knows Mo's story, and they're soon grabbed by the power-mad Capricorn (Serkis), who wants to make sure he never has to go back into his book.

This film constantly veers into new characters (such as Broadbent's befuddled author or Gavron's adventurous urchin) and settings, creating an odd blend of deep mystery, dark suspense and offhanded comedy. For the most part, Softley maintains the balance, putting two of the plot threads into sharp focus and keeping the imagery somewhat grounded in reality (with only a couple of obvious effects shots).

Those two stories both involve men trying to be reunited with their wives; and it's Bettany's story that's strongest, simply because he invests such earthy emotion into his performance. His expressive eyes and unselfconscious physicality are remarkable. Fraser (who really needs a new hairstyle now) is enjoyably gung-ho in the more central role, but not nearly as compelling.

Meanwhile, Bennett is terrific in a fairly difficult role that requires one ludicrous (and creepy) costume change. Mirren gets some superb scenes early on, before she turns into a slapstick figure, and Broadbent has a few lovely moments of discovery along the way. While Serkis is essentially a comic villain with a sinister underbelly; we know from the start that he'll never get away with his nefarious plan.

Throughout, Softley keeps a grip on the cluttered design, although the hysterically outrageous finale, complete with ticking crocodile and flying monkeys, throws everything onto the screen at once. It's completely over the top, but also thoroughly satisfying. And it kind of leaves us hoping that Funke's two sequels make it to the screen as well.

themes, violence, suspense

28.Sep.08