'Artemis Fowl' review: A missed opportunity

Cast: Ferdia Shaw, Judy Dench, Colin Farrel and Josh Gad

Director: Kenneth Branagh

Rating: 2/5

The highly-ambitious Artemis Fowl, which released on Hotstar a few days ago, is an underwhelming fantasy-drama that fails to satisfy the target audience. The movie, directed by Kenneth Branagh, revolves around what happens when a 'criminal mastermind' decides to lock horns with dark fairies following a shocking incident. The basic plot sounds great on paper but never reaches potential due to the unimpressive execution.

The screenplay, penned by Conor McPherson and Judy Hofflund, feels disjointed and fails to add depth to the onscreen action. Things start off well with the opening sequences creating an aura around the titular character. The narrative, however, falls apart pretty soon as the writers fail to make the viewer 'suspend their disbelief' The film features quite a few stellar 'set pieces' but they make a limited impact as the characters/situations have not been fleshed out properly. The bond between the protagonist and his father, which forms the backbone of Artemis Fowl, has a bare-bones feel to it and dilutes the impact of the movie.

That said and done, a key action sequence has been filmed rather well and might click with the little ones. Similarly, the closing sequence hit the right notes.

Coming to performances, Ferdia Shaw makes a decent impact and carries himself rather well in the opening scenes. He also manages to hold his own against Judy Dench, which proves that he has tremendous potential. Lara McDonnell is sincere but lacks the screen presence to do justice to her role. Judi makes her presence felt despite being burdened with a generic/one-dimensional character.

Josh Gad puts his best foot forward and breathes life into the closing sequences. Colin Farrel and Nonzo Anozie, however, get a limited scope to make an impact. The supporting cast is strictly okay.

The production values are above-average and impart an appealing look to Artemis Fowl. Special effects spice up things when needed while the background score is decent.