‘IF’ Review
Stars: John Krasinski, Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fiona Shaw, Steve Carrell | Written and Directed by John Krasinski
12-year-old Bea (Cailey Fleming) moves in with her grandmother, only to find a strange creature, who is later accompanied by a mysterious man. The latter, Cal (Ryan Reynolds) introduces Bea to the creature called Blue (Steve Carrell), who is revealed to be an imaginary friend (IFs), which only they can see. Bea and Cal begin a journey of trying to reunite IFs with their previous owners.
If you are a millennial kid who loved Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends on Cartoon Network and want to know how that would translate for the next generation, look no further than IF. The other end of the creative spectrum for creator John Krasinski, who’s fresh from handing over the directorial reins of the A Quiet Place franchise, his style of filmmaking seemingly goes hand-in-hand with the harmless. Instead of monsters that will rip your head off at the twinge of a floorboard, he’s opted for creatures who made a childhood worth living, and IF might just be a better fit.
This noting of creative flair isn’t exactly a compliment, though. Krasinski’s shift in tone works so well because he’s far from being an auteur or maverick. To quote Taylor Swift, he’s Mr. Perfectly Fine, and producing middle-of-the-road creativity is somewhere he naturally seems to thrive. So what better move than to try and crack the family-friendly market, where nothing needs to be remarkable or terrible? It’s a marker is exactly the kind of time viewers will have with IF, akin to the ideal Sunday afternoon watch.
Krasinski has been very clever with his casting, though. Picking out an animation stalwart to voice the lead alongside a man known for his specific sense of unique wit, who are supported by the likes of world-beloved faces like Phoebe Waller-Bridge. IF really doesn’t put a foot wrong with who is presenting its story, even if things are expectedly surface level. That being said, emotional moments appear out of the fuzzy goodness, packing a punch that will leave audiences reaching for their Kleenex. It might be trite and generic, but the art of the imaginary friend is a lost concept that we all yearn for — particularly when making friends in adulthood is so bloody hard.
So what could happen if all adults were allowed to carry a slice of their former years around when they probably most need it? IF touches on the consequences in the most polite and mundane of ways, though whether this is a bad thing is up for debate. The movie will certainly distract you from the challenges of daily life for almost two hours, and at the end of the day, it’s really just harmless fun. Now, if Krasinski had taken a Ted approach to the concept… viewers could have been in for a much more exciting ride.
*** 3/5
IF is in cinemas now.
