Stormbreaker (2006)

Director:

Geoffrey Sax

Writers:

Anthony Horowitz (novel)
Anthony Horowitz (screenplay)

Release Date:

21 July 2006 (UK)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Family

Tagline:

You're never too young to die.

Plot:

Alex Rider thinks he is a normal school boy, until his uncle is killed. He discovers that his uncle was actually spy on a mission...

Plot Keywords:

Spy | 14 Year Old | Gadget | Teenager | Secret Intelligence Service

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Sarah Bolger	...	Sabina Pleasure
Robbie Coltrane	...	Prime Minister
Stephen Fry	...	Smithers
Damian Lewis	...	Yassen Gregorovich
Ewan McGregor	...	Ian Rider
Bill Nighy	...	Alan Blunt
Sophie Okonedo	...	Mrs. Jones
Alex Pettyfer	...	Alex Rider
Missi Pyle	...	Nadia Vole
Mickey Rourke	...	Darrius Sayle
Andy Serkis	...	Mr. Grin
Alicia Silverstone	...	Jack Starbright
Ashley Walters	...	Wolf
Alex Barrett	...	Gary
Richard Huw	...	Teacher

Also Known As:

Alex Rider: Stormbreaker (International: English title) (UK) (poster title)
Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker (USA)

MPAA:

Rated PG for sequences of action violence and some peril.

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

Germany | USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

UK:PG | Ireland:PG | Finland:K-11 | Australia:M | USA:PG | Hong Kong:IIA | Netherlands:MG6 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Norway:11 | Portugal:M/12 | Brazil:10 | Singapore:PG | Malaysia:U | Argentina:Atp | Germany:12 | South Korea:12 | South Africa:PG

Filming Locations:

Broadgate, London, England, UK

Company:

Samuelson Productions

Trivia:

Fifteen-year-old Alex Pettyfer was chosen from five hundred other boys for the coveted lead role of Alex Rider.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Mrs. Jones gets the stack of computer books, she is carrying them by the top and bottom edges. In the next scene where she hands the books to Alex, the stack is rotated 90 degrees, presumably to let the viewer see the book titles.

Quotes:

[re: his Physalia Physalis]
Darrius Sayle: It reminds me of myself.
Alex Rider: It's 99 percent water, has no brains and no anus.
[pause]
Darrius Sayle: [laughing] I think I'm going to like you.

Movie Connections:

References Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)

Soundtrack:

Be My Saviour

A teenage boy becomes a spy to track down the mystery behind the new Stormbreaker computers.

I came to watch this film because I have been a fan of the Alex Rider books for many years. However, I was rather disappointed by the film. The main problem was that the film was very different from the book, with many parts of the story changed and with parts added. The ending was entirely made up for the film. I disliked the way that many of the actors chosen had no resemblance to how the character was described in the book.

I also felt that many of the action and fighting scenes were overdone and the superfluous parts annoyed me. The acting, particularly from the person playing Herod Sayle, was boring and unimaginative. The film was very jumpy in places, and I thought that people who had not read the books would have been confused by the ending. I thought that some of the lines in the film were quite strange and didn't really fit in with what was being said/going on!

However, I still gave the film a 4 out of 10 rating because of the many (usually unintentionally) funny scenes. I was particularly amused by Bill Nighy's acting in the role of Alan Blunt. Stephen Fry also added some comedy to the story in his role as Smithers. The film is reasonably watchable, probably because it only lasted 90 minutes.