Story
Mortimer ‘Mo’ Flochart (Brendan Fraser) is a ‘silver tongue’, someone who can bring a story to life simply by reading the words. He is unaware of his gift until the night his wife disappears. She is sucked into the pages of Inkheart at the same time as numerous villains are sucked out. Mo will spend the next decade travelling the globe, searching for a copy of this very rare book in the hope of reading his wife out again. At the same time, he tries to keep one step ahead of the fictional characters who are hunting for him and his daughter Meggie (Eliza Hope Bennett).
At long last, in a small village in the Alps, Mo discovers an old bookshop. In the dusty back rooms on a long forgotten shelf, he finds what he has been searching for. At that very moment Dustfinger (Paul Bettany), who had been read out of the story when Mo’s wife disappeared, finds Mo. When Mo refuses to help him by reading him back into the pages of the book, Dustfinger enlists the help of Capricorn (Andy Serkis), an evil, callous man who thinks little of life and will do anything to get what he wants. Together these fictional forces track Meggie and Mo to the home of Meggie’s great aunt Elinor (Helen Mirren), who lives on a private estate in Italy.
The family is ambushed and taken hostage in a secluded castle fortress high in the mountains, where Capricorn has his army of hardened criminals. They are imprisoned there until Dustfinger realises that Capricorn will not help him. He also realises that Resa (Sienna Guillory), the beautiful, mute kitchen maid, is in fact Mo’s wife.
Dustfinger helps Mo and his family escape but leaves Resa behind as his personal insurance. He does not tell Mo about her existence until after they have escaped and found another copy of the book. Mo immediately heads back to the mountain fortress in a bid to rescue Resa. His plan goes awry when Capricorn kidnaps Meggie.
Ultimately, it is up to Meggie to save them all from certain death and to send the storybook characters back to where they belong.
Themes
The supernatural; separation from a parent
Violence
There is some violence in this movie. For example:
Sexual references
None of concern
Alcohol, drugs and other substances
None of concern
Nudity and sexual activity
This movie contains some nudity and sexual activity. For example:
- An old, witch-like hag is asleep, wearing an 18th-century-style dress. A ferret must collect a key that she has tucked into her bosom. There is a close-up of her cleavage.
- While Mo reads ‘The Arabian Nights’, some transparently clad belly-dancers with exposed midriffs dance in the background.
- There are water nymphs in one story, and we briefly see three women in wet, clingy clothing.
Product placement
None of concern
Coarse language
This movie contains some mild coarse language.
Ideas to discuss with your children
Inkheart is a fantasy adventure containing frequent action and some beautiful scenery. Although this is not a film for younger children, many children will probably want to see it.
The main messages from this movie are that nothing is impossible and that everyone writes their own destiny. Values in this movie that you might wish to reinforce with your children include honour, truthfulness and self-belief.
This movie could also give you the opportunity to discuss with your children certain issues and their real-life consequences. For example, you might like to discuss:
- the disappearance of a parent
- using violence to get what you want
- the power of the written word
- deceitfulness and dishonesty.