Review of The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018) by Stjude_Bruh — 03 Jan 2019

Let us begin with the great aspects of The Nutcracker & The Four Realms. With a budget of $120 million, the producers and visual artists had quite a bit to work with, but certainly not enough to match the effects of the most visually splendid films, such as Avengers: Infinity War ($316-400 million), Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End ($300 million), and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey ($200 million). Usually, films that have the same budget as this film have very noticeably CGI effects that don’t come off great at least in my eyes, such as Rampage and Ghost Rider, which also aren’t good film company to serve as comparison. To compare to a fellow Disney remake, Beauty & The Beast has a budget of $175 million, which was used very well. However (in a good way), The Nutcracker’s visuals were absolutely on par with those visually splendid films. The world’s created with the CGI were beautifully rendered, and the set design in the real-world scenes was extravagant and fitting for the Christmas-based period in time. The costumes were also well-designed and fitting for the settings. Due to the bad reception, it is unlikely, but I truly believe that this film should be nominated for an Oscar for its costume design. Visual splendor cannot carry a film towards overall excellence, but the visuals for this film certainly keep it from sinking rock bottom.

Another positive element of the film was the beautiful film score that incorporated Tchaikovsky’s classic pieces and some new content very well. Of course, being a film based on classic ballet, it must have Tchaikovsky and classical music or else it would be as dumb as Gotti using Pitbull music even though it was based in the 1980s. Along with the proper incorporation of classical music, the first half of the film was a great set-up that felt homely and harkened back to some childhood memories. The sets were great, we got more of Morgan Freeman, and the ballet performance by Misty Copeland was among the best scenes in all of the film industry for 2018. That is where the praise for this film ends.

With the runtime clocking in at only one hour and 35 minutes, there is so much film to pack out in such a short timeframe. With these limitations, the movie moves too fast as we enter the world of The Four Realms. There is a lot of missing information that would allow the circumstances of conflict presented to make sense if they were properly explained. Instead, there is little explanation as to why there is any form of conflict. I’ve begun to care less about plot holes by understanding that filmmakers seek to reap box office results first, but when a film does not give explanation as to what events occurred for conflict to exist, it just doesn’t make sense.

I’d say that another atrocity committed in the film was its use of clichés from other Disney films while utilizing them in the worst way possible. I was shocked by how much content and elements that The Nutcracker borrowed from other Disney films, especially considering that this is a Disney film itself. It was made worse by the fact that these elements were ultimately executed in the worst way possible. This movie borrowed heavily from the first Chronicles of Narnia, which seems like a bad sin made worse considering both films are made by Disney.

Since the film aims to appeal to young viewers aged 10 and under, there was a lot of childlike humor and tone that made the film feel corny. It isn’t impossible to include quality humor in a kid’s film, but The Nutcrackerfell into the bad side of appealing to children. I should’ve expected that, but considering the maturity found in many Disney films such as The Incredibles 2and Big Hero Six, I was very disappointed and felt like I was an adult with a child’s mind for sitting through the movie.

The last disappointing aspect of The Nutcracker & The Four Realmswas the performances of the main leads. Mackenzie Foy, whose claim to fame was in Twilight along with a great performance in Interstellar, was largely lifeless in this movie. The delivery of the lines came out flat, which contributed to the film’s corny feel. Keira Knightley exacerbated this feel with her awful, nasal voice and too many moments of overacting. I’d say that Jayden Fowora-Knight, who played Captain Philip who was supposed to be the Nutcracker but there never was any Nutcracker, also had the same problems as Mackenzie Foy. A few other actors weren’t bad but just overtly childish. Helen Mirren did well with what she had, but she was barely in the movie. The Nutcracker & The Four Realms has unfortunately earned its place among the very worst films of 2018, and worst films that Disney has ever made.