WISH FULFILLMENT
FOUR KIDS AND IT No, Pennywise is not back scaring children in Cornwall…
Ah, there’s magic in the air. It’s a beautiful summer’s day in rural Ireland and Teasers is relaxing in the grounds of a white-walled cottage overlooking a stunning lake. The reason for this visit to the Emerald Isle? Four Kids And It. This charming, Cornwall-set tale tells of a quartet of holidaying youngsters who discover the Psammead, a wish-granting creature that’d give Aladdin’s Genie a run for his money.
Today’s scene sees a fracas between the children and their parents, Matthew Goode’s David and Paula Patton’s Alice. “I don’t understand kids any more,” bemoans Goode’s character. Thankfully, director Andy De Emmony does. “I think there is an Enid Blyton version of this film that we didn’t want to stray into,” he says on a break between takes. It’s doubtless why Russell Brand – currently meditating in the garden – is on board. “He is that English eccentric,” adds the director. “It’s purpose-built for him.”
With the story adapted from Jacqueline Wilson’s 2012 book Four Children And It, Brand’s character, the aristocratic Tristan, has been added to give the kids an antagonist, as he tries to swipe the Psammead for his own nefarious ends. “We’ve had to take quite a lot of licence from the book,” says De Emmony, who notes he’s had Wilson’s full support (she even has a cameo).
But the real draw will be the CG-crafted Psammead, voiced by Sir Michael Caine. “He’s supposed to be very old, curmudgeonly and mischievous,” explains De Emmony. “Michael loved that idea.” The children – Billy Jenkins, Ashley Aufderheide, Ellie-Mae Siame and Teddie-Rose Malleson-Allen – have been acting opposite a puppet on set, with a recording of Caine’s dialogue played to aid them.
The production has used facialcapture software to record Caine’s expressions and blend into ‘It’ in post. While he enjoyed this, it was the cheeky humour that really intrigued him, as De Emmonny tells us: “He said to me, ‘When the monkey farts, that’s going to be really funny! My grandkids will love that.’” JM
ETA | 10 APRIL / FOUR KIDS AND IT OPENS NEXT MONTH.