Mr. Magorium (Hoffman) is the ageless owner of a magic toy store who's gearing up to retire and wants to turn the store over to his manager Mahoney (Portman), who dreams of being a classical pianist. In the meantime, he hires uptight accountant Henry (Bateman) to assess the value of the store (and perhaps find a little magic in himself). An unapologetically whimsical family movie, it has occasional charming moments but mostly leans on its far superior influences ("Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" and "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," to name a few) for inspiration, and much of the fairy-tale feel seems forced and unoriginal.
Neither one of Dustin Hoffman's nor Natalie Portman's best movies LeoTs3181983 at 2010-11-11 21:07:03
This is neither one of Dustin Hoffman's nor Natalie Portman's best movies. Dustin Hoffman doesn't play the snappy way he usually does,and Natalie Portman is too sweet. DON'T SEE IT!
Predictable, but pretty booklady111 at 2008-03-10 12:17:44
There are many things you can do to bring a toy store to life, and this movie did it well. There wasn't too much of a plot going on, and no big surprises. My 7-year-old niece loved it.