Is ‘IF’ a new family classic? And what to know about the new Amy Winehouse film | See It or Skip It
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SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4) — Will your imagination run wild in the theaters this week with John Krasinski’s newest family film ‘If’? Maybe you’re more into a music biopic about Amy Winehouse? ABC4 Film Critic Patrick Beatty is here to tell you what to see or skip in a new segment.
IF
Where to Watch: Theaters
Directed By:
John Krasinski
Written By:
John Krasinski
Starring:
Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, Steve Carrell, John Krasinski, Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Genre:
Animation, Comedy, Drama
Rated PG
All media courtesy of Paramount Pictures
‘IF’ is a new family adventure centered around a young girl who’s whisked away by a group of imaginary friends of “IFs” while she’s dealing with the loss of her mother and the fear of losing her father who is sick at the hospital. She meets Ryan Reynolds’ character who is trying to place these Imaginary Friends with new children due to their original kids growing up. Reynolds’ character decides to help, but will they be able to reconnect these creatures before they are completely forgotten?
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John Krasinski is an incredibly talented person who no doubt knows how to direct a film. The first two ‘A Quiet Place’ films are visceral, emotional, and unique in their vision and you could say the same here with IF. I think the world of imaginary friends built in this film is visually realized very well. Steve Carrell plays arguably the biggest supporting IF as ‘Blue,’ an enormous purple Grimace-looking IF that easily immerses himself into the real-life world. I loved all the character designs and the talent behind them is a charcuterie board of talented comedic actors.
With that said, the world feels completely underdeveloped regarding backstories and explaining how these characters came to be their motivations, which ends up bringing the movie down. John Krasinski’s character is supposed to have a heart condition that keeps him in a hospital, yet he’s never hooked up to an IV, rarely in his bed, and never seen in any type of inpatient wardrobes. It almost feels like he’s pretending to be sick to avoid having to see his daughter. The daughter completely bypasses her grandmother who’s trying to connect with her, even as far as to be out in the middle of the night in New York City. We just don’t know a lot about any of the main characters.
There are comedic moments, but this is a sad story that doesn’t make good use of the talent behind the Imaginary Friends as well as they could be utilized. I wish we could’ve gotten more from those scenes. That being said there is a lot of heart in the film that John Krasinski is trying to implement, but in the end, I was left with more questions than a warm-fuzzy feeling I wanted.
Overall, I wanted to like IF completely, but I can’t deny the glaring flaws in its structure and story. Will it wow kids and parents alike? It happened during my screening, but for me — and don’t hate me for saying this — it’s a bit “IF-fy.”
See It or Skip It? Either
Back to Black
Where to Watch: Theaters
Directed By:
Sam Taylor-Johnson
Written By:
Matt Greenhalgh
Starring:
Marisa Abela, Eddie Marsan, Jack O’Connell
Genre:
Biography, Drama, Music
Rated R
All media courtesy of Focus Features
‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ director Sam Taylor-Johnson takes a stab at music biopics, and in ‘Back to Black’ we explore the music career of the incredibly talented Amy Winehouse. From her musical roots to her relationships that inevitably led to addiction and tragedy, Marisa Abela embodies Amy’s mannerisms and voice, but is the film as strong as its leading performance?
Amy Winehouse’s music stands the test of time as being soulful, deep, and personal making her one of the greatest artists of our time. I was pleased to hear how close to Winehouse Marisa Abela came to emulating her voice while singing all of the classic songs herself instead of dubbing over with the actual songs. The strongest part of the film comes from Marisa’s voice and overall immersion into the artist.
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The story sadly doesn’t hold the proper reverence to Amy Winehouse, nor does it seem interested in doing anything unique or special with the music biopic. if you have seen the Amy Winehouse documentary “Amy,” or followed the news while she was still alive, you know that her personal struggles with alcoholism and addiction in connection to her relationships played a huge role in her tragic loss. Sam Taylor-Johnson only covers the surface, almost choosing to ignore it to highlight things that don’t resonate with Amy’s story.
This is another example of how this genre is failing to move forward and feel more like soulless cash grabs from studio execs. There are certainly things to enjoy with the movie, but it doesn’t accomplish what it sets out to do with poor direction and a surface-level depiction of a soulful and deep musician.
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