The House of Magic

Between the endless list of sci-fi options, The House of Magic in Australia on Stan, and in the US on Amazon Prime Video and Kanopy is the one that earns the time. A tight runtime that never overstays its welcome. A 6/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Watch it for Brianne Siddall — the performance elevates material that could easily tip into self-seriousness. Put it on tonight on Stan and see for yourself.

The House of Magic arrived without much fanfare and built its audience the hard way — through word of mouth. The House of Magic uses its genre premise as cover for asking bigger questions. Thunder, an abandoned young cat seeking shelter from a storm, stumbles into the strangest house imaginable, owned by an old magician and inhabited by a dazzling array of automatons and gizmos. Not everyone welcomes the new addition to the troupe as Jack Rabbit and Maggie Mouse plot to evict Thunder. The situation gets worse when the magician lands in hospital and his scheming nephew sees his chance to cash in by selling the mansion. Brianne Siddall and Robin Atkin Downes lead a cast that keeps the bigger ideas grounded in something human. It hit screens in 2013. What separates The House of Magic from lesser genre entertainment is a willingness to let the concept cost the characters something. It delivers reliably on what it promises, which is more than most of its competition manages.

The House of Magic is satisfying on multiple levels — something to watch and something to think about after. It rewards viewers regardless of what else is in their watch history. It is a manageable watch, easy to fit into a single evening. Brianne Siddall grounds the bigger ideas in something human. Once you are in, you will want to talk about it.

The House of Magic was released in 2013, directed by Ben Stassen. The full 85-minute film is available to watch now. Find exactly where it's streaming below, and TV Butler Pro makes it effortless to track your progress as you go. Just search the name, and Butler finds it instantly, tells you which service has it, and remembers exactly where you left off.