Fun is the mission in "Journey to the Center of the Earth," and the mission is accomplished delightfully.A 3-D extravaganza that pulls viewers into the action -- sometimes at a range too close for comfort! -- this "Journey" revisits the classic Jules Verne tale and makes it fresh, fun and family-friendly. While it piles on the special effects, it provides a predictable, modest plot that comes to life in the performances of the likable cast.Brendan Fraser, who's proved himself the go-to actor for special-effects flicks with "The Mummy" and its sequels, brings his good-guy personality and aptitude for comic action to the role of Trevor Anderson, a scientist and college professor whose specialty is plate tectonics.Trevor's brother and colleague, Max (Jean Michel Pare), disappeared 10 years ago while doing field research in Iceland. When Max's 13-year-old son, Sean (Josh Hutcherson), shows up for a visit Trevor has forgotten about, Trevor gets a box of Max's stuff that includes a copy of Verne's "Journey to the Center of the Earth," with Max's notes scribbled in the margins.The notes, combined with unusual geological phenomena, are enough to send Trevor, Sean in tow, to Iceland. They end up hiring a chilly mountain guide, Hannah (Anita Briem), whose father, like Max, was a Vernian, believing that Verne's fantasies were fact.Fate takes the trio on a roller coaster of a ride through a mountain, then deep below Earth's surface via volcanic tubes to a world both beautiful and potentially deadly.The script by Michael Weiss, Jennifer Flackett and Mark Levin leans on some old standards -- Trevor and Sean are strangers to each other but bond through the course of their adventure; ice princess Hannah starts out cold to Trevor but warms up; Sean learns huge life lessons, while Trevor gets to tell off a rival. And the conflicts of Vernian and actual science don't bear contemplation.Still, the story includes generous portions of one-liners and physical humor, and the fantasy doesn't go any farther out of bounds than "Jurassic Park."Besides, first-time director Eric Brevig, an acclaimed special-effects artist, creates several heart-in-your-throat scenes, including a wild mining-car ride and an amazing dance across floating magnetic rocks, that make up for any of the plot's pedestrian tendencies.The eye candy is not limited to the stars. The settings and scenery are gorgeous, and the 3-D-enhanced action is a blast."Journey to the Center of the Earth" is the kind of movie trip that doesn't come around often enough.Rated PG for intense adventure action and some scary moments.Four stars (out of five).(Contact Knoxville News Sentinel film critic Betsy Pickle at pickle(at)knews.com.)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
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