Arthur and the Invisibles (2006)

Original Title

Arthur et les Minimoys

Genres

Adventure, Animation, Fantasy

Director

Luc Besson

Country

France

Voice Cast

Freddie Highmore Madonna, Jimmy Fallon, Mia Farrow, Ron Crawford, David Bowie, Jason Bateman, Robert De Niro, Adam LeFevre, Snoop Dogg, Penny Balfour, Doug Rand, Chazz Palminteri, Harvey Keitel, Erik Per Sullivan, Anthony Anderson, Emilio Estevez

Storyline

To save his grandfather's house from being demolished, ten-year-old Arthur (Freddie Highmore) goes looking for a hidden treasure in the land of the Minimoys, a tiny people living in harmony with nature.

Opinion

At this point, after having seen so many disappointing films from Luc Besson, I should have known better. I should have had any expectation for this, yet, maybe because of its cast, I had some. Well, "Arthur and the Invisibles" turned out just fine.

The story is quite simple, it isn't very original, it isn't very well developed and it isn't very cohesive either, but it is a quite entertaining adventure story that kids will definitely enjoy mainly because of Luc Besson's storytelling.

Still, development isn't this film strongest suit, and the characters also suffer from that. Although at first there's some good character development, after Arthur descends in the land of the Minimoys, the development shrinks like Arthur. In spite of this lack, the characters still manage to be very likeable and fun, especially the tiny Minimoys with a special mention for Madonna's Princess Selenia and Jimmy Fallon's Prince Betameche.

The sloppy script is thankfully paired with some beautiful animation and CGI. The filmmakers were able to create harmony between the real world with real people and the Minimoys world, the animated one, and make the transition very smooth. Also, the details in the animation, from scenery to characters, is rather good. Overall though the animation could have been a little bit better; in 2017 it is very aged.