Product Details

• Actors: John Goodman, Jim Broadbent, Mark Williams, Celia Imrie, Flora Newbigin
• Directors: Peter Hewitt
• Writers: Gavin Scott, John Kamps, Mary Norton
• Producers: Debra Hayward, Eric Fellner, Liza Chasin, Mary Richards
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC
• Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Polygram USA Video
• VHS Release Date: August 18, 1998
• Run Time: 89 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6305005893
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #82,356 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The popular children's books by Mary Norton have been filmed before, but never with as much imagination and ingenuity as you'll find on display in this delightful fantasy film released to critical praise in 1998. The "Borrowers" of the title are a family of tiny people who live in the walls and under the floorboards in the homes of "normal-sized" humans; they earn their by "borrowing" the household items (string, food crumbs, buttons, etc.) needed to furnish their tiny hiding places and provide their meals. The little Clock family lives happily undisturbed in the home of an aged aunt, but when the aunt dies and her will is stolen by an unscrupulous lawyer (John Goodman), the Clocks face eviction and the frightening hazards of the outside world. Under the ingenious direction of Peter Hewitt, this simple, straightforward movie mixes comedy, adventure, and suspense with some of the cleverest special effects you've ever seen, taking full advantage of effects technologies to immerse you in the world of the tiny people. A climactic chase scene in a milk-bottling plant is a visual tour de force, and the movie's smart and dazzling enough to entertain parents and children alike. After its modest success in theaters, The Borrowers stands a good chance of becoming a home-video favorite. --Jeff Shannon

From The New Yorker

It's surprising that filmmakers have only recently latched onto Mary Norton's endearing tales of the Borrowers-miniature humans, six inches high, who live under floorboards and behind wainscots of English houses. On the other hand, it takes the latest technology to do them justice: witness the scene, early in Peter Hewitt's movie, when Pod (Jim Broadbent), the gallant head of a Borrower family, springs around a full-sized kitchen and lands in the ice dispenser. Hewitt wraps the family in a slice of overheated hokum, involving a ravenous villain (John Goodman) and a pest exterminator, but violent slapstick and low scatological gags seem way out of place here; the Borrowers are most entertaining, and most true to themselves, when they are simply hanging out, dining off a single pea or hiding among the toy soldiers in a child's bedroom. They move from a dusky English cottage to a neat suburban street, but behind them looms a surreal cityscape that suggests an H. G. Wells fantasy of the future. Small world, huh? -Anthony Lane
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun Adaptation of Norton Classic, June 28, 2004

By 

Joshua Koppel (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Borrowers (DVD)

I just had the opportunity to see the film The Borrowers starring John Goodman as the evil Mr. Potter. Overall the movie is fun and entertaining and it has been so long since I read the books that I can't be sure the weak points originate in the movie (although I believe they do).

The movie is based upon a series of books by Mary Norton about a race of small people who live in the cracks and walls of the world and are known for borrowing things from humans (or beings). The story centers around one borrower family who are the last of their kind in an old house. Their existence is threatened when the evil Mr. Potter sees to kicking out the being inhabitants in order to knock the house down. There then follows a series of adventures as borrowers and beings alike try to save the house from destruction.

The weak points in the movie concern anachronisms. For the most part the movie is set decades ago as in the books. But annoying anachronisms pop up such as a cellular phone and an in-door ice maker. Considering the vintage of the vehicles on the street these items really stand out. But despite the anachronisms the movie remains entertaining with some very good performances from Goodman and the rest of the cast.

23 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not the Borrowers, but..., December 24, 2002

By 

Laughing Gravy (Sacramento, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Borrowers (DVD)

The only way to enjoy this film is if you haven't read the wonderful books by Mary Norton. The characters share the size, but few of the memorable traits of Pod, Homily, and Arrietty, the wonderful family that lives under the kitchen. This adaptation is more of a cross between MOUSE HUNT, HONEY I SHRUNK THE KIDS, and HOME ALONE than anything in THE BORROWERS books. I was very disappointed, and could not get involved in the story. For little kids only, although you should really read them the books and skip the film.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for the whole family, August 13, 2001

By 

Sir Bowen (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Borrowers (DVD)

This movie is a great one for everyone to watch together, as it can interest anyone, from very young kids to adults.

The miniaturization effects didn't seem particularly advanced - I wasn't wowed by any technical advances I saw. But I would say that they were very imaginably used, making for some cute scenes that were refreshing. They were also carefully done, minimizing the "fakey" feel and letting you concentrate on the story.

The DVD version has a cool "making of The Borrowers" featurette that shows how the special effects were done, which is fun to watch after you've seen the movie.