A man named Mortimer (or Mo) and his wife Resa have a baby girl, Meggie. They try to read to her to soothe her crying. Little do they know that the characters and events are coming to life as Mo reads the book, Little Red Riding Hood.

Twelve years later, Meggie and Mo are in a car on the road. Meggie just wants a normal life and is sick of traveling. She also wonders what happened to her mom.

At some point, while going around Europe, Meggie and Mo are at a market. Mo is looking for a specific book called Inkheart. He eventually finds it.

Meanwhile, a ferret approaches Meggie, but it’s a little aggressive. Then this strange man comes and says that the ferret is not as friendly as it looks.

Shortly after, Mo meets the guy, who is called Dustfinger. He is a character from Inkheart. He wants Mo to read him back into the story.

However, both he and Meggie flee to Italy, where they stay with Meggie’s great-aunt Elinor. Meggie gets interested in the library there, but Elinor doesn’t want her in there. Then she changes her mind, but has her follow some rules in order to go in it.

Sometime later, Meggie learns that nine years ago, Mo read her a story. Unfortunately, he accidentally got his wife into the tale and she hasn’t seen the real world since. He also unintentionally let some villains out.

After all those years, the same bad guys return. Their leader is a man named Capricorn. He and his partners burn down Elinor’s library and force Mo to read, despite what happens. Mo reads, but then stops. This prompts Capricorn and the other villains to lock him, Elinor,and Meggie up in a little dungeon along with other fictional characters.

Mo finally reveals to Elinor that if he reads, whatever is in the story comes out, including the dangers. He is known as a silvertongue for that power.

Later, a young man from 1001 Arabian Night called Farid comes and joins Mo, Meggie, and Elinor. Luckily, thanks to Mo bringing the tornado from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz to life, everyone is able to escape.

However, Capricorn has Mo’s copy of Inkheart. He hopes that the author, Fenoglio, has another copy. So, he and Meggie go to him in his private residence. Dustfinger also joins them.

Later he reveals to Mo that his wife, Resa, is alive – except that she has no voice. Mo decides to take Dustfinger and Farid in Fenoglio’s car, but leave Meggie with Fenoglio.

That night, Meggie reads The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and unintentionally brings Toto the dog to life. She discovers that she’s also a silvertongue.

Shortly after, she also encounters her mother, whose hair has been cropped short and is stuck in a big net. But then Meggie is captured and locked up.

What is going to occur next?

The premise of this movie, which was based on a book, was very interesting and creative. I’ve never heard of another story where reading would bring a character or element to life. And including the villains adds a good amount of conflict.

The character development was also strong. Meggie and Mo had a sweet relationship. Mo would do anything to protect her, especially stop anyone from hurting her.

The pacing was also quick. It made the story feel like it was breezing. And lots of twists and turns happen.

Unfortunately, the movie is not without its flaws. Despite the quick pacing, the film did not engage me as much as I wished.

Another flaw is how Meggie has an English accent while Mo has an American accent. It’s never explained why, leaving the viewer confused. I would assume that Mo moved to England and raised Meggie there.

Overall, I thought Inkheart was decent. The strengths were just a little greater than the weaknesses.

I give this film 3.5 out of 5 stars.