Why “The House with a Clock in its Walls” is not Solely a Story for Children

 

In case you ran out of movie ideas during this pandemic, let me come for the rescue, with yet another recommendation. A few months ago, I found myself on the “children’s movies” side of Netflix, wondering whether there might be anything there which I haven’t already seen. That is when I came upon “The House with a Clock in its Walls” (2018) and I thought I’d give it a try. The film is actually an adaptation of the spooky children’s book with the same title, published by John Bellairs in 1973. However, in terms of the construction of the characters, director Eli Roth is more faithful to Edward Gorey’s illustrations instead of the descriptions in the book.

The film has a very interesting choice of cast, starring Jack Black, Cate Blanchett, Owen Vaccaro, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Sunny Suljic and Kyle MacLachlan. To my surprise, not only did I end up enjoying the story a lot, but I also realised how deep and complex it actually is. At first, it seems the usual children’s wizard story, with the inevitable good versus evil confrontation. However, in contrast to other such stories, “The House with a Clock in its Walls” puts forward realistic issues that viewers can understand and relate to, such as the traumatic experience of war, PTSD, depression, death and bullying. Therefore, there are elements in this film which can be acknowledged by children, but even better understood by adults.

The storyline begins in 1955, with Lewis’s arrival at his uncle Johnathan’s house in order to live with him after his parent’s death in a car crash. The old house, besides seeming slightly odd and a bit creepy at times, becomes a home for the orphan boy, who is still dealing with the loneliness and grief caused by the loss of his parents. Right from the beginning, we can sense that, behind a comical appearance, this movie is very endearing and emotional. The characters are so well-written in the book that it makes us become enthralled by them. It is the combination of weirdness, wittiness and, last but not least, kindness, that creates originality and attracts attention.

Lewis is a figure that introverts can really relate to. He can be a socially awkward at times, he overthinks his actions and only finds refuge in his books. Lewis has to find his identity, while, similarly to many children, being a victim of bullying and shaming. At first, he attempts to adapts to his new school and make friends at all costs, hiding his true personality. He then realises that what is truly important is to be true to himself. It quite obvious that Lewis is the typical children’s movie character: slightly weird and different from the rest, but very wholesome and heart-warming. By his side are his uncle Johnathan, who we later find out is a warlock, and his neighbour, Mrs. Florence Zimmerman, a witty, old witch who has a penchant for purple and owns a pet-snake named Snakespeare.

Johnathan is also quite a complex character, who hides his regrets and sorrows behind silly jokes. His father had kicked him out of the house when he was young, forcing him to leave his little sister behind. Not being able to say goodbye or see her one last time before her death is definitely one of the thoughts tormenting his mind. This caused him to resort to the ultimate act of kindness towards her – raising up Louis. Johnathan is clearly not the ideal parental figure and often doesn’t know how to act around Louis or how to interpret his behaviour. This even determines him to later regret his decision to take care of the boy. However, he is then reminded of the fact that parenthood – an important theme of this movie – means constant doubts, fears and uncertainties.

Up next is the character which is, in my opinion, the most intriguing and interesting – Florence Zimmerman. Apart from her intelligent and witty remarks, Florence’s soul hides a lot of pain and sorrow, which we later find out is caused by the death of her family during the war. Moreover, the number we see on her arm give away the fact that she and her family had been victims of the Auschwitz concentration camp. This is yet another detail in the film which kids might overlook, but adult will probably understand. When we wrap our heads around the traumatic experiences that Florence overcame, it is understandable that she can’t practice magic anymore. However, being a kids’ film after all, Florence’s broken heart is fixed with the aid of empathy and love. Her platonic relationship with Johnathan is a perfect example of the fact that we do not necessarily need romance to feel fulfilled, which is a detail that I really appreciated in the film. In the end, Florence remains a symbol of wittiness, intelligence and kindness, but most importantly, she paves the way for future strong, independent female characters in both literature and film.

The antagonist in this story is also a very interesting character. Isaac Izard was an old friend of Johnathan’s whom he used to perform magic shows with. However, they were forced to part when the war broke in and Isaac found himself isolated in the Black Forest of Germany. The traumatic war experience and the maddening isolation caused some irreversible changes to his character. His transition into an evil warlock is yet another example of the tremendous consequences the war has on the human psyche. We then find out that the experiences he’d been through convinced him to construct an evil plan that would turn back time and eliminate the existence of human beings. He voices his motifs by explaining that humans create trouble due to their hatred towards each other. Now this is an interesting matter to be raised in a children’s movie and it definitely helps us understand where Isaac is coming from. The idea that the earth would be better off without human existence has probably crossed many minds and it is certainly thought-provoking. However, as it usually happens, good overcomes evil and Isaac’s plan is stopped just in time by our three protagonists.

All in all, it is interesting to see a film adaptation of a book designed for children that is centred upon the consequences of war, the trauma, the grief and the loneliness that come along with it. It raises awareness regarding issues that should be more often voiced in our society. It manages to end on a happy note, but it also leaves us in meditative state, which definitely makes it more that a story for children.