'The House With A Clock In Its Walls' Is An Eyesore
The exquisite atmosphere and sense of foreboding that made John Bellairs' 1973 book a children's classic gets discarded in favor of a relentless riot of jump-scares and visual noise.
There's a deft sleight-of-hand at work in John Bellairs' , a children's mystery published in 1973, about warlocks and witches, necromancy, and a doomsday machine that nonetheless carries itself with whimsy. Those who encountered the book as children will remember the lingering creepiness of its gothic elements, enforced by Edward Gorey's illustrations, and the old house at 100 High Street, which is full of wonder and terror in equal
