MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN Blu-ray Review

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD)

Release Date: December 13, 2016

Studio: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

Video: 1.85:1 1080p Widescreen

Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1, Russian DTS 5.1, Ukranian Dolby Digital 5.1

THE RATINGS

The Movie Itself - ★ ★ ★ ★ ✰

Video Quality - ★ ★ ★ ★½

Audio Quality - ★ ★ ★ ★½

Special Features - ★ ★ ★ ✰ ✰

Overall - ★ ★ ★ ★ ✰

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THE FILM ITSELF Our Reviewer's Take
A Burton blast.

Reviewed by Gavin King

When it comes to young-adult book-to-screen adaptations - particularly of the action/romance hybrid - critical and commercial reception is often projected as frowned upon, and in some cases for good reason (take a look at Allegiant, for goodness sake). Not only do some films predictably stray away from the true roots of the book-bound regions, but some happen to stick a bit too much, yearning the need for a sign on the movie theater auditorium door reading the following in big bold type: “For hardcore fans only.” Earlier this year, we got swayed with the unremarkable The 5th Wave, which had its very mild moments - particularly near the film’s beginning, unsurprisingly - but was overall doomed by poor plot execution and its relatively slow pace. As we go a bit further into September of 2016, the book-to-screen adaptation of Ransom Riggs’ hit novel Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, directed by the one, the only, Tim Burton, and starring the likes of Asa Butterfield, Eva Green, Ella Purnell, Judi Dench, and Samuel L. Jackson, comes into play. What a breath of fresh air in the YA genre. Instead of reverting to unnecessary dullness and monotonous execution, what we get is a fun, entertaining, and well-paced ride that may not be up to Burton’s true best, but is far from his worst collaborations (ahem… Alice Through the Looking Glass.) and shows true potential for a franchise.

He may not know it yet, but Jake is certainly peculiar.

Jake (Asa Butterfield) has lived his whole life being told stories by his grandfather Abe Portman (Terence Stamp) about him spending his life at “Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children” and battling evil monster who dare take over their territory. But one day, when Jake gets home from his often-ridiculed job of a grocery store clerk, something mysterious happens at his house. He realizes his grandfather has been attacked by the dreaded monsters who attack the Peculiars. A dying Grandpa Abe tells him that he must go to Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children, located in Cairnholm, to help save the so-called Peculiars from these monsters before it’s too late. Jake and his father (Chris O’Dowd) then head off to Cairnholm and stay a while at a bar in the small, foggy town. Jake then sneaks off through the woods and spots Miss Peregrine’s home, but realizes it was destroyed during a German invasion in September of 1943. Luckily, he’s greeted by a few Peculiars, and they’re sent along with him through a time loop back in 1943 when their home was still intact. Jake then meets Miss Peregrine herself (Eva Green) who introduces him to the Peculiars and tells him about the time loop he was sent back on and how it benefits her and the Peculiar children. The time loop is set to September 3, 1943, the day before their home was bombed by the Germans, and Miss Peregrine switches the time loop back 24 hours so the Peculiars can live the same day over and over again, without aging. But now they face a new threat. The Hollows (led by Samuel L. Jackson’s character) are hungry for peculiars after a failed experiment in which they were Peculiars but now are revenge-seeking monsters who crave the eyes of Peculiars. Now in more danger than they ever thought they would be, Miss Peregrine and the Peculiars must defend themselves to take down these vengeful beasts once and for all - and have Jake discover that he’s Peculiar, too.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children mixes an interesting concept with satisfyingly ooky creepiness. It’s not up there with the classics of Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetlejuice), but there’s no denying the film has his eye for the occasional creepy factor, fun action sequences, and memorable characters. The whole idea of the Peculiars is an intriguing concept altogether. It’s nice enough to see Ransom Riggs’ beloved novel translated to the screen in passionate finesse, but to make it a concept that moviegoers flee for is truly special. When’s the last time you’ve seen a movie in which special people, different from the rest of the ordinary world, are kept in a unique establishment so they can all fit in whilst showcasing their, well, peculiar talents? It’s a good thing the wonderful concept is interweaved with great execution. 

She's Emma Bloom, one of the many Peculiars...

And that great execution is largely thanks to the film's unique visual style. It's a shame few other films - destined of this kind of genre and not - get this much advanced and inspired digital construction behind them, on and behind the camera via special effects. Many of the interesting specail effects come to play via the Peculiars. There's a really fun scene about 20 minutes into the movie where there's a bar mishap that takes place with the Peculiars trying to save Jake from being "taken care of" by older townsfolk. A couple of the Peculiar children come to save him, and one particular Peculiar by the name of Emma Bloom literally starts a fire with her bare hands to burn down the old pub. The digital effects artists have done a remarkable job at bringing Riggs' wonderful world of Peculiarity to astonishing life, and no praise can be given enough to the accomplishment they have done to sastisfy general moviegoers as well as lovers of the original book.

The cast is up for the challenge, too. Asa Buttefield, Ella Purnell, and Eva Green are just some of the many great acting talents that protrude happily and strongly through the movie, but Samuel L. Jackson as Barron the Hollow is arguably the film's big standout. That's not too much of a huge surprise, considering Sam Jackson's resume in movies like The Avengers and Snakes on a Plane, but there's no denying he has a wonderful enthusiasm and gleefully entertaining villainry to bringing the eye-craving, ultra-menacing Barron to the screen with oompah power and delivery. The movie could use a little bit of work in a few very mild areas. Pacing seems to be a bit sluggish towards the entry of the film's final act and the film could do without at most  20 minutes, but overall this is a fun, enjoyable, inventive, and surprisingly thought-provoking entry into Tim Burton's endless canon of creepiness.


MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN Blu-ray - Video Quality

Tim Burton's film have generally never been a disappointment with the Blu-ray format, and Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is certainly no exception. Aside from a few very minor shots in which the digital source photography pushes slightly pasty and ever-so-mildly smooth, there's nothing to note of complaint. Colors are ever-so dazzling. Whether the grassy greens of the exteriors of Miss Peregrine's home, the slightly darker blues that make up the island of Carinholm, or the lighter, more multicolored hues of the carnival towards the film's big climax near the end of the film, every single shade of color and whisk of tint pops with marvelous precision and eye-popping delivery to enjoy. Details are largely impressive. Even if the aformentioned digital sources nudges very sparingly smooth, there's no mistaking facial pores, Peculiar peculiarities, tiny weaves of fabric on clothes, and - arguably the biggest standout - Miss Peregrine's almost navy-colored hair that spring to life from the book to the screen. Black levels never struggle in Carinholm or during a mysterious attack near Jake's house toward's the film's beginning act, and to top it off, no obvious compression villains like banding anywhere to be found. All told, 20th Century Fox's Blu-ray presentation of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children compliments Tim Burton's gleefully unique visual style extraordinarily well.

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN Blu-ray - Audio Quality

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children's DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 is expectedly big-rounded and a very enjoyable compliment to the film's wonderful visuals. What many audiophiles will race to this track for is obviously the film's big set pieces. There's lots of fun to be had in the ways of surround activity and nicely-done LFE that fully saturate the stage in blasting arrows, musical score, fun foley effects, and much, much more. Music, whether the aformentioned score or an electronica-like piece that plays at the 100 minute mark, offers plenty of front-end support and ample surround spacing that sets the viewer into the stage comfortably and immersively. A few ambient effects could stand to take a tad more advantage of the stereo seperation, such as when Jake and his dad ride a boat to Carinholm, but generally speaking atmospheric/ambient soundscapes such as a revving car at the start of chapter two or light birds chirping at Miss Peregrine's immerse the viewer into the film's peculiar environments. General dialogue is consistently anchored into the front channel, with natural positioning and lifelike precision and never wanting for extra clarity or clearness. Miss Peregrine's sound mix is one that will satisfy audio nerds and home theater owners to a terrifc degree.

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN Blu-ray - Special Features

- The Peculiar Story looks a bit at Ransom Riggs' original book, the story of/behind it, and how it translated to the big screen, with interviews with Riggs and company.

- The Peculiars consists of several parts, and each featurette looks at each Peculiar and their themes and personalities that make them a Peculiar. These include the following: Abe, Miss Peregrine, Jake, Emma, Bronwyn, Claire, Olive, Enoch, Fiona, Horace, Hugh, Millard, The Twins, Miss Avocet, and Victor. (That's a lot, but hey, y' can't leave 'em out, right?)

- Hollows & Ex-Hollows focuses on the film's main menacing villains, led by Samuel L. Jackson's character, Barron.

- Map of Days looks at the time loop aspect of the movie in two segments: Miss Peregrine's Home and Blackpool Tower.

- "Wish That You Were Here" Florence + The Machine Music Video

- Gallery includes Photographs and Sketches by Tim Burton.

- Theatrical Trailers Theatrical Trailer A and Theatrical Trailer B.

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN Blu-ray - Overall Recommendation

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children shows that Tim Burton hasn't lost his eye (no pun intended, if you can catch it) for this type of filmmaking. It may not go down in history as a Burton classic unlike film such as Beetlejuice, but the film's visual style, excellent performances, and fun, consistently entertaining action make it well worth a recommendation. Add that to a third act that's a total blast and up there with Burton's best action sequences and a script that's faithful to the original source material, and you've got a film that's popcorn-munching, edge-of-your-seat fun for those seeking a break from tired, cliched action money-rakers. Fox's Blu-ray is terrific. It delivers wonderful video and audio to tag along with a quite interesting selection of supplements. Highly recommended.

EXTRA SCREENSHOTS (Right-click and select 'Open image in new tab' to see full size)