The Nutcracker And The Four Realms

Out in theaters this week is the Disney's new holiday extravaganza "The Nutcracker And The Four Realms." The new film is loosely based on the original ballet's characters, created by E.T.A. Hoffmann's 1892 "The Nutcracker and The Mouse King," and the music by Tchaikovsky.

Main protagonist Clara (Mackenzie Foy, "Interstellar, The Conjuring") is in search of a rare key which will unlock a box holding a precious offering. With help by her godfather Drosselmeyer's (Morgan Freeman), she is led to an astonishing and mystifying world. There, she will encounter the four realms to hopefully retrieve the key and return harmony to her volatile world. The strong supporting cast includes evil mother Ginger (Helen Mirren), Sugar Plum Fairy (Kiera Knightly), and soldier Phillip (Jayden Fowora-Knight). (Although we're asked to instantly believe that he is a Nutcracker come to life, there's really nothing remotely Nutcrackerish about him, other than the fact that he's a soldier.) "The Nutcracker and the four Realms" is directed by Lasse Hallstr�m and Joe Johnston.

"Nutcracker" has a few things in the win column for Disney. Most impressive is the scenic design, makeup, and sheer overall look of the film. Production Designer Guy Hendrix Dyas leaves us with enough eye candy to forego real candy from the concession stands. Disney, as it does well, has leaned to an overly sweet presentation of their story, but the design and clever conventions Dyas uses to convey the magical feeling of the film is top-notch. Jenny Shircore's makeup and hair design runs a close second to overall presentation, and should be acclaimed for her fun approach to a raised-eyebrow look at this new, mysterious world. There are nice homages to Leopold Stokowski's Fantasia Siluotte moments, and Misty Copeland's ballet segments had me on the edge of my seat.

However, "The Nutcracker And The Four Realms" isn't a perfect holiday movie. The "coal in the stocking" here is clear: Because Disney has liberally adapted the original story, creating their own far-reaching version, there is a lot of time needed to explain that world to the viewer, which makes the film... arduous.

With that being said, some of those questions are really never answered: "How did this world exist in the first place? Why did our antagonist turn on the rest of the group?" and many more - too many to mention without spilling spoilers. Adults seeing this film will have some pointed questions, while kids will assume the reality of the fictional world without question. But, I guess that's what Disney's counting on. Again, if their story development team is planning to create their own version of the story, they should understand that many of us are very familiar with the original story and the ballet, and may be left walking from the theater a little Christmas confused. Diehard fans of the ballet may leave wishing they had heard even more of the ballet's music and seen much much more dancing. There is a closing credit sequence that features a bit more, but not only do they try to infuse a little hip hop into the ballet, it doesn't work and it comes too little, too late.

It's clear with the release schedule of this film that Disney is acknowledging it's not their strongest holiday movie in 2018. By design, this should be their Christmas release, but they're banking on "Ralph Wrecks The Internet" and the "Mary Poppins" sequel to do the heavy holiday lifting into 2019. If you're looking for a story and Tchaikovsky music, and as much dance in the ballet, look elsewhere. Think Narnia meets "Alice in Wonderland" with a dash of PBS London "Masterpiece Theatre" geared at the young girl set. If you're looking for a nice Christmas themed film filled with romantic Christmas imagery of late 19th century then "The Nutcracker And The Four Realms" may just put you in the Christmas mood.