Directed By Ben Gregor

Starring – Andrew Garfield, Claire Foy, Nonso Anozie

The Plot – A modern family relocates to the countryside where the children discover a magical tree with eccentric residents. They’re transported to fantastical lands, rekindling their family bond through adventures.

Rated PG for some rude humor, mild action, and brief adult language

The Magic Faraway Tree | Official Trailer (HD) | Vertical

POSITIVES

Having never actually read any of the literary novels of which this movie is based on, I had very few preconceived expectations about the magnitude of the enlightening journey to come, however The Magic Faraway Tree is enchantedly whimsical family fun reminiscent of the fantasy adventures of yesteryear, without anything manipulative or demeaning in the air of its eye level approach towards child audiences. For a film developed by three studios with whom I’ve never heard of, I’m quite surprised at the extensive quality of its majestic execution, both with an impressively elaborate level of production designs, that help bring this fantastical world of make believe to life before our very eyes, but also a meaningful morality that helps imbed some intricately realized messaging in between its various excursions. On the former, the production’s dedication to practicality in the form of colorfully radiant set designs and inventive wardrobe choices certainly feeds into this otherworldly element where anything feels possible, featuring a richly luxurious attention to detail that not only inscribes three-dimensional tangibility to every frame, but also effortlessly sprawling immersion from some of its more condensed framing omitting the greenscreen backdrops of some of the movie’s more establishing shots. As for the thematic impulses of its material, the base of the movie’s foundation pertains to youths addiction for technology and reclusion from the outdoors, but even amidst individual missions, there’s much to be uncovered about self-affirmation, overindulgence, and especially family ideals, that make up most of the movie’s genuinely honorable intentions, without manipulative meandering in the utilizing of its dialogue to spoon-feed unsubtly, and instead establishing faith in the interpretive capabilities of its audience to define what’s most important to this unpredictable journey of life. This nobility is also enhanced by Ben Gregor’s affectionately genuine direction appraising humbling heart to the integrity of the engagement, matching a radiantly glowing presentation in soft lighting schemes with an upliftingly charming sense of innocence that lacks any semblance of cynicism to his authentic rendering. While much of Gregor’s previous work has unfortunately alluded me, I can instantly sense the level of confidence and capability that he has in his gifted ensemble to flesh out the mature sense of emotional levity that places it directly next to something like Paddington, in terms of its affectionate gentilism, but Gregor’s most distinguishing characteristic is in the effortlessly earnest conjuring of energized adventurism that makes reminds us of the irreplaceable power of adolescent escapism, where everything that these characters experience feels far from the watchful eyes of their parents, in turn imbedding a tangible danger and mystique that feels palpable without overwhelmingly perilous. As a result, the tone certainly isn’t above incorporating some pallet-cleansing humor into the strangely surreal missions of the children’s daily odyssey, which does effectively surmise a comfortable consistency especially for PG-rated material, but never the kind of abrasive dependability that eats away at the movie’s aforementioned hearty center, in order to sell it as something to studios that it rightfully isn’t. Instead, the quirkily chipper personalities of those fantasy characters in the tree serve as the much-needed break from monotony that razzle each distinguished location with the right kind of eager curiosity that offers a refreshing balance opposite of the heart-warming humbleness of its family dynamic, with the right kind of framed focus deviating seamlessly between one another, without one ever overstaying its welcome. As for the pacing of this 100-minute story, it isn’t always a synch, as the third act falls into abruptly rushed waters in its resolution that threatens its creative foundation, however the first two acts float by remarkably in the illustrated distinguishing of its respective worlds, where the humiliating hard times of its once wealthy protagonists empathizes them with the bleakness of their nightmarish newfound surroundings. When the narrative does eventually drift into the woods, at around the twenty-five minute mark, we come to understand that the movie’s most expressive adventures are still to come, and with some vastly thorough world-building carrying us the rest of the way, the script comfortably eases in to a desired setting with no shortage of exploratory avenues, offering a harmlessly engaging exploration that should provide enough child-like magic to bind all demographical ages of its audience accordingly. If this wasn’t enough, the film is also elevated by charming performances aplenty, particularly Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy, who bring instant warmth and naturally lived-in chemistry to their unmeasurable value. When the narrative does deviate into the fantastically frenzied lands of the tree, these two measure a strong emotional foreground while also openly embracing the whimsical silliness of their rekindled youthful passions, with each of them responding resiliently to surreal situations that have them feeling over their heads in their move away from civilization. Aside from Garfield and Foy, Billie Gadsdon dominates the child turns with a quietly observant nature in the atmospheric wonder that allows her to carry a massive portion of the movie’s emotional core without ever feeling overly saccharine, and Nonso Anozie and Nicola Coughlan combine their respectively reserved and bubbly personalities to contextualize all of the excitement and even resentment of their newfound familial occupants, helping to flesh out an alluring nostalgic angle with Anozie’s Moonface that is tragically bittersweet in the most gut-wrenchingly realized way imaginable.

NEGATIVES

Despite so much of The Magic Faraway Tree transporting me to a simpler time of make-believe and outdoor adventures, there’s still more than enough detracting components to its inconsistent execution to ultimately keep it from landing inevitably with everyone, beginning with a near complete lack of emotional stakes that fails to appraise any dramatic dimensionality to the engagement. While I wholeheartedly understand Gregor’s decision to keep the atmosphere as light and uncontested as possible, there’s simply to much situational adversity in both the real lives of this family, or the curses inside of the tree, to overlook assembling some kind of conflict for these characters to overcome, and while it does eventually materialize in the form of a tacked-on antagonist played by Rebecca Ferguson, the script’s lack of focus on her leaves her irrelevant until the movie absolutely requires her inclusion, in turn wasting away the possibility of a prominent performance from an actress who already excelled as an antagonist in Doctor Sleep. Ferguson’s involvement pertains to two five second depictions until the movie’s climax, and considering the lack of focus and development paid to her character, it leaves the need for an antagonist feeling all the more unnecessary to the movie’s integrity, in turn shoe-horning a last second obstacle that seems to convey that Ferguson ran out of time for her single day of shooting, rather than imbedded any sense of memorability in accepting such a thankless opportunity. Aside from some weakness during the third act, the production’s dependency on green-screen backdrops during moments enamored with practicality in the foreground of set designs and costumes, leaves it standing out like a sore thumb, with blandly lifeless color coordination and texture that only emphasized its artificiality. Considering this movie has been reported to have been made for an astronomical 170 million dollars, an immense amount that it will inevitably never earn back, there’s simply no excuse for articulating a more photorealistic canvas, especially considering so much of the second act shot compositions incorporate more of the backgrounds into the capture of the shots, and while it stands as the singular instance of inferiority among this elaborately achieved production, it compromises so much immersive integrity to the appeal of the film, feeling unavoidably lazy for a film so invested to its imagery. Last but certainly not least, the performance of Beth, the family’s oldest daughter, from Delilah Bennett-Cardy, takes far too many egregious liberties in the extent of enacting her teenage confrontational personality, resulting in naggingly distracting work that ate away at the accessibility of every scene that she accompanied. Simply disliking a character is fine, as it usually means the actress is doing the job of their intended design, however even when the character does come to regret the air of her selfish actions, her portrayal doesn’t feel earnestly natural or believably convicting in the overzealous emotionality of her various deliveries, and while I hate to single out one actress among a field of serviceable or exceptional performances, Bennett-Cardy’s approach fails to bring in the nuances of her motivations, surmising another in a laundry list of jarringly unnerving child performances that hold a scene’s integrity hostage with their practices.

OVERALL
The Magic Faraway Tree is a whimsically warm and expressively imaginative youthful romp brought to life by the roots of practically-dependable production values and sentimentally-stirring direction from Ben Gregor, who unlocks the door of limitless possibilities to a place housed by child-like wonderment. While the film’s journey ultimately and unfortunately matters more than its intended destination, the charmingly affectionate charisma from Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy authentically encapsulate the movie’s sweet-natured enchantment factor, providing plenty of magic for the elevating climb

My Grade: 7.1 or B-