The House with a Clock in its Walls Parent Guide

Based on the 1973 novel of the same name by John Bellairs, The House with a Clock in Its Walls introduces audiences to a spooky home full of magic, secrets, and more chocolate chip cookies than you might expect. Following the death of his parents, 10-year-old protagonist Lewis Barnavelt (Owen Vaccaro) moves in with his eccentric uncle Jonathan (Jack Black) in his mysterious mansion. Next-door neighbor Florence Zimmerman (Cate Blanchett) is a frequent visitor to the home and has a relationship with Jonathan that is marked by insulting repartee and friendship in equal measure.

Lewis struggles to adapt to his new surroundings: Uncle Jonathan has no rules (save one: do not open the mysterious cabinet!) and fitting in at his new school proves challenging for the quiet, bookish boy who reads dictionaries recreationally. But soon, Lewis discovers that the house and his uncle may be even stranger than they seemed on the surface. Indeed, Jonathan is a warlock, Mrs. Zimmerman is a witch, and buried somewhere in the bowels of the house is a clock, ticking inexorably down to…what? Lewis uncovers the secrets of the house as he learns to be a warlock himself.

This film provides a lot of scary fun but it is definitely too frightening for young or sensitive children. Jonathan’s residence is filled with ticking clocks, animal and human skulls and body parts, freaky fairground animatronics, and disquieting dolls. There are also several jump scares, ominous graveyard scenes, possessed jack o’ lanterns, and a statue with a devil’s face which comes to life. The story gets much darker when the plot turns to necromancy, with the associated creepy corpse returning to life, and a recounting of a meeting with an actual demon (Azazel, Prince of Hell, to be precise). Even though the comic relief regularly breaks the tension, this will be cold comfort if your easily frightened child has nightmares for a week.

The movie does an excellent job of capturing that Addams Family meets Disney’s Haunted Mansion vibe and providing a pseudo-Gothic horror aesthetic geared towards children. Even better than the eerie atmosphere is the writing. Character dialogue is brisk and snappy, which is unusual for a children’s movie, and it develops and reveals their personalities. Owen Vaccaro is a little wooden in his performance as Lewis, but this is more than made up for by the charming and completely unexpected chemistry between Cate Blanchett and Jack Black, both of whom are clearly enjoying themselves. Other positive aspects of this picture are its messages around accepting who you are, developing new skills, following the rules, and embracing new family relationships.

The House with a Clock in Its Walls does avoid most of the unpleasant traps associated with comedies for kids, but you’re still going to have to sit through no fewer than three animal poop jokes or scenes of excrement landing on someone. Potty jokes get worse when Jack Black is transformed into a naked baby (with an adult head) which urinates towards the camera, fortunately without graphic close-ups. But if you can make it through that, then maybe the good-hearted fun of the movie will haunt you all the way home.