IF (2024) Review!!

Synopsis – Follows a young girl who goes through a difficult experience and then begins to see everyone’s imaginary friends who have been left behind as their real-life friends have grown up.

My Take – Though he is still famously recognized as Jim Halpert, the very likable employee from the mockumentary sitcom The Office (2005–2013) and the excellent action-thriller series, Jack Ryan (2018–2023), John Krasinski‘s biggest mainstream success came with the release of A Quiet Place (2018), a unique post-apocalyptic horror film which he co-wrote, directed and starred in.

After following it up with an equally well-received sequel, A Quiet Place Part II (2020), his fifth directorial sees Krasinski turn his attention towards a big-hearted fantasy that turned out to be more personal and dramatic than anyone could have expected. With a refreshing whiff of whimsy and playful originality, this emotional family feature is indeed quite a unique offering in today’s cinematic landscape.

Blending live action with digital creatures and some wonderful visual effects, the film adopts an inventive concept that works organically no matter the age, with universal themes, like imagination, fear, and long forgotten childhood heroes, that just hit different depending on who you are. Krasinski‘s involvement as director, writer, and actor clearly shows, signaling a deep personal connection to the project.

Yes, despite its creative strengths, the film struggles a bit with balance. As it attempts to weave together lighter elements with more substantial, heavier topics, and at times, this mix feels slightly uneven.

However, the profoundly moving narrative, which explores sensitive themes in a truly genuine, reflective manner manages to successfully conveying a crucial message about the importance of never forgetting the child within us.

The story follows 12-year-old Bea (Cailey Fleming), who seems to have grown up beyond her age following the death of mother (Catharine Daddario), a few years ago due to a terminal illness. Effecting her more is the fact that her father (John Krasinski) is scheduled for a heart surgery in the same hospital.

Now, temporarily moved into an apartment in New York rented out by her grandmother (Fiona Shaw), Bea is finding it hard to adjust and spend time with so many supposed memories around her. That is until, she learns that she has the ability to see imaginary friends, nicknamed IFs, particularly those abandoned by other children. A

nd she’s not the only one, Bea befriends Cal (Ryan Reynolds), the charmingly crusty upstairs neighbor, who along with his IF pals, Blossom (voiced by Phoebe Waller-Bridge), a rubber hose-style humanoid butterfly, and Blue (voiced by Steve Carell), a large overly sensitive purple furry monster, has been running a sort of matchmaking agency to connect forgotten IFs with new children in need of their companionship. Initially reluctant, Bea eventually decides to help Cal, hereby embarking on on a magical journey.

What follows is a very imaginative film with a few cool fantastical scenes. The film is one of the few hybrid flicks where the blend of 3D animation with real characters and sets achieves remarkable efficiency.

Throughout the 104 minutes of runtime, the visual effects are seamlessly incorporated into a real world that feels so genuine that viewers will easily forget that, around the screen, there are many animated characters, each with their own distinct personality and an imaginative origin story created by the respective child in the past.

The sequence involving the Memory Lane Retirement Home, a retirement community for IFs housed underneath a merry go round in Coney Island, is without a doubt the most delightful part of the film.

While the best family flicks win over kids of all ages, this one is a film for grown-ups in PG dressing. It is amusing but safe in its humor, with the overt earnestness overshadows some great bits of subversive silliness, and the thoughtful larger narrative, which reveals itself by the end to be much more than a story about a girl befriending a bunch of make-believe misfits. Featuring heady themes of parental loss and reconnecting with one’s youth, plus boasts a show stopping dance set to Tina Turner, and that all leans fairly adult.

Director Krasinski‘s approach behind the camera is so appropriately earnest and awestruck, and as a writer, he delves into his subject matters with captivating plot and character developments, concluding with beautiful, reflective messages about how life isn’t always pure fun, but it doesn’t hurt to try to make it lighter and brighter.

Sure, there are segments here that feel like they go on far too long and may feel very strange in the sense that it stands right in the middle of magical realism, yet, the basic idea of how adults could still make use of their old imaginary friends at difficult times to summon their dormant sense of whimsy, as a closing message is a worthwhile one. Add to that Michael Giacchino‘s score, we are sure to be left tear-eyed when the end credits begin.

Performance wise, Cailey Fleming is indeed a star in the making. Here, Fleming experiences a roller-coaster of emotions, but she never feels out of place or overact, which could have been so easy for someone her age. Ryan Reynolds bringing a layered performance that adds depth and a bit of humor to the film with his usual charisma. While John Krasinski and Fiona Shaw entirely delightful in their limited screen time.

The stacked voice cast which includes the likes of Steve Carell, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Sam Rockwell, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Bradley Cooper, Christopher Meloni, Richard Jenkins, Maya Rudolph, Awkwafina, Bill Hader, Blake Lively, Sebastian Maniscalco, Matthew Rhys, Amy Schumer, Jon Stewart and Keegan-Michael Key are a delight.

One of the film’s most poignant roles is a wise bear played by Louis Gossett Jr. in one of his final roles. Rather than just being a cameo, he’s nicely central to a key emotional scene. On the whole, ‘IF’ is a delightful fantasy family feature that is both adorable and enchanting.