Amis Imaginaires

This was a visually stunning and whimsical movie. It had a star studded cast with Ryan Reynolds, John Krazinski and Steve Carell. In fact it could have done without a star playing the dad I thought, as this detracted from the emotional opening scene. The movie felt boring at times for the first two-thirds, despite the interesting concept of the story; I think it lacked suspenseful direction in the plot development. Ryan Reynolds had about three great funny moments, all of which are in the trailer, and it's a shame he wasn't able to bring a bit more of this well known personality into the film throughout. The last third was definitely the highlight of the movie and did get more exciting and definitely heightened the emotion of the movie.

IF had all the hallmarks of being a great family film and in the main it did not disappoint. There is humour, crazy characters and a unique and understandable plot. However, I did spend a lot of the film thinking it could have been better but not being able to put my finger on why. There are clearly moments when the jokes don't land like you might hope and some of the IF's are not given much screen time making the whole thing seem rushed. Despite this Reynolds is as watchable as ever and Cailey Fleming steals the show as Bea, a 12 year old girl just trying to find her way in life after the death of her mother. But at the core of the film is the heart of Krasinski and it seems that he is able to find that in whatever genre he turns to. There are moments that are genuinely moving in IF and if you're not wiping away a tear or two then maybe it is not one for you. All in all, a fun, family ride that, despite its faults creates a feeling of warmth and joy.

At the beginning, the movie took time to get rolling, but from the middle, the movie becomes very interesting. The mix of live action and animation is very well done, the characters are fun and the story is imaginative. I'll be clear here: Anyone crying out for a movie with an original idea should watch IF. IF is not based on anything and is not a movie from an existing franchise. The colors of this movie were gorgeous and I really liked the look and you are literally drawn into this imaginative world. To the actors, especially Ryan Reynolds, who played well with invisible characters in this case the IF's.

I must admit, the first half hour had me questioning if I was wasting my time. I was confused about the vast demographics the film was trying to appeal to. Maybe there could've been some improvements there.

Once the 2nd act started, I slowly started to find myself more and more invested in the characters. However, I was still questioning potential plot holes in the story and the films demographic.

During the 3rd act, it really tied itself together and started to make a lot more sense. I want to rewatch it knowing how well it ends, similar to a Christopher Nolan film. I'm curious what a child would think of this film because it deals with some adult themes and subject matter that only an adult would relate to. It isn't crude, it's very family friendly. A child might find it slow and boring at times. The moral of the film might go over a child's head but there's plenty of humour and subject matter aimed at children.

Overall, I was very impressed with this film, and I'll be watching it again. Take your kids to it. If they don't enjoy it now, it'll definitely have a completely different meaning to them in 10, 20, or 30 years. As an adult, you'll almost definitely enjoy it.

What happens to your imaginary friend when you grow up and forget them?

That's the question 'IF' poses to us, and tries to debunk the mystery.

It's also a film that's trying very very hard to be liked and to be a modern classic that can live on forever. So it throws everything at the screen in order to attempt to achieve this.

There's elements of 'Toy Story' here, there's 'Inside Out', but because of this the plot seems to be being pulled in lots of directions in a relatively short run time.

A little girl getting over her mum's death with the help of a mysterious neighbour would have been enough. Or a girl trying to help reunite imaginary friends with their former children. Instead we get a bit too much all in one go.

This is though a nice piece of family entertainment, I do recommend it, but it is just trying to do too much for its own good.