FILM: Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children

This film starts off really well.
Our protagonist, Jake, is a teenage boy with, what seems, quite a dull life and not very nice parents. We don't see much of his life at home other than one encounter with the 'cool kids' from school, which makes us assume he hasn't really got much of a life.
He was very close to his Grandfather growing up, who told him many fabulous stories about a home for children with special abilities.

The background to the plot is set out well. It does take up a bit too much time and introduces us to some unnecessary characters (I consider characters unnecessary when they haven't contributed to the development of the characters/plot), but we quickly understand the relationship between Grandfather and Grandson, and the essence of the film's plot. The Grandfather is played brilliantly by Terence Stamp. Unfortunately, this excellent choice of casting doesn't last long - Terence Stamp's character is frequently discussed but not seen very much.


As seen in the trailer, Jake meets the 'peculiar' children. This is the interesting part. We get to have a close look at the peculiarities of the children (though some of the abilities are not really explained), and many questions about the past arise which we'd like answered. The abilities are very imaginative and aren't necessarily 'super powers' which make them interesting.

However, as soon as the 'bad guys' are introduced, the film goes down hill (sorry Tim Burton!). Judi Dench makes a very quick appearance which doesn't feel substantial for her character - who was she, again, and where did she come from? - and Samuel L. Jackson's 'bad guy' was badly scripted and directed (which tends to result in bad acting). As soon as the film hit it's adventure/action part, the acting, script, directing, and plot deteriorate. There are so many plot holes it's difficult to believe in the story's sense of reality.
Lastly, the ending involves a complicated use of time that, I think, isn't explained clearly enough.

Overall, It's got many plot-holes and it's not wonderfully done, but it's something fun and lighthearted when you're feeling a bit brain-dead - or else, just leave it for the kids to watch.