Having broken up with her husband, Mary-Louise Parker brings her three children – twins Jared and Simon (Freddie Highmore) and older sister Mallory (Sarah Bolger) – to live in the former home of dotty great aunt Joan Plowright and her scientist father David Straithairn.

It is clear there are tensions in the family with Jared in denial about his parents' separation and in a strop with everyone but it is he who begins to notice strange happenings in the house and is first to come face to face with the creatures from an unseen world.

As ever, there's an old book containing mysterious clues to drive the story forward and the usual computerised effects but what helps to lift it out of the ordinary is that there is drama in both the fantasy and real worlds and strong characters who not only have to face untold dangers but resolve family conflicts as well.

As the two boys at the centre of all this, Freddie Highmore proves more than capable of holding things together, ably supported by his Irish co-star Bolger (In America) in a less defined role, while Nick Nolte proves a menacing presence as the evil ogre. Talking of which, parents of sensitive younger children should note there are some scary moments.