A young boy named Alex becomes the prisoner of a witch to avoid certain death, he convinces her to let him tell her a scary story every night. Upon meeting the witch’s servant, Yazmin, the two must use their wits to escape her apartment, a magical labyrinth filled with various dangers, before the witch kills them both. KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Katherine S. comments, “Nightbooks is very entertaining, but has some slow moments. It’s perfect for people who love a scary movie, but may regret watching it at night (like me!). It has the just right amount of scary moments to give you a thrill, but also doesn’t keep you up at night.” See her full review below.
Nightbooks
Katherine S, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 13
Nightbooks is very entertaining, but has some slow moments. It’s perfect for people who love a scary movie, but may regret watching it at night (like me!). It has the just right amount of scary moments to give you a thrill, but also doesn’t keep you up at night.
Nightbooks follows the story of a boy named Alex (Winslow Fegley) who loves to write scary stories. While trying to find the boiler room in his apartment complex, he is lured into a witch’s (Krysten Ritter) house, who steals children. He meets Yasmin, who is also stuck there. Can they make it out before they face certain doom? Watch the movie to find out.
This film is based on the book by the same title, so fans of the book should love the movie. The set has so much attention to detail and the costume design, especially for Natacha the witch, is immaculate because all of her outfits perfectly express her personality. The special effects, specifically for the monsters, are so realistic that it gave me chills. My favorite character is Lenore the “sometimes” invisible cat because she has such a mind of her own.
The message is to never lose hope and always be yourself. Just because people think you are different doesn’t mean that you are bad. There is some bad language and some scary parts that young kids find scary.
I give Nightbooks 4 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 8 to 18, plus adults. This movie releases September 15, 2021 on Netflix.
