In every film genre, tried and tested formulas earn that label for a reason, hitting narrative and emotional beats that elicit the requisite response in audiences. Family friendly fare perhaps adheres to prescribed plots more firmly than others in their endeavours to entertain the youthfully restless and short on attention, often countering imitative efforts with celebrity vocals, pop culture references and gags aimed at those older in age. That’s what makes Belgian offering The House of Magic so surprising, not in its overt compliance with convention courtesy of a simple story about cute critters, but in doing so sans the standard accompaniments. Bucking the trend, the feature doesn’t attempt to eschew its derivation, instead investing in a quick pace and palatable pastiche to engage its target viewership.
After being unceremoniously bundled out of a moving van by someone callous and uncaring, a ginger tabby (Murray Blue) wanders the streets of Boston, lost and alone. Wandering into a Gothic-looking mansion seeking shelter, the kitty is met by over-zealous rabbit and mouse duo Jack (George Babbit) and Maggie (Shanelle Gray); however while they make their hostility plain, the house’s owner, kindly children’s magician Lawrence (Doug Stone), is warm and welcoming. Jack continually schemes to send the cat – now christened Thunder – on its way, until Lawrence ends up injured and in hospital. His realtor nephew Daniel (Grant George) becomes the new foe to fight, as he schemes to sell the house and dispense with its inhabitants.
Compiling its cast with a roster of either first-timers or veteran voice actors, The House of Magic lets its content do the talking as it cobbles together a tale that’s equal parts Toy Story, Home Alone and every animal-oriented offering imaginable. Writer/director Ben Stassen (African Safari), his co-helmer Jeremy Degruson (art director on A Turtle’s Tale: Sammy’s Adventures) and first-time co-scribes James Flynn and Dominic Paris aren’t afraid of using proven components to furnish what amounts to a gently generic account of pets and toys banding together against the uncaring force threatening to ruin their enchanted existence, as heightened by an endearing central character.
Thankfully, a rushing sense of rapidity ensures that little time is spent dwelling on any one aspect, the sense of speed vastly assisting the sweet but slight film. The narrative pace and assemblage of usual elements are matched with a visual fondness for cat point-of-view camerawork, careening through chase scenes with added energy and enthusiasm. Elsewhere, the corresponding animation is vibrant, bursting forth with bright colours and an abundance of background detail. Typical 3D flourishes are evident as items roll towards and jut out in front of the audience, but never overpower the feature’s aesthetic.
Though it touches on but quickly brushes past issues of animal abandonment, the impact of the economic downturn and the treatment of the elderly, The House of Magic also offers a rare family film more concerned with delighting its youthful viewers than appealing to adults as well. A smattering of obvious music cues – The Cure’s Love Cats, and Madness’ House of Fun – are likely to raise a wry smile on the faces of older spectators at the very least, but the bulk of the movie aspires to nothing more than showing children a rollicking good time. There’s nothing overly special about the feature that eventuates, yet it is never less than a pleasant jaunt. If nothing else, The House of Magic shows that sometimes there’s quiet charm in not trying to do things differently, and that sometimes a kid’s film is allowed to just be a kid’s film.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
The House of Magic
Director: Jeremy Degruson and Ben Stassen
Belgium, 2013, 85 mins
Release date: September 18
Distributor: StudioCanal
Rated: G
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