'Spiderwick' has franchise written all over it

Motion picture studios are always looking for the next great film franchise. It's one thing to have a movie that generates big bucks, but movies with sequels are money in the bank again and again and again.

The search has ended for Paramount. The studio has found its next great franchise with "The Spiderwick Chronicles."

Here's why the new movie has such great potential. The production based on the series of books by Holly Black finds that perfect blend of fast-paced action and whimsical storytelling. The balance is so perfect that the film has something for both young and old.

This tale of humans against a host of magical creatures heats up rather quickly. The Grace family moves into an old house left to them by an aunt (Joan Plowright) who has been confined to a mental institution. As she puts it, when you start talking about ogres and fairies, confinement comes quickly.

But she's not daffy. The house is the hiding spot for a book that tells all the secrets of the mystical world that exists just outside our field of vision.

The two worlds collide when Jared Grace (Freddie Highmore) discovers the book. Jared defies a rather explicit warning to not read the manuscript composed by one of his ancestors. His impetuousness starts a battle with an odd collection of characters both great and small.

Hightower does a good job of making his two characters seem different. The young Brit does struggle with his American accent and his dialogue seems forced. But these are small flaws in a fanciful and fun film.