A 'Lord Of The Rings' for older kids
This isn’t your parent’s “Jack And The Beanstalk”. After trading in his horse for magical beans , farmhand Jack (Nicholas Hoult, who fantastic in “Warm Bodies” ) loses one of the beans , which unleashes a ginormous stalk that sends his farmhouse (with the princess inside) into the sky and a nation of giants who like nothing more than devouring humans. Jack’s mission is the rescue the princess.
Ewan McGregor is the king’s guard . Stanley Tucci is the turncoat fiancée of the princess, who can’t convince her father the king to let her marry for love. Tucci gets the funniest lines .
The 3-D is at its best with the fast growing beanstalks. The cast could have used more humor . Hoult is restrained in this one, while he really shines in the zombie rom-com “Warm Bodies”. What isn’t restrained is the violence, which is why it’s rated PG-13. Also unrestrained is the length. Two hours??!! A giant running time is what , partly, does in “Jack The Giant Slayer”.
This one may have a tough time finding it’s audience. It’s not sophisticated enough for adults and too violent for the little ones.
2 stars
