Movie Review: 'Artemis Fowl' is Good Enough
Damning with faint praise, Artemis Fowl is not bad, it's not great, it's okay.
The new Disney Plus movie Artemis Fowl was one of the theatrical releases lost to the COVID-19 shutdown of most American movie theaters. The film based on the popular young adult book series of the same title, written and created by Eoin Colfer, has spawned numerous book sequels over the years and has long been sought and awaited as a film franchise. And yet, the movie feels too small and compact to be the start of an epic franchise.
Artemis Fowl stars newcomer Ferdia Shaw as the title character, a 12 year old super-genius whose father, Artemis Sr (Colin Ferrell), may or may not be a multi-millionaire criminal mastermind. Artemis Jr is thrust into the spotlight when his father goes missing. Determined to find him, Artemis discovers that the stories of fairy tale creatures, including legit Fairies, are entirely real and taking place in a hidden universe below ground.
Underneath the surface of the Earth, diverse creatures of myth live together in relative harmony under the watchful eye of Lep-Recon. Headed up by Commander Root (Dame Judi Dench), Lep-Recon keeps the peace. That peace however, has been deeply disturbed since one of her agents allegedly stole the most powerful artifact known to Fairies, the Aculos. Root has dedicated most of her force to find it.
But not all of her force. Left behind is young Holly Short (Lara McDonnell) who happens to be the daughter of the agent who allegedly stole the Aculos before he himself disappeared. Given the chance to go to the surface, on what should be a routine mission, Holly takes the chance to escape and attempts to clear her father’s name. She wants to recover the Aculos to restore her dad’s reputation and the Short family name.
A lead takes Holly to the Fowl estate where unbeknownst to Holly, Artemis and his team are waiting for her. That team includes Artemis' bodyguard, Domovoi Butler (Nonso Anosie), Domovoi’s sister, Juliet (Tamara Smart) and eventually a dwarf named Mulch Diggums (Josh Gad) who may or may not be playing all sides against each other. Mulch is a criminal who first appears to be helping Lep-Recon but appears to switch sides.
Then, there is the film’s villain, the faceless Opal Koboi (Hong Chau). Opal wants the Aculos and believes that Artemis can get it for her. She’s bent on world domination and it’s possible that Artemis Sr may have been hiding the Aculos at Fowl Manor specifically to keep it out of the hands of the devious Opal. She may also be responsible for Artemis Sr’s disappearance but you will need to see Artemis Fowl for yourself to find that out.
I’ve seen several critics raking Artemis Fowl over the coals and I can’t quite understand the vitriol. The movie is perfectly fine as an origin story intended to set up sequels. Yes, it is desperately burdened by exposition in the form of a voiceover narration by Josh Gad’s Mulch character, but that’s only a minor nuisance. Director Kenneth Branagh has done pretty much what he did with the original Thor movie; he’s crafted a suitable if not entirely memorable origin story.
Artemis Fowl is intended as a jumping off point and taken as such it’s not bad. It’s not exactly the most exciting way to introduce a new, hot, young franchise, but it gets the job done in setting the table for future adventures. Branagh is a good director with a strong eye for visual style and he does well in crafting a strong aesthetic for the movie. The characters need a lot of work and the dialogue is often leaden and lacking in panache, but as I said, it’s not bad.
If you’re inclined to give Artemis Fowl a chance it’s not a bad choice for a family movie night. Artemis Fowl is a safe and unpretentious family adventure with a good look and enough charisma to hold the attention of the intended audience of young moviegoers. I cannot tell you whether or not it adheres to the whims of purist fans of the book series, I’ve never read the books. As a movie, Artemis Fowl is alright, it’s good, it’s not bad.
I’m damning with faint praise but nevertheless, Artemis Fowl premieres on Disney Plus on June 12th.
About the Creator
Sean Patrick
Hello, my name is Sean Patrick He/Him, and I am a film critic and podcast host for the I Hate Critics Movie Review Podcast I am a voting member of the Critics Choice Association, the group behind the annual Critics Choice Awards.
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