Online only: Seek the book instead

"The Seeker: The Dark is Rising" is a story about a kid named Will Stanton, (Alexander Ludwig) who discovers he is the last member of a race of immortal warriors who defend the light. Along his journey, he must find six signs that have been forged as weapons against the dark. \nI was extremely excited when I heard about this movie. It is the second story in a series of five that were my favorite books growing up. These books were to me what "Harry Potter" is to everyone else.\nThe only similarities to the book, however, are the names. All the backstory and character depth are removed to make the main character more likeable. Some key scenes and moments are removed to make room for elements that make no sense and do not add to the story. I could make a laundry list of things that have been removed or added, but the worst of them all is that originally these stories were deeply rooted in Celtic and British folklore, and Hollywood in its infinite wisdom changed the main character and his family from British to American. \n"The Seeker" feels too much like "Harry Potter" meets "The Matrix" meets a made-for-MTV movie.\nBut the movie was bad even without judging it in relation to the book. The entire time it feels like some depth or explanation is missing, as if the moviemakers only read half the book and made up the rest.\nThe cinematography has some good moments, but is too imitative of other epic children's-book movies. The score is nothing special. It just feels as if this movie is a hurried attempt to recreate what "Lord of the Rings" or "Chronicles of Narnia" did. The acting is passable, but only enough to keep you from laughing. \nMy suggestion is to read the books and skip the movie. They have enough depth to keep you entertained for weeks and potentially years, while this movie has the depth of a wooden spoon.