The Secret Kingdom

The only timepiece you’ll be staring at through this endurance test is the one on your wrist.

The performances – child, adult and pangolin alike – are painfully poor. And the stop-start pacing of the picture is a slog.

Like its title, this film is mostly bland and semi-forgettable – with scenes more than a little familiar from the fantasy back catalogue, adding no real flavour of its own.

Relatively enjoyable, albeit instantly forgettable.

Although there is some mild peril here, this is a film that is built on thinking outside the box, the importance of friendship and drawing on your inner strength, even when you think that’s tough.

Brilliant fantasy for the whole family that proves once again why Matt Drummond is one of Australia's most promising filmmakers.

Though the film seems, at times, to bend under the weight of its convoluted premise and the blind eye it has turned at a fully-developed backstory, The Secret Kingdom is a solid, enjoyable, if not likely forgettable high fantasy epic.

If there was a little more money and a little more time and a little more care given, this could have been something special.

While the visual effects may not be top-notch due to a limited budget, most kids won't mind and might still enjoy the movie.

I found it rather boring and not particularly exciting to look at.