What’s really odd is that people say they liked the last half of the movie, but the last half of the movie was the part that was almost nothing like the book. They added and changed SO much to make it more Hollywood formulaic fun and effects and characters (the lightning ship captain’s “traits”, the giant battle scene at the end). I’m not necessarily complaining, but the movie should perhaps have chosen to be either quirky and surprising and charmingly funny like the book or just fun, humor, and effects like (most of) the movie, not half of one and half of the other. Part of the fun of the book was figuring it all out (and the charming curse which was not even in the movie at all!) but the movie just laid it all out there without question—or if there was a question it was only for the stupidest of viewers (without giving anything away).

I was just disappointed. I did greatly enjoy it, and I think if maybe there was more of the second half type humor and scenes and in-your-face blockbuster fantasy I’d probably enjoy it more, as well as if they’d stayed closer to the book and mellowed it out. Either way. It just didn’t meld together very well for me.