This film tells the tale of a young girl, the Queen of
England and a benevolent giant known as the BFG, who set out on an adventure to
capture the evil, man-eating giants who have been invading the human world.
The
movie is filled with gestures that meaningful. Like the BFG, it cares about the
little things, and it moves with a grace that belies its size. It's a film
about about dreaming and storytelling, parenting and childhood, nostalgia and
pragmatism, and the necessity of standing up for yourself even when you know
you can't win. But most of all, it's a film about two unlikely friends.
The
BFG which was directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Roald Dahl's beloved
fantasy book is about a Big Friendly Giant (BFG) and Sophie, the young orphan
he first snatches and later befriends. The movie has a dark tone, and tense
moments of peril and danger punctuate the story from the beginning. After
Sophie (Ruby Barnhill) is kidnapped, she expects the BFG (Mark Rylance) to cook
her for dinner, and later she's hunted by the other giants, who love to eat
children; these giants are destructive, loud, and scary when they're on screen.
In one scene, the BFG plants a nightmare in Sophie's mind when she sleeps just
so she'll believe him about how truly bad the other giants really are. Death is
also referenced in not-so-subtle ways: Sophie bluntly states that her parents
are dead, and the BFG alludes to another human child he used to be friends with
who was clearly eaten by the other giants. While the scares are enough to keep
the littlest audience members away (or at least with their eyes firmly
covered), this tale about discovering friendship and family in the unlikeliest
places also offers sweetness, humor, and heart as well as themes of courage,
empathy, and perseverance.
A
girl named Sophie encounters the Big Friendly Giant who, despite his
intimidating appearance, turns out to be a kind-hearted soul who is considered an
outcast by the other giants because, unlike them, he refuses to eat children.
Ten-year-old
Sophie is in for the adventure of a lifetime when she meets the Big Friendly
Giant. Naturally scared at first, the young girl soon realizes that the 24-foot
behemoth is actually quite gentle and charming. As their friendship grows,
Sophie's presence attracts the unwanted attention of Bloodbottler,
Fleshlumpeater and other giants. After traveling to London, Sophie and the BFG
must convince Queen Elizabeth to help them get rid of all the bad giants once
and for all.
This is a kind-souled movie about kind souls. Sophie's glasses make it through just fine.
ReplyDeleteThe magic, fantasy, and eventual pure sweetness between THE BFG's two central characters is nothing short of heartwarming.
The tags on the dream bottles are translated in French. However, after Sophie comes back to Giant Country, we see a close-up shot of the bottles with French dream titles and a couple of shots later, the titles seen in the background are in English.
ReplyDeleteSpielberg doesn't pull heart strings as much as push the right buttons, dutiful to an undercooked story. The BFG begins like a classic fairy tale and ends with helicopters and fart jokes, a tonal dissonance that is Dahl's fault, not the film's.
ReplyDeleteBFG is drolly and has nothing to offer clearly Spielberg has enter the end of his career. This marks another low for Spielberg. It is too childish for summer clearly should have been a December release.
ReplyDeleteWithout Rylance, the film would certainly have the charm and sweetness it now displays in such abundance, but it might look a bit standard-issue, a reverent and even stately account of Dahl’s classic, set in some indeterminate tourist-view golden age Britain.
Rylance gives a rueful rendition of the friendly giant.
ReplyDeleteRylance has again brought something transformational to a Spielberg film. He gives the kind of performance you can't look away from, even with all the big-budget delights.