Upside-Down Magic (2020 TV Movie) User Reviews

Disappointing.

[risbyceonna · 4/10 · 27 February 2021]

Honestly, it's a rip-off of Harry Potter. The plot was so predictable and the characters had cliche personalities and overall the message kinda sucked. I don't recommend. (This is my first bad review)

Good message

[carling-820-549231 · 7/10 · 17 September 2020]

I thought this movie was pretty good. I like the message of "be the best version of yourself." These kids are outcasts but in the end turn out to be better than anyone realized. I have an autistic child and this message resonated with me for him. The story and characters were cute and it kept us engaged.

Not bad and fun movie for what it is

[schinbeckler · 7/10 · 14 March 2021]

I get it's not like the book, but on its own, it is a fun movie. All of my kids loved it, from 5 to 14. If you don't go in with any predetermined expectations, I believe you can enjoy it. All of the actors did a great job, the special effects were actually pretty good for a non-hollywood blockbuster with a huge budget. I really like the UDM teacher. He really helped to make the movie enjoyable.

Nothing like the book

[elizabethhaddix · 1/10 · 18 September 2020]

I can get why they didn't make it like the book but at least make a bit similar to it, make the plot lines similar or something, i absolutely despise this movie if 2nd grade me saw this they would be so sad because of how much of a disappointment this movie is. If you like this movie what is wrong with you. Even the characters are nothing like how they were in the books, you can picture Elliot as some cool dude not some weird idiot. you can picture Andres as a nerd with no control over anything but again in the movie they make him into some perfect boy who ends up with the main character. Oh and don't get me started with all the character that were cut, All of the characters were cut except Nora Andres, Elliot and Pepper. and they turn the nice inspiring teacher into the opposite of what she was a boy who is janitor who puts the students down on their weird magic instead of putting them up.

Amazing

[ashinarawat · 6/10 · 26 April 2021]

Great story for children below 12.

Shows the ups and downs in friendship,loving yourself.

Absolute garbage.

[DarlingLlama · 1/10 · 4 August 2020]

The writing was horrible, characters kept changing behaviors and failed to be consistent, the directing was awful and ruined several opportunities for great humor.

It was a waste of time with a two dimensional antagonist, an annoying protagonist and meaningless supporting cast. An overall complete waste of time and thoroughly predictable.

Would have been more exciting to watch a daytime soap opera, than this drivel. Playing in heavy traffic with leg weights on would've been more enjoyable.

fine Disney TV movie

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 31 December 2020]

Best friends Nory and Reina are excited to go to magic school, Sage Academy for Magical Studies. The students are divided into five classes depending on their magical abilities. Reina is a fire starter and joins the Flare class. Nory transforms into animals which means that she is supposed to join the Fluxer class. She cannot hold onto a single shape and is instead sent to Upside-Down Magic. She joins three other misfits who cannot do their abilities in a traditional way. They are expected to wear down their magic until they can return to the world as nobodies.

I actually like this Disney TV movie for kids. The message is good. The kids are good and sweet. The production is fine for a TV movie. I don't know anything about the books and I don't want to know. It's fine. It's very fine.

Nothing at all like the books

[laurasmall-72495 · 3/10 · 11 October 2020]

My son and I are huge fans of the books and was expecting so much more from this I only gave it a 3 because my son still enjoyed parts of the movie but for me it was a huge disappointment They missed out several important characters, the fact Nory went to live with her aunt and also changed some characters powers completely For me it was a complete let down when it had so much potential to be something special

Hollywood in its biggest crisis

[danieln-15525 · 1/10 · 15 August 2020]

Hollywood is in its biggest crisis in history. Awful movies one by one, awful music, bad TV shows. They started taking other people's ideas, from books. Even when the script is given to them, they still do a bad job. Such a Failed industry.

Great message

[tomfrawley-49429 · 6/10 · 18 September 2020]

It's great what this book/movie is trying to teach the children of this generation. The whole mantra of this move is self acceptance and finding your own power especially for kids who might not fit in or have learning disabilities. Teaches acceptance and tolerance and Lays foundations of good morals and ethics and life skills. it gladdens me to see movies like this now a days.

Sad

[questioncomics · 1/10 · 23 November 2021]

My friend was an extra and said it was the worst experience of his life, People got heat stroke. Boooooo, big sad :(. The story is also very generic and the film was not that fun.

Fun movie for the family to watch

[kali_vaa · 7/10 · 31 May 2021]

I should start by saying we haven't read any of the books. My 7 year old son picked this one to watch and we all enjoyed it. I was hesitant because of all of the low ratings, but they all say it's not as good as the books. So thanks to all the haters, we'll have to start reading them!

Slandered a great story, heres why

[liliromanski · 1/10 · 3 March 2021]

The book series of upside down magic was one of my favorites in elementary school. i own all three books and have read them each several times and let me tell you that this movie slandered them so hard it was able to dissapoint me in the first minute and 30 seconds. thw world its set in is entirely different, they changed one of the powers(flickers are supposed to have invisibility, not telekenisis), added a character out of the blue, completely cut 3/4 of the upside down class, and two of the four characters in the class had their powers changed or altered. my girl pepper was ROBBED of her fury status, and where was the happy teacher we were supposed to have for the upside down class?? also the principal in the books was related to Nory (her father i think) she had several siblings, and in the movie she is an only child and the principal is just an as***le!!!!!! i wanted the fun worldwidw magic school story, not this dystopian secret hogwarts school bullcrap.

Great Movie!

[alicestephens-38894 · 9/10 · 20 December 2020]

When I first saw the trailer I thought "ugh. Just a Disney Harry Potter knock off" but then I tried the movie and it was nothing like Harry Potter! I have watched this movie twice because I enjoyed it so much! The 2nd time I showed my mom and she enjoyed it too! I would suggest it to ages under 14ish.

This does not make me want to read the books...

[pernilleskovgaard · 1/10 · 27 November 2023]

I have no idea who authorized this horrible creation, but whoever did needs to be removed from the movie business, cause this seriously sucked.

Acting is terrible, writing is horrid, characters are boring and main characters are the definition of annoying and stupid to listen to, it literally felt like they picked the first random person out from the background alley and said "this is our actors!"

CGI looks like early 90s despite being released 2020.

Somehow Disney keeps ruining their stuff and I am actually quite impressed they haven't completely shut down yet due to horrible creations like this.

If I could give 0 stars I would.

If you think about watching this movie, don't even waste your time - it's not worth it, I guarantee it.

Suitable for children

[zero-hacker · 5/10 · 13 December 2020]

Suitable for children under 13, not suitable for adults like other well-known magic movies

Didn't bother finishing it...

[zegcoupons · 1/10 · 9 February 2021]

The kids acting were good, the effects and sets were good BUT it really was an utter disappointment. The storyline was awful. It's a shame that they made this movie in 2020 since it's so degrading. What a waste of good talent. There's a reason why the books are better than the movies but in this case WOW!

Nothing Like the Books

[h-s-contino · 4/10 · 21 December 2020]

I was really excited when I heard they were making a movie based on the "Upside Down Magic" book series. But, whoever produced this film obviously never read the books. There are huge changes and none of them were good decisions. They didn't even get the 5 F's right... disappointing!

Nothing like the book

[zanderbighley-44643 · 1/10 · 16 June 2021]

I read the book that this dumpster fire of a movie is based on in the third grade and thought it was decent. The movie is nothing like that. They put in forced diversity, they made one of the parents dead when in the book both parents were alive, in the book the children were actually able to use their powers, it was a coming of age story there was no villain, and the main character was staying with her aunt in the book.

Strong personal message among good performances.

[mmevanille-53097 · 9/10 · 27 December 2020]

Cute and with a good message for the 8-13 or so age group.

Unfortunately some genres on imdb get rated lower than they deserve, and children/teen content is one of them. I dare anyone who rates this lower than a 4 to write good content for someone of this target age group. Most negative reviews are reviewed from a critical and authoritarian style adult prejudice. Reviews for tween content need to be written from that perspective and target audience in mind.

And from that perspective this is very good content. The performances from a young cast are impeccable. The story is compelling and interesting. The CGI is believable. It is a bit like Harry Potter in a way, so point off for unoriginality, but it does have a more personalized message about self acceptance and self improvement.

I wouldn't hesitate showing someone of that target audience this film. 9/10

Too predictable

[giantristianapostol · 2/10 · 18 October 2020]

The CGI's great but the storyline's just too predictable. It just doesn't have that element of plot twist which makes any story interesting.

Tween whisperer screenwriter works MAGIC

[rkauk · 9/10 · 17 October 2020]

This commentary will reflect the three aspects of my life: educator, parent, and adult.

As a middle school teacher, there have been many students who have enjoyed the Upside Down Magic series. The kids have loved discussing the books with each other - but I never saw the draw. A poorly written Harry Potter rip off was the impression I was left with after each discussion with my students.

As a parent, (my oldest is now 20), I have watched Disney Channel series and movies ad nauseam. Wizards of Waverly Place, Halloweentown, Suite Life, Hannah Montana, you all know them - the list goes on. So when my daughter was home from school during the summer, we decided to give Upside Down Magic a try. What really intrigued us was when we found out that Upside Down Magic had the same screenwriter as Ramona and Beezus (an all time favorite of my daughter from her tween years), Nick Pustay. That sealed the deal!

We were NOT disappointed. Mr Pustay worked what those in the know have referred to as his "tween whisperer" magic. He transformed a predictable and boring book series into an exciting, interesting, and life-lesson learning piece of cinema!

As an adult, I was able to reflect on the lessons taught during the movie. While other reviewers claim the morality was lax, I, respectfully, would have to disagree. The loyalty to your friends is outstanding! The students ability to respect different viewpoints, ways of living, and talents is sorely missing in our current society. The screenwriter brings a message of hope and understanding in the guise of an adequate HP clone - EXCEPTIONAL!

I hope the big wigs at Disney take time to go and read the quality reviews of Mr Pustay's screenplay. Without his ability to reach the demographic (tweens), this movie would have fallen flat. No doubt a sequel (or series - dare I hope) should be in the offing!! Hats off to you, Nick Pustay - Tween Whisperer!!

Sage Academy surely is the most magical place on earth

[disneysupsidedownmagic · 10/10 · 20 January 2021]

Upside-Down Magic is Disney's Next Big Thing. It follows the adventures of Magical Misfit Nory Horace, who instead of simply turning into one animal, turns into two at once. The best effects, and a break from the musicals we have been enduring makes this a sure-fire Magical adventure, taking place at the World's Greatest Magic School. Move over Hogwarts. This is not a rip-off at all, so bother those haters, this is the best Disney Channel Original Movie yet! Not to mention that it may be different from the books, which were mildly enjoyable, but the movie is quite Enchanting!

Great Family Movie

[hbop11 · 10/10 · 8 February 2021]

Wonderful movie of determination & self-love in youth

Upside-Down Magic is a magical tale

[elliottbaxter · 10/10 · 11 February 2021]

My son and I read the books, long with my husband. We as a family loved the books. This film is an amazing and creative film better than I could have ever taken from the books.