Too Many Criticisms
There’s been a lot of negatives and complaints about the recent fantasy film “The Seeker: The Dark is Rising.” Which has been released to the shelves as a DVD this week. So much negative lashings has been made about the film’s apparent thin plot and certain familiarities to other kid-turned-magician films.
Where are the good points in the film?
You don’t hear any.
Why? The film isn’t that bad after an initial viewing and brought a light hearted entertainment that floods with cherished up-and-coming age moments and teenage heartbreaks. A fantasy film with hormones.
But the film has been a victim of attacks from some of the worst website reviewers such as Rotten Tomatoes. This site is so atrocious that it deserves no serious consideration. Y'know, blah, blah, blah.
Sure, the film captures déjà vu when compared to other films like Harry Potter franchise, the Chronicles of Narnia and also the Dark Materials saga. All of which concerns a young person turning into a teenager in an adolescent transformation that brings magical powers to them.
"The Seeker" centers on a young boy having moved into the England countryside, filled with old styled homes and churches, where he discovers himself through an age of transition.
Like so many boys his own age, he finds changes hard to accept. He finds himself lost in his surroundings. His dealings with girls even more trying affair. Yet, being the seventh son of the seventh son, he is consigned to becoming part of an elite group called the Old Ones. A group of elders who defend against the so-called rising dark. The young boy becomes the seeker who must find the signs before the enemy grows too powerful to stop.
Good vs. evil. A simple story. For children and older adults to enjoy. There’s nothing wrong with it. Some of the plot threads may confuse a little bit. The film adaption isn’t perfect. But it does have some good moments.
Yet The Seeker became the punching bag of back-biting criticism that is starting to irritate me greatly. Critics sound like a bunch of baby-ass kids whining about the same thing. It upsets me.
I’m not saying The Seeker is a brilliant film. It isn’t. But it’s not as bad as many put it. Where are the good points?
There are some.
Christopher Eccleston channels plenty of brooding atmosphere with his evil portrayal of a dark force that is threatening the very existence of the world. His sterling eyes remain piercing as ever, his fierce features like carved stone. His presence is calculating. Like a snake finding its way through the garden of Eden. There’s a nice moment when Eccleson undergoes as disguise as a doctor. A possible reference to his earlier stint as the ninth actor to play Doctor Who.
Also Ian McShane is great in the film playing one of the Old Ones… you might recognize him as Lovejoy from the beloved mystery series from the 1990s about antiques and murder. There’s a certain Britishness that he brings into the film. He plays a mentor who becomes a kind of adopted father when the boy Will Stanton no longer finds a connection with his real father.
The film focuses on a few good elements. The adolescent boy becoming older in a transitional stage is worked out well in the film. Some scenes with actors Alexander Ludwig and Ian McShane maintain a believable relationship that is like a troubled son and a neglecting father.
A sense of being alienated can be seen throughout the film which becomes prevalent. The younger boy finds himself pushed away by his family, his real father, and must keep his vigil in a setting that is unknown to him: he is a stranger to the English countryside that pours heavily with atmosphere. The film’s scenes reel back with a foreboding darkness as the coming storm approaches.
There are many forces of nature at work here. Fire, water, the storm, all of it coming together into a grinding halt of good and evil. On the dark side are the crows and the blackest shadows. Like cosmic forces thrown into a swirl. And the young boy is trapped under it all with a terrific sense of responsibility. It is here that he becomes truly an older adolescent on the verge of becoming a man when he discovers the key, and truth, behind all the six signs needing to be rediscovered.
The original author of the books Susan Cooper didn’t care much for the film adaption. Not many critics gave it thrilling reviews either. But younger children and families may enjoy the flawed, yet somewhat charming, attempt at bringing another sorcery fantasy to the big screen. With all the shortcomings.
There’s a great need for explanations. There are chunks of the film that paints a background history for the eternal war that’s been going on for thousands of years. The film must incorporate many ideas that would have difficulty fitting into a normal two hour film.
But if one sees the film as a simple story of a boy becoming an older, more responsible adult, then it’s not a bad flick. It doesn’t have the great narrative powers of a novel. But "The Seeker" does bring the notion of the age of innocence into center stage. With some moderate success.
Where are the good points in the film?
You don’t hear any.
Why? The film isn’t that bad after an initial viewing and brought a light hearted entertainment that floods with cherished up-and-coming age moments and teenage heartbreaks. A fantasy film with hormones.
But the film has been a victim of attacks from some of the worst website reviewers such as Rotten Tomatoes. This site is so atrocious that it deserves no serious consideration. Y'know, blah, blah, blah.
Sure, the film captures déjà vu when compared to other films like Harry Potter franchise, the Chronicles of Narnia and also the Dark Materials saga. All of which concerns a young person turning into a teenager in an adolescent transformation that brings magical powers to them.
"The Seeker" centers on a young boy having moved into the England countryside, filled with old styled homes and churches, where he discovers himself through an age of transition.
Like so many boys his own age, he finds changes hard to accept. He finds himself lost in his surroundings. His dealings with girls even more trying affair. Yet, being the seventh son of the seventh son, he is consigned to becoming part of an elite group called the Old Ones. A group of elders who defend against the so-called rising dark. The young boy becomes the seeker who must find the signs before the enemy grows too powerful to stop.
Good vs. evil. A simple story. For children and older adults to enjoy. There’s nothing wrong with it. Some of the plot threads may confuse a little bit. The film adaption isn’t perfect. But it does have some good moments.
Yet The Seeker became the punching bag of back-biting criticism that is starting to irritate me greatly. Critics sound like a bunch of baby-ass kids whining about the same thing. It upsets me.
I’m not saying The Seeker is a brilliant film. It isn’t. But it’s not as bad as many put it. Where are the good points?
There are some.
Christopher Eccleston channels plenty of brooding atmosphere with his evil portrayal of a dark force that is threatening the very existence of the world. His sterling eyes remain piercing as ever, his fierce features like carved stone. His presence is calculating. Like a snake finding its way through the garden of Eden. There’s a nice moment when Eccleson undergoes as disguise as a doctor. A possible reference to his earlier stint as the ninth actor to play Doctor Who.
Also Ian McShane is great in the film playing one of the Old Ones… you might recognize him as Lovejoy from the beloved mystery series from the 1990s about antiques and murder. There’s a certain Britishness that he brings into the film. He plays a mentor who becomes a kind of adopted father when the boy Will Stanton no longer finds a connection with his real father.
The film focuses on a few good elements. The adolescent boy becoming older in a transitional stage is worked out well in the film. Some scenes with actors Alexander Ludwig and Ian McShane maintain a believable relationship that is like a troubled son and a neglecting father.
A sense of being alienated can be seen throughout the film which becomes prevalent. The younger boy finds himself pushed away by his family, his real father, and must keep his vigil in a setting that is unknown to him: he is a stranger to the English countryside that pours heavily with atmosphere. The film’s scenes reel back with a foreboding darkness as the coming storm approaches.
There are many forces of nature at work here. Fire, water, the storm, all of it coming together into a grinding halt of good and evil. On the dark side are the crows and the blackest shadows. Like cosmic forces thrown into a swirl. And the young boy is trapped under it all with a terrific sense of responsibility. It is here that he becomes truly an older adolescent on the verge of becoming a man when he discovers the key, and truth, behind all the six signs needing to be rediscovered.
The original author of the books Susan Cooper didn’t care much for the film adaption. Not many critics gave it thrilling reviews either. But younger children and families may enjoy the flawed, yet somewhat charming, attempt at bringing another sorcery fantasy to the big screen. With all the shortcomings.
There’s a great need for explanations. There are chunks of the film that paints a background history for the eternal war that’s been going on for thousands of years. The film must incorporate many ideas that would have difficulty fitting into a normal two hour film.
But if one sees the film as a simple story of a boy becoming an older, more responsible adult, then it’s not a bad flick. It doesn’t have the great narrative powers of a novel. But "The Seeker" does bring the notion of the age of innocence into center stage. With some moderate success.
posted by K.M. Paters at 4:11 PM
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