By Chiara Spagnoli Gabardi

“Fee-fi-fo-fum,

I smell the blood of an Englishman,

I'll grind his bones to make my bread.”

Is the historical and most popular quatrain chanted by children who are fond of the British fairytale ‘Jack and the Beanstalk.

Bryan Singer’s movie is mainly inspired by the 1711 story ‘Jack the Giant Killer’ which describes the adventures of Jack, a plucky lad who slays a number of giants during King Arthur’s reign, mixing elements of Cornish folklore, Breton mythology, Welsh Bardic Iore and Norse mythology.

‘Jack the Giant Slayer’ tells the story of an ancient war that is reignited when a young farmhand unwittingly opens a gateway between our world and a fearsome race of giants. Unleashed on the Earth for the first time in centuries, the giants strive to reclaim the land they once lost, forcing the young man, Jack into the battle of his life to stop them. Fighting for a kingdom, its people, and the love of a brave princess, he comes face to face with the unstoppable warriors he thought only existed in legend-and gets the chance to become a legend himself.

The script sets up the situation and characters nicely, and the actors are terrific and fit for their role: the clumsy and handsome Nicholas Hoult as Jack, Eleanor Tomilson as the brave and beautiful princess, Stanley Tucci as amusing villain and Ewan McGregor as knight in shining armour – pity he isn’t the one to conquer the Princess’ heart. The entire cast mingles very well with the effective 3D animation that is incredibly captivating.

But despite the razzle dazzle of the digital effects the director was extremely concerned with old-fashioned story-telling. Whereas many film-makers have followed the tendency to contemporise fables – Alice in Wonderland (2010), Red Riding Hood (2011) and Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) – Bryan Singer preferred to dig into the myth that inspired them: “Fairytales are often borne of socio-political commentary and translated into stories for children. But what if they were based on something that really happened?.. What if we look back at the story that inspired the story that you read to your kids? That’s kind of what this movie’s about.”

The family audience movie is entertaining and epic, a feast for the eyes and the heart.Bryan Singer has delivered by all means a fairytale adventure for moviegoers of all ages.

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