The House with a Clock in Its Walls (film)
A dark fantasy comedy about a boy, a warlock, and a hidden clock.
The House with a Clock in Its Walls is a 2018 American dark fantasy comedy film directed by Eli Roth, based on the 1973 book by John Bellairs. The film stars Jack Black, Cate Blanchett, and Owen Vaccaro, and follows a young boy named Lewis who moves into a creaky old house with his uncle and discovers it was previously inhabited by a villainous warlock. Released by Universal Pictures in the United States on September 21, 2018, and internationally by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, the film was a box office success, grossing over $131 million worldwide, and received mixed-to-positive reviews.
- Release date
- September 21, 2018 (United States)
- Director
- Eli Roth
- Based on
- 1973 book by John Bellairs
- Production budget
- $42 million
- Worldwide gross
- $131.5 million
- Rotten Tomatoes approval
- 65% based on 219 reviews
Lore & Background
The film is set in 1955, where ten-year-old Lewis Barnavelt, after his parents are killed in a car crash, moves to live with his uncle Jonathan in New Zebedee, Michigan. He soon learns that Jonathan is a warlock and his neighbor Florence is a witch. The house's previous owners were the sinister warlock Isaac Izard and his wife Selena, who hid a clock within the walls before they died. Jonathan has been trying to find the clock and discover its purpose. Despite warnings, Lewis begins teaching himself magic and befriends a classmate named Tarby Corrigan, who later abandons him. Lewis's mother appears in his dreams and suggests he use a forbidden spell to impress Tarby. On Halloween night, Lewis performs a necromancy spell that accidentally summons Isaac's corpse.
Reader's Guide
The House with a Clock in Its Walls is significant as a family-friendly blend of humor and horror from director Eli Roth, known for gore-heavy films. It marked Roth's best opening weekend at the box office, surpassing his earlier film Hostel. The film's visual effects included massive gears for the Clock Room sequence and Jack-o'-lantern characters designed with input from Steven Spielberg. The cast was widely praised, though critics noted the film did not fully live up to its potential. The soundtrack was composed by Nathan Barr and released by Waxwork Records. The film's legacy includes its successful box office performance and its role in introducing younger audiences to dark fantasy themes.
Did You Know?
- Principal photography began on October 10, 2017, in Atlanta, Georgia.
- Michael Jackson's short film Thriller was remastered in IMAX 3D and preceded screenings of the film in North America for its first week.
- Director Eli Roth makes a cameo as Comrade Ivan.
- The film grossed $68.5 million in the United States and Canada and $62.9 million in other territories.
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