Some beautiful animation and special effects, but A Monster Calls covers well-trodden ground

The recent British fantasy film A Monster Calls seems to have the problem that it's a movie made for children but children probably won't like it - adults may, to some degree. The story, based on a fantasy novel, is about a preteen boy somewhere in rural or semi-rural England, who's sensitive, artistic, and bullied - in other words, very familiar ground for YA fiction and film. But it's carried to an extreme: the boy is completely isolated; lives w/ his mother who is dying of an unnamed disease, his cold and nearly wicked grandmother is trying to get control of the young boy, which he greatly fears; his father lives half-way around the world (in LA) and is in a 2nd marriage with a young daughter from this marriage - he invites the boy to visit over xmas but is clear that he doesn't want the kid living with them (hardly room for 3, he says, and $ is tight). In school, the kid is bullied by 3 toughs each about twice his size, and the teachers are completely indifferent - hey, I know that a lot of bullying takes place in school; kids can be mean, but not usually sadistic, except in this kind of movie. And, throughout the course of the film this child has not a single relationship with a friend, neighbor his age, anyone - again, extremely unlikely for a handsome, talented, nice kid. Well, with all this set-up, of course the kid has nightmares and, eventually, hallucinatory fantasies that involve a giant yew tree turning into a monster (w/ the voice of Liam Neeson) who counsels the kid - more or less like a psychotherapist (which is what he really needs). The monster huffs and bellows and announces: I'm going to tell you 3 stories and then you will tell me 1! At which point I'm thinking: Can't we just get to the one be done w/ it? But not, the movie works through its schematic plot, ticking along toward the inevitable ending. A few things work in its favor, though: the film has the courage to not end happily ever after. Second, a nice twist at the end helps us understand the tree-monster fantasies that torment the child. Third, and strongest point that really separate this movie from others in its genre: stunning special effects during the monster scenes (a nightmare come to life of destruction of a churchyard and cemetery, which plunges into a bottomless pit) and beautiful watercolor animations of the 3 tales that the tree-monster narrates. Will young viewers care for that or appreciate it? Doubt it. The movie's heart is in the right place. but it's covering some well-trodden ground and will have trouble finding the right audience.