Friday 31 December 2010

Inkheart

For the second night in succession I have remained awake, eaten a little and worked or played games. I will go to bed soon and try and sleep. Last night I stayed awake in bed because the mind was racing following events the previous day where tonight I found it difficult to get comfortable with a blocked nose. Even the common head cold frightens me a little, sometimes a lot. I an defrosting a large chicken, some pigs in blankets and special almond and apricot stuffing balls. I shall also roast the ham and enjoy a small Christmas pudding with hot custard as well as drink a whole bottle of Asti. There will be cold cuts with salad and perhaps a curry from the chicken. As soon as the cold cough has departed I will attend to losing weight with renewed determination.

Inkheart is described as a young adult fantasy which attracted my attention during December. It is first book of a trilogy made into a film in 2008 with a major cast which includes Jim Broadbent, Helen Mirren and Andy Serkis. This is a wonderful story about the power of the word and the creative imagination and concerns the 12 year old daughter, Meggie, of a man who discovers that he can make elements of any story he reads out loud to others come to life. It is important to understand that while the book tells the adventure from her perspective the film tends to switch between the perspective of the different characters which at times I did find hard to follow. It is important to pay close attention and reminds of those video adventure games where visual acuity is important together with a knowledge of the story upon which the game is based. Similar to the Harry Potter films which follow the books in great detail the film is aimed at those who have ready the original book, published in German but with an English translation.

The danger of her father’s ability as he discovers is that he appears to have read his wife into the story as she disappears, bring into reality a juggling fire eater from a travelling circus in the book called Dustfinger.

Meggie spends years searching for another copy of the book unaware that these have been bought up by another of the Inkheart characters called Capricorn played by Andy Serkis. He is a nasty criminal rogue he we learn lives in a castle dominated village which he has created in mountains of Italy. Her father is a book repairer which enables him to visit public and private collections and on one visit he finds a copy and Dustfinger who wants to be returned into the story and his wife unaware that he dies at the end of the book.

Without knowing the location of his wife the father refuses and goes to see his wife’s great aunt, Helen Mirren, who lives with her great book collection blaming Mortimer for the loss of his wife. They are followed their by Dustfinger who has reported the existence of Mortimer to Capricorn who promises to arrange for the juggler to be return to fiction.

Capricorn already has a reader, but the man has a stutter so the creatures are deformed and these include


He and his daughter then sped years on a pilgrimage trying to find another copy of the book to reverse the position. Mortimer is a repairer of books by trade and this provides the opportunities to inspect private as well as public libraries including the one held by the great aunt of his wife played by Helen Mirren and who lives in Italy. He makes the journey after being called into a bookstore and finding a copy of the book and then encountering Dustfinger who wants to be immediately read back into the story without first locating the whereabouts of the missing wife. Because of his refusal to act Dustfinger has alerted another characters who were released from the story and Capricorn played by Andy Serkis, and who at his isolated Castle has created a community of other characters including the Hound from the Baskervilles, the flying monkeys from the Wizard of Oz and the ticking crocodile from Peter Pan, together with a vicious Minotaur

The reader and the great aunt and Meggie are captured by Capricorn’s agents and taken to the Castle after the great private library is destroyed Mortimer is required to read for Capricorn to protect his daughter and this brings into the story a new and important character from Ali Baba who releases unlimited treasure. Mortimer has disclosed his power to his daughter and the great aunt and that he believes he unintentionally placed his wife in the book hence his search for another copy. The story becomes increasingly complicated, at least I found it so.

Unbeknown to either Mortimer or Capricorn the wife is not in the book but a mute artistic kitchen helper but she is discovered by Dustfinger who keeps the knowledge secret. The plan is devised to break out of the Castle and go in search of the author of the book in the hope he has a copy. The break out involves creating the cyclone from the Wizard of Oz and which also brings Toto the into the story as a friend for Meggie.

After locating the author played by Jim Broadbent, and finding he has a handwritten manuscript, a plan is devised to return to the Castle community and read a new version of the tale with a different ending as Capricorn is after bringing into reality the super monster which threatens mankind, similar to the monster of Outlander. Meggie discovers she also has the power and this in turn becomes known to Capricorn who also finds that her mother is working for him and blackmails the girl to read as he wishes. Fortunately they are able to alter the story, prevent the monster coming into reality also send back all the characters into their original stories. This enables Dustfinger to return and have a happy ending with his wife, but the Ali Baba character decides to stay with Mortimer and Meggie with whom he has struck up a relationship, suggesting the direction of the second volume. In attempting to simplify what is a fast moving and complex story I have done a disservice where the great aunt also has a ongoing role as does Mr Broadbent. It is he kind of film that one can enjoy better if you have read the book or watches attentively for a second time.

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