Review – Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is one of the most surprising movies of 2016.  I had no idea what to expect when walking into this movie, other than it looked like Tim Burton’s version of X-Men.

My assumption of the film was correct, but that isn’t a bad thing.  This is cool, twisty, weird, fun movie and one of Tim Burton’s best films in a long time.

When Jacob’s (Asa Butterfield) grandfather passes away, he discovers clues that take him to different worlds and different times.  While on this mission, he discovers Miss Peregrin’s Home for Peculiar Children, by Miss Peregrin (Eva Green) that houses children with unique powers and abilities.  But, as Jacob gets deeper and deeper into the mystery, Jacob discovers that evil lurks close by, which forces him to figure out what makes him peculiar.

The main reason why this movie is such a joy is because this movie is classic Tim Burton.  Burton is one of my all-time favorite directors.  His surreal, gothic atmosphere thrown into a Brady Bunch-esque world is as unique a style we have in movies today.  His movies are dark and twisted, yet also sweet and fun to watch with plenty of emotion.  But lately, Burton’s been on a rough streak, with duds like Dark Shadows (2012) and Big Eyes (2014), that had me worried that he had lost his touch.  But Miss Peregrin is a return to form for Burton.  The source material is tailor-made for Burton.  It’s the perfect amount of dark weirdness and quirky fun.  In typical Burton fashion, the film is visually stunning, with the contrast of bright and dark colors and dazzling set designs.

Burton also does a great job of keeping the story focused.  The movie gets pretty wild in the last half, dealing with time travel and bringing in some bizarre villains, all while trying tie up the story that was initially started at the beginning.  Time travel in movies will never be perfect, but it works in this one, as we get a good understanding of how it works and don’t question any of the continuity of it.  And, though they aren’t a big part of a movie until the last act, Burton makes sure we know the villains exist in this world and establish the stakes at hand.

The movie gets some solid performances from the children, especially from Butterfield, who’s turning into a fine young actor, and Ella Purnell as his floating love interest.  But this movie belongs to Eva Green as Miss Peregrine.  Green is one of the most under-appreciated actresses we have working today.  She commits to every role and steals every movie she is in and this is no different.  I loved the way she commanded the screen with intensity, sexiness, and intrigue.  My biggest issue is that she wasn’t in the movie more.  What’s up with that?

It’s good to see Burton get back to his roots.  Maybe this will be the start of a career resurgence for the director and maybe a launching pad for Eva Green to be in more movies.  I can only hope.

MY RATING – 3/4

Did you see Miss Peregrin’s Home for Peculiar Children?  What did you think?  Comment below or hit me up on Twitter and Instagram, @kevflix, or find Kevflix on Facebook and YouTube by searching Kevflix.