Product Description

MIRRORMASK is the story of Helena, who works for the family circus, and wishes--quite ironically--that she could run away and join real life. But such is not to be the case, as she finds herself on a strange journey into the Dark Lands, a fantastic landscape filled with giants, Monkeybirds and dangerous sphinxes. Helena searches for the Mirrormask, an object of enormous power that is her only hope of escaping the Dark Lands, waking the Queen of Light and returning home.

The long-awaited DVD boasts more than an hour of exclusive extra features. Fans can go Behind the Scenes with Dave McKean, have a conversation with Neil Gaiman in the Neil Talks feature, or watch the Flight of the Monkeybirds in the special featurette, along with many more exclusive features and scenes.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4768 in DVD
• Brand: Sony
• Released on: 2006-02-14
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, Portuguese, French
• Subtitled in: Chinese, English, French, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish
• Dubbed in: French, Portuguese
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 101 minutes

Amazon.com
This visually stunning film is the product of a collaboration of award-winning graphic novelist Neil Gaiman (creator of the much-lauded Sandman series), his frequent collaborator Dave McKean (Cages), and The Jim Henson Company, themselves no strangers to elaborate fantasies such as The Dark Crystal. and Labyrinth. As with the latter film, MirrorMask focuses on a young woman unhappy with her daily existence; here, the artistically inclined Helena (Stephanie Leonides), is at odds with her circus performer parents. When a careless insult appears to send her mother (Gina McKee) into a coma, Helena withdraws into the dark and elaborate world of her drawings, in which a scenario very similar to her predicament in the real world is unfolding. Gaiman and director McKean create arresting images to populate Helena's world, and the Henson Company brings them vividly to life with CGI; though the story is occasionally murky, the fantasy elements are imaginative enough to enthrall what will undoubtedly be the film's toughest customers--younger viewers. --Paul Gaita

Customer Reviews

Feast For The Eyes
One of the best fantasy, special effects films I've ever seen. Surrealism that totally engrossed me. I'd call it a masterpiece.

reminiscent of a cirque du soleil performance
If you like the traveling french circus "Cirque du soleil" you will find this movie very similar in its surrealism. Fans of the 1986 movie Labyrinth, 2006 El Laberinto del fauno ("Pans Labyrinth") or 1985 "Legend" will enjoy this film!

What Do You Get When Your Director/Writer Is Also Your Production Designer? MirrorMask
MirrorMask is nothing short of the weirdest and most imaginative movies I have ever seen. It is also the farthest thing from a mainstream film as you can get, as 9/10 people will absolutely hate this movie. If you can get into as I did however, and appreciate all the visuals they were able to accomplish with an incredible 4-million dollar budget, then you'll appreciate the subtle humor and originality of this film, throughout the pure strangeness of it all.

First off, this movie is purely a British production, so it highly retains a BBC-tone to the movie, and all the actors are completely unknown in the States, and by no-means stars in Britain. However, Stephanie Leonidas and Jason Barry are excellent in their roles, and really help draw you into the movie, giving you something to identify with. Because, with all the weirdness going on, it's incredibly easy to lose yourself in the film, becoming lost in the vast land of the unknown. The actors and characters therefore must keep you focused, and they do this well. Of course, if the visuals weren't enough to throw you off track, the story will. Sure, it could have been better, and it draws influences from many staples of the genre, but in-between all this, I still liked the movie.

Maybe it's because of the subtle humor, that's both witty and hilarious. Between the flying books, and the other strange assortment of characters in this movie, you almost can't help but laugh.

Overall, chances are you're going to hate this movie, and you wouldn't be alone. There is nothing normal about this movie, and it's part of the reason why it's so good. Sure, the film could have been cut down 15 minutes or so, and the story could have been tweaked, but you might like what you see. It's probably a one-time watching event, and who knows what Jim Henson would have thought of it. I personally think he would have loved it. It has Henson written all over it, from the characters, to the humor, to the the weirdness. I think he would have been proud.

The Librarian: 'Take the book, if it goes back on the shelf, it'll just depress the other books, causing them to huddle together and molt.'

Pure genius...