Movie Review: IF 1-13-25
With her dad in the hospital, Bea finds herself staying at her grandmother's apartment the same way she did the summer before her mother died. As she avoids her fears about the situation, she discovers she can see IFs (imaginary friends), and they enlist her to help them get reassigned to new children after their people have grown up and moved on, thinking they no longer need their old emotional supports. The more she tries, the more she realizes that the real solution to all their problems may need her to face down her biggest emotions.
Even though the story is essentially a movie adaptation of Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends with a touch of Spielberg’s Hook, IF excels with a heartfelt timeless tone, outstanding creature designs that actually look like they were created by kids, a good score from Michael Giacinno, and a surprisingly complex protagonist: Bea starts out as your typical cynical girl not too similar to Chihiro from Spirited Away, but after meeting Calvin (Ryan Reynolds’ character in the film) and the main two IFs, Blue and Blossom, she starts to develop a sense of maturity and confidence after dealing with the loss of her mother.
I also love the interaction of the live-action and animated characters. It seems like that Bea and Calvin are actually interacting with the IFs!
In conclusion, despite having a low critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes (Seriously, you need to soften up!), while obviously not on the same caliber as Inside Out 2 and The Wild Robot, IF is an enjoyable film with no cynical bone in its body that the whole family can watch together.
Rating: 3.6 stars out of 5
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