Gulliver's Travels
- Year:2010
- Rating:PG
- Director:Rob Letterman
- Cast:Jack Black, Emily Blunt, Amanda Peet, Jason Segel
- Release Date:December 26, 2010
- Distributor:20th Century Fox
- Running time:85 minutes
- Film Worth:$9.50
- FILMINK rates movies out of $20 - the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
While it feels lacklustre, this is mostly inoffensive family-friendly entertainment which offers up a few laughs.
Jack Black is back in his usual form playing the little guy at the bottom of the ladder aspiring for greatness, only in a more literal sense this time.
In this modern adaptation of Jonathan Swift's classic book, Black is Lemuel Gulliver, a mailroom clerk at a prestigious newspaper who dreams big but never follows through. In an attempt to get close to his crush, travel editor Darcy (Amanda Peet), he agrees to undertake a travel assignment in the Bermuda Triangle. After a freak storm, he ends up in the land of Lilliput where he becomes a giant hero to its tiny citizens.
Simple and predictable, the story doesn't veer too far from the original premise with the comedic elements carrying it along. Mixing the old with the new, the humour relies heavily on a slew of pop culture jokes, referencing everything from Star Wars to Guitar Hero and even a recreation of Times Square, Liliput style. There are surprisingly few butt jokes (for a Jack Black movie) and most laughs come from Gulliver helping out his friend Horatio (Jason Segel) to woo the beautiful Princess (Emily Blunt).
Black's Gulliver is quite endearing and the supporting cast are appealing, with Segel in everyman nice mode and Blunt doing her best wooden damsel-in-distress impression. Comedian Chris O'Dowd also relishes his role as the melodramatic General Edward.
Disappointingly, the over-the-top finale is out of step with the rest of the film. Feeling largely redundant, the 3-D also fails to add any extra spark to the film even though the scaling effects are executed well.
Family-friendly and entertaining, Gulliver's Travels is lightly amusing but don't expect a mind-blowing affair.
