The magic of great family films lives on!
So I haven't gone to the movie theater in several months. So after finally deciding to give it another go, I saw the trailer for IF, I was intrigued by the premise but didn't know much about it otherwise. But I took a gamble and gave it a go and to my surprise, it was wonderful.
The story revolves around a girl named Bea who is staying with her grandmother while her father is in the hospital. She's very worried about him, but he still jokes around with her despite his condition which she doesn't appreciate, telling him that life isn't always fun and games. While out and about she sees what looks like a walking bug woman named Blossom and a man named Calvin walking out in the city, who are out to retrieve a creature known as Blue, when she sees they're all for real she faints. She wakes up and finds herself inside Calvin's apartment and meets Blossom and Blue properly and learns that they are imaginary friends, or IFs to keep it simple. And that after the kid who came up with their IF outgrows them, they don't see them anymore, and they become orphans. Calvin's job is to help them find new kids to be with, and Bea is one of the only other people who can see them and they ask her to help them, which she reluctantly does. This is as far as I'll go into the story as I don't want to spoil anything, as this movie is well worth your time and the journey is absolutely beautiful.
The performances from the cast are all fantastic, Ryan Reynolds who plays Calvin is his usually whacky self, I loved him in the Deadpool movies so it's nice to see him do a family film this time. He's not so whacky that it's annoying but he's fun and serious when he needs to be. Cailey Fleming is the real star though, her performance as Bea is quite splendid, from being confused about the shenanigans of the IFs when she first meets them to the emotions of her father's condition, she doesn't skip a beat, especially when she warms up and starts having fun with the IFs, the scene when she goes to the IFs hideout under a merry go round swing is an absolute ball. And the IFs themselves, from Steve Carroll, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Awkwafina, Emily Blunt, Bradley Cooper, and Louis Gossett Jr who voices a grandfatherly teddy bear IF who's also named Lewis but spelled different, in his last film role, this movie is dedicated to him and it's a great role to end on. Rest in peace, sir! There are so many other celebrities besides the ones I mentioned in this movie, but a special mention goes to Brad Pitt, pay close attention to the credits and see who he plays, it's a crack-up!
The animation on the IFs is phenomenal! Every character is beautifully animated and integrated into the real world, you can still tell it's CG but it's very good CG at that. And it's clear that the people behind the film had fun coming up with the IFs, from their designs and their personalities, not all of them are explored in depth but all of them are endearing and lovable.
The cinematography is quite lovely too, several shots have gorgeous lighting in them, and more than once I found myself saying "That's pretty" in regards to how the lighting hits the scene.
The movie was directed and written by John Krasinski, who also plays Bea's goofy dad. I know he was a regular in The Office, and he has directed and written other movies, from comedy-dramas and horror flicks, this is his first full-on family film and I feel he did a wonderful job! This is a very interesting story and it plays out very beautifully, and I feel he handled the direction great, while some people might not care much for sentimentality, I for one am all for it, as it shows how much the director cares for their work and wants their audience to feel that love they have for their creation. He loves what he made, he loves what he does, and I really appreciate it as someone who wants to be a film director and screenwriter someday.
So overall this is a very nice film. It might not be the most fast-paced, or zany as you might think, as I did find the beginning kind of slow, but it all comes together and becomes very fun and also very touching and emotional by the end. It's definitely worth a watch for families and especially for those who still feel they're a kid at heart like me. The movie really spoke to me and I'm itching to get my hands on the 4K or Blu-Ray release of this film as soon as it comes out.
This movie proves that the magic I once felt from the family films I saw in my childhood has not vanished in this day in age.
Highly recommended:)
The story revolves around a girl named Bea who is staying with her grandmother while her father is in the hospital. She's very worried about him, but he still jokes around with her despite his condition which she doesn't appreciate, telling him that life isn't always fun and games. While out and about she sees what looks like a walking bug woman named Blossom and a man named Calvin walking out in the city, who are out to retrieve a creature known as Blue, when she sees they're all for real she faints. She wakes up and finds herself inside Calvin's apartment and meets Blossom and Blue properly and learns that they are imaginary friends, or IFs to keep it simple. And that after the kid who came up with their IF outgrows them, they don't see them anymore, and they become orphans. Calvin's job is to help them find new kids to be with, and Bea is one of the only other people who can see them and they ask her to help them, which she reluctantly does. This is as far as I'll go into the story as I don't want to spoil anything, as this movie is well worth your time and the journey is absolutely beautiful.
The performances from the cast are all fantastic, Ryan Reynolds who plays Calvin is his usually whacky self, I loved him in the Deadpool movies so it's nice to see him do a family film this time. He's not so whacky that it's annoying but he's fun and serious when he needs to be. Cailey Fleming is the real star though, her performance as Bea is quite splendid, from being confused about the shenanigans of the IFs when she first meets them to the emotions of her father's condition, she doesn't skip a beat, especially when she warms up and starts having fun with the IFs, the scene when she goes to the IFs hideout under a merry go round swing is an absolute ball. And the IFs themselves, from Steve Carroll, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Awkwafina, Emily Blunt, Bradley Cooper, and Louis Gossett Jr who voices a grandfatherly teddy bear IF who's also named Lewis but spelled different, in his last film role, this movie is dedicated to him and it's a great role to end on. Rest in peace, sir! There are so many other celebrities besides the ones I mentioned in this movie, but a special mention goes to Brad Pitt, pay close attention to the credits and see who he plays, it's a crack-up!
The animation on the IFs is phenomenal! Every character is beautifully animated and integrated into the real world, you can still tell it's CG but it's very good CG at that. And it's clear that the people behind the film had fun coming up with the IFs, from their designs and their personalities, not all of them are explored in depth but all of them are endearing and lovable.
The cinematography is quite lovely too, several shots have gorgeous lighting in them, and more than once I found myself saying "That's pretty" in regards to how the lighting hits the scene.
The movie was directed and written by John Krasinski, who also plays Bea's goofy dad. I know he was a regular in The Office, and he has directed and written other movies, from comedy-dramas and horror flicks, this is his first full-on family film and I feel he did a wonderful job! This is a very interesting story and it plays out very beautifully, and I feel he handled the direction great, while some people might not care much for sentimentality, I for one am all for it, as it shows how much the director cares for their work and wants their audience to feel that love they have for their creation. He loves what he made, he loves what he does, and I really appreciate it as someone who wants to be a film director and screenwriter someday.
So overall this is a very nice film. It might not be the most fast-paced, or zany as you might think, as I did find the beginning kind of slow, but it all comes together and becomes very fun and also very touching and emotional by the end. It's definitely worth a watch for families and especially for those who still feel they're a kid at heart like me. The movie really spoke to me and I'm itching to get my hands on the 4K or Blu-Ray release of this film as soon as it comes out.
This movie proves that the magic I once felt from the family films I saw in my childhood has not vanished in this day in age.
Highly recommended:)
- waynel-59765
- May 28, 2024