Stills from Night Reading Horror. (Courtesy of Netflix)
Children's attempts to fight against evil witches are a common theme of fairy tales, and in the movie "Nightbooks", such stories are once again interesting, successfully reinvigorating the old themes.
The story is set in the male protagonist Alex, a teenager who is interested in writing, but now for unknown reasons, he has lost his enthusiasm for it and wants to destroy his work. In the process, he accidentally falls into the trap set by the witch Natasha, and is placed under house arrest in the witch's residence and unable to escape, and Natasha intimidates Alex, asking him to use his talents to create various horror stories for her, and if he fails to achieve the task, he will take Alex's life. How to survive in a difficult new situation and find a way to go home has become a major challenge for the male protagonist.
At the beginning of the film, the current mentality and situation of the male protagonist Alex are given a powerful shaping, whether it is the performance of the child star himself or the scene where his parents talk about him, which can make the audience deeply aware of the male protagonist's current low state of mind. In addition to a certain dramatic effect, such aspects also lay a curious foreshadowing, why Alex will be deeply shocked, become a mystery to be solved, and enough to affect the development of the story.
For how Alex fell into the hands of a witch from ordinary life, the interpretation of "Night Reading Horror" has a good texture, and the drama about falling into the trap can effectively render the eerie atmosphere from the aspects of sound and light effects, environmental arrangements, and item furnishings; about the level of being finally captured by the witch and difficult to get out, it can also reasonably show the magical elements and lay the fantasy color of the film.
As far as the role of Natasha the witch is concerned, since the beginning of the film, her magical abilities have been basically shaped, which can make people understand that Natasha wants to kill Alex as easily as a palm; at the same time, some of the scenes also reflect that the witch has not kidnapped a child for the first time, and the child's fate is generally not good. The portrayal of various aspects can effectively outline the typical appearance of the evil witch in a short period of time, and create a foundation for the confrontation between good and evil.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > new environment contains interesting points to watch</h1>
After Alex is kidnapped and returned to a new environment, naturally facing a period of adaptation, the witch's mansion is not full of magical items to win, but there is still no lack of more interesting elements. For example, the witch's cat Reno is quite different from ordinary cats, its special skills are in line with the fantasy color of this film, and the male protagonist is not friendly, so that the confrontation between people and cats becomes quite dramatic; the library in the house is quite large, the amount of books is amazing, showing the texture of the special effects level.
The witch's residence is not only a child of Alex, but also a young girl of similar age, Yasmin, who is obviously kidnapped by Natasha for many years, in terms of character setting, the character of Yasmin can be just right to become the heroine's sister and leader, which helps to promote the story. The existence of two children, in addition to the spark between the characters, also makes the scene of the confrontation with the witch more malleable.
The male protagonist has to meet Natasha's creative requirements, which is the key to her survival, and the portrayal of this in "Night Reading Horror" can also make good use of the danger of the witch's role, so that whether the creation is smooth and whether the witch is satisfied with the results has become more dramatic. Alex also has to play the storyteller, personally expounding the story he created, in addition to the timely placement of the appearance of the stage play, adding fun to the movie, but also contains the confrontation between the author and the audience, the witch's spit or dissatisfaction with the story, which makes the confrontation between the characters become the point of view, so that the plot will not stop at the storytelling aspect.
Creating stories also requires inspiration, the witch's library is also an excellent source for Alex to try to create and find materials, the process also contains unexpected new discoveries, successfully creating variables for the direction of the story, and the appearance of new elements also gives the story more of a point of view to find clues, which can reasonably create possibilities for the male protagonist to try to escape, becoming a successful foreshadowing.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > greenhouse adventures are dramatic</h1>
Being under house arrest by a witch also involves more adventurous dramas, and Yasmin takes Alex to the greenhouse with her. The greenhouse itself is very witchy, and the two children trying to eradicate the spider in the greenhouse is also more extraordinary, and the spider has a stronger intimidation under the rendering of fantasy colors. The two try to deal with the spider's plot, and the director's arrangement is also tortuous enough, the execution plan, the change of the plan, the spider's flexible movements, the dangers faced by the characters, and many aspects can create entertainment in the process.
As far as the plot is concerned, the drama of dealing with spiders is not only about trying to kill dangerous creatures, but also creating new variables for the direction of the story in a timely manner. The role played by the cat Reno in the future will usher in a potential foreshadowing in the spider incident, so that the animal supporting role will be improved.
The destructive power of the spider also plunged Alex into a crisis, and the crisis itself became an opportunity, indirectly contributing to the closer relationship between the character of Yasmin and him, and at the same time, allowing the previously laid foreshadowing to be more powerful, and finally allowing the escape plan to be officially launched. The whole process can be called interlocking, with a butterfly-like effect, reflecting the texture of the story arrangement.
The implementation of the escape plan, the shaping of "Night Reading Horror" contains enough twists and turns, trying to make key items is the first key step, how to find the right material without making the witch suspicious, it takes a bit of skill, the process can make the creativity of the two children be reflected. In the process of actually using the item, whether the plan can be carried out smoothly or not is shaped to be quite tense, and the variables are used reasonably to create a point of view.
Alex and Yasmin also include new discoveries in the process of escape, which also makes the story stage usher in a new change, and the environmental level is no longer limited to the witch's mansion. The process contains fantasy colors, which enhance the appreciation of the work, and some elements pay tribute to the classic fairy tales, bringing a new visual point to the film.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" has a major flip > the witch corner</h1>
In addition, the role of the witch Natasha ushered in a major reversal in the second half, in addition to making the role more layered, but also allowing the witch to ask the male protagonist to tell the story, with a new meaning, in terms of plot arrangement, to create enough sense of surprise. Taking this as an opportunity, Alex's previous blows and reasons for giving up creation have also surfaced, and the acting skills of child star Winslow Fegley have become more standard in the process, making the character mentality portrayal a highlight.
As far as the ending direction is concerned, the film can reasonably shape the evil side within the child's ability, so that the film can be close to the fairy tale color, have a comedic ending, and at the same time, it does not block the possibility of a sequel, and it can be attacked and retreated. The overall entertainment of this film is good, the story will not flow flat and direct, whether a sequel is finally launched or not, I believe that "Night Reading Horror" is still enough to become a successful work in the same genre.