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Five Children and It

Play trailer Poster for Five Children and It 2004 1h 29m Fantasy Play Trailer Watchlist
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63% Tomatometer 8 Reviews 42% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
When their father goes off to war, a group of children that includes the mischievous Robert (Freddie Highmore) and Cyril (Jonathan Bailey) stay with their uncle, who has a greenhouse on his property. There, they discover "It," a creature they recognize from bedtime stories as being a sand fairy. "It" can grant wishes -- but as the children and their cousin, Horace (Alexander Pownall), soon find out, the more outlandish their desire, the greater the chance for disaster to result.

Critics Reviews

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James Christopher The Times (UK) Five posh First World War sprogs are despatched to Uncle Kenneth Branagh's Gothic pile in a Devon nook. It's a ghastly film Oct 21, 2004 Full Review Andrea Beach Common Sense Media Funny wish-granting story has some mild scariness. Rated: 3/5 Nov 14, 2017 Full Review Joseph Proimakis Movies for the Masses full review in Greek Rated: 2/5 Oct 3, 2006 Full Review David Cornelius eFilmCritic.com Its eccentric charms and light humor will most certainly win over anyone looking for a brisk family adventure. Rated: 4/5 Jul 5, 2005 Full Review Matthew Turner ViewLondon Rated: 3/5 Oct 19, 2004 Full Review Joe Utichi FilmFocus Live this up, a wholesome family film this delightful doesn't come by very often. Rated: 64/100 Oct 18, 2004 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Steph H For a 2000s (2004 to be exact) fantasy movie. I actually quite liked this movie. I would recommend it for those who want something nice to watch, even if you don't have kids. I mainly watched it for Jonathan Bailey but I stayed for the movie as a whole, the five children, except Robert, were good to watch, Freddie Highmore is a great actor but his character Robert was just a brat. Kenneth Brannagh as Uncle Albert was unrecognisable when I first watched it, which is not a bad thing at all. Eddie Izzard as Psammead was great, brought humour and likeableness to the character. Overall, I liked this movie. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 06/25/25 Full Review Steve D How did they rope KB into this? Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/31/24 Full Review Audience Member Freddie Highmore is the highlight of this! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Audience Member Amazing movie that gets me in tears all the time :) Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review Audience Member This could have been so much better. Wasn't much adventure, more silly antics. For a film made in 2004 it looked really dated and a lot older. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review Audience Member Fantastic family viewing!! Very narnia like.. But funny in places and really easy to watch.. Kids will love this!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Five Children and It

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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John Stephenson

Director

Kenneth Branagh

Uncle Albert

Suzy Eddie Izzard

It

Freddie Highmore

Robert

Tara Fitzgerald

Mother

Zoë Wanamaker

Martha

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Five Children and It

Five Children and It (2004) Five Children and It (2004) Five Children and It (2004) Five Children and It (2004) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis When their father goes off to war, a group of children that includes the mischievous Robert (Freddie Highmore) and Cyril (Jonathan Bailey) stay with their uncle, who has a greenhouse on his property. There, they discover "It," a creature they recognize from bedtime stories as being a sand fairy. "It" can grant wishes -- but as the children and their cousin, Horace (Alexander Pownall), soon find out, the more outlandish their desire, the greater the chance for disaster to result.
Director
John Stephenson
Producer
Nick Hirschkorn, Lisa Henson, Samuel Hadida
Screenwriter
David Solomons
Genre
Fantasy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 11, 2004, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
May 12, 2016
Runtime
1h 29m
Sound Mix
Surround