![]() Adults may find enjoyment in the small addition of ballet and classical music (if that’s what they’re in to) and the depth of story when it comes to Clara’s family and what they’ve suffered as they try to come out the other side (ALLEGORY ALERT). The heroes and villains are very clearly distinguished with no muddling middle ground, and it also features a small twist that children may marvel at but where adults will be thoroughly unsurprised. Children may garner more fun and enjoyment from Four Realms, as it is bursting with colour and wonder that is often regarded very differently through younger eyes. On the other hand, this is purely from an adult perspective. Even the way in which Clara enters the realms initially is not too dissimilar from Alice falling down the rabbit hole. ![]() Maybe it’s because of the love for older epic fantasies that it becomes difficult for newcomers to stand up against them, as originality is harder to come by, but it just doesn’t have the same scope or level of imagination. The fantastical elements, such as the way in which the inhabitants of the realms came to be and the different lands in which they live, aren’t particularly imaginative in comparison to the likes of The Wizard of Oz. From here it becomes its own rather bland story. Hallström and Johnston follow the original Nutcracker story more or less up until Clara reaches the palace and meets the regents of the realms. It’s really nothing new, but that’s to be expected of what is essentially a classic story, at least up to a point. Events then follow that culminate if Clara having to fight for the safety of the four realms.Īs plots go, it’s a fairly standard story: young child finds his/herself in a magical land where he/she is either already someone important whom the people of the land are aware of and are in need of desperate help from, or is unknown to the inhabitants but becomes important as he/she proves his/herself. Together they embark on an adventure across the four realms in search of the key, meeting the regents of the realms as they go – The Sugar Plum Fairy (Knightley), Mother Ginger (Mirren), Hawthorne (Derbez) and Shiver (Grant). Not long after, she meets the human incarnation of the nutcracker, a soldier of the realm here named Philip (Fowora-Knight). ![]() She finds the key here, but it is stolen away by a mouse. Upon following her string, Clara finds herself in a snowy forest in another land. As seems to be a tradition at this annual event, the children are all encouraged to follow a piece of string that will lead them to a gift. The family then gather with hundreds more at a posh party at the home of inventor, family friend and Clara’s godfather, Drosselmeyer (Freeman). Fritz receives a nutcracker in the shape of a soldier, Louise receives her mother’s dress, and Clara receives a fancy-looking egg-shaped box that is locked without a key. On Christmas Eve the children all receive gifts from their mother, having instructed their father before her death to hand them out on Christmas Eve. Her father, although clearly sad, tries to keep calm and carry on, often dismissing Clara’s feelings. Having recently lost their mother, Clara turns to imagination to distract her, frequenting the attic and the toys up there. Young Clara Stahlbaum (Foy) lives a pretty well-off life with her father (Macfadyen), younger brother Fritz (Sweet) and older sister Louise (Bamber). Considering the spectacle and the grandeur that the trailer promises, does Disney’s take offer everything audiences would expect of a Nutcracker story, or is it lacking the nuts? There have been many other musical, film, television and book adaptations and interpretations over the years, particularly around December as Christmas approaches, and The Nutcracker and the Four Realms is Disney’s latest take on the fairytale. The Nutcracker is probably most famous in its musical suite and balletic form, choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov and featuring one of the most famous scores in classical music history by Tchaikovsky, including the well-known (and arguably over-used) Danse de la Fée-Dragée ( Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy) and Grand ballabile ( Waltz of the Flowers). Grant, Matthew Macfadyen, Tom Sweet, Ellie Bamber, Omid Djalili, Jack Whitehall, Morgan Freeman Cast: Mackenzie Foy, Keira Knightley, Helen Mirren, Jayden Fowora-Knight, Eugenio Derbez, Richard E.
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