Magic & mystery
FERDIA SHAW AND DAME JUDI DENCH star in the bewitching adventures of a young criminal genius
PREPARE TO MEET some feisty fairies, giant dwarves and a devious child prodigy in Disney+’s new magical one-off adaptation of Eoin Colfer’s much-loved Artemis Fowl fantasy novels.
The colourful family film, directed by Sir Kenneth Branagh, sees screen newcomer Ferdia Shaw play 12-year-old genius Artemis Fowl, who lives at imposing Fowl Manor on the Irish coast with his father, Artemis Sr (Colin Farrell), an antiquities dealer who has enthralled his son with stories about fairies, dwarves and goblins.
When Artemis Sr vanishes during a work trip abroad, his son receives a disturbing message from a mysterious hooded figure who reveals that they have kidnapped Artemis Sr.
Realising that the fairy world his father has told him about is all too real, Artemis must now track down the Aculos, the fairies’ most powerful magical device, to rescue his dad.
As he battles to save his father, Artemis makes some morally ambiguous decisions. But is he a hero or a villain in the making?
HERO OR VILLAIN?
‘He’s a bit of both.
Our version of
Artemis is a little different from the books and he has cool tricks up his sleeve but he is always in a dilemma about the right thing to do,’ Shaw tells us. ‘He just wants his father back. But his mission is a journey, and as he learns more, he grows up.’
As director, Branagh says he wanted the movie to be an ‘exhilarating ride’ but with a human dimension.
‘This is a coming-of-age tale. And Artemis has to decide whether to step into the family business like Michael Corleone in The Godfather. But it’s also an Irish story, so it never takes itself too seriously.’
Part of Artemis’ shady plot to locate the Aculos involves abducting Captain Holly Short (Lara Mcdonnell), a spirited young officer with Leprecon, the formidable fairy police force.
It draws him into conflict with the fiery residents of the fairy world, led by Holly’s tetchy boss Commander Root, played by Dame Judi Dench.
However, Artemis and Holly must eventually team up to try to save both the human and fairy civilisations from destruction with the dubious help of kleptomaniac giant dwarf Mulch Diggums, played by Josh Gad.
STELLAR CAST
‘Josh was so funny that we just couldn’t hold it together,’ reveals Shaw. ‘And I had a stand-off scene with Judi, which was cool. I was nervous but she’s so nice that I felt calm straight away.’
In the books, Root is male, but Branagh says he immediately wanted to cast Dame Judi in the role.
‘Eoin gave us permission to make any cinematic variation we chose,’ says Branagh, who also has a cameo in the film. ‘With Root, we wanted to honour the books’ vision of this crusty individual with a heart of gold, but we wanted to surprise people and Judi was great for that.’
When it came to casting Artemis, the production team auditioned more than 1,000 young hopefuls, before deciding on Shaw for the role.
‘Finding Artemis was such a big challenge,’ says
Branagh. ‘But Ferdia is joyful and brings intelligence and a delicious naughty streak. Plus he makes his own visual-effects films so he’s got that boffin’s interest in how cinema works.’
Shaw, who is the grandson of legendary Jaws actor Robert Shaw, admits that he is still pinching himself that he is playing Artemis.
‘It’s surreal and incredible seeing the books brought to life. I read them all when I was younger and loved the fairy mythology combined with the sci-fi world of high-tech gadgets. I got to do some cool stunts and wirework. It was challenging but good fun.’
Branagh, who shot the film in Northern Ireland and Vietnam, is hopeful that more of the novels could be adapted in the future.
‘In the rest of the books, there’s another gallery of fantastical creatures who would be a joy to investigate,’ he says. ‘People need an escape right now into something different and bigger – hopefully Artemis Fowl can help them make that journey away. ’
‘Artemis is in a dilemma about the right
thing to do’
FERDIA SHAW