IF (film)

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Not to be confused with If.....

IF
Poster featuring various creatures including a girl and man walking across a street.
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJohn Krasinski
Written byJohn Krasinski
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyJanusz Kamiński
Edited by
Music byMichael Giacchino
Production
companies
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release dates
  • May 8, 2024 (2024-05-08) (France)
  • May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17) (United States)
Running time
104 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$110 million[2]
Box office$3.7 million[3][4]

IF is a 2024 American live-action/animated fantasy comedy film written, produced, and directed by John Krasinski. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, Krasinski, Fiona Shaw, Alan Kim, and Liza Colón-Zayas, along with the voices of Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Louis Gossett Jr., and Steve Carell. Its plot follows a young girl and her neighbor who find themselves able to see imaginary friends.

IF is set to be theatrically released in the United States by Paramount Pictures on May 17, 2024.

Plot[edit]

12 year old Bea moves into her grandmother Margaret's apartment in New York while her father waits for heart surgery in the same hospital where her mother died of cancer years earlier. One night, Bea goes out to buy a charger for her mother's old camcorder and sees a strange creature, following it back to her grandmother's building. The next day, she sees the creature again, accompanied by a man. Bea follows them to a nearby house where the man, Cal, retrieves a large furry purple creature named Blue. She also meets the other creature, a butterfly-like being named Blossom, and faints.

She awakens in Cal's apartment where she learns that he has been working with imaginary friends, nicknamed IFs, to place them with new children, as their original children have grown up and forgotten them. Initially reluctant, Bea eventually decided she wants to help. The next day, Cal takes Bea to Memory Lane Retirement Home, a retirement community for IFs housed underneath a merry go round in Coney Island. There, he introduces Bea to Lewis, an elderly teddy bear who is the head of the facility. He inspires Bea to use her imagination to redesign the facility, much to Cal's chagrin. Motivated by a young boy, Benjamin, she met at the hospital, Bea auditions the IFs to find one for Benjamin. Sadly, he is unable to see any of them. Talking with her grandmother, she sees a picture of her as a young dancer and recognizes Blossom in the background of the picture. Realizing Blossom was her grandmother's IF, Bea decides that the best course of action is to reunite the IFs with their original kids. Playing one of her grandmother's records inspires Margaret to dance and she remembers Blossom, instilling Bea with hope.

Following a tip, Bea, Cal and Blue find Blue's original kid, Jeremy, now a grown man trying to launch a business. Though their initial attempt fails, Bea and Cal succeed in reminding Jeremy of Blue and reuniting them, giving Jeremy the confidence he needs to nail a presentation. When Bea returns home that evening, however, Margaret is frantic and tells Bea that something went wrong with her father's operation. Bea rushes upstairs to Cal, who comforts her. When Bea says she doesn't want to say goodbye to her dad, Cal tells her to tell him a story instead. At the hospital, Bea tells her father of how she tried to be a grownup but her father kept trying to instill fun in her life and that she still needs him, which wakes him up. Bea goes to tell her grandmother and realizes that the IFs have vanished.

After being released from the hospital, Bea and her dad pack up to go back home. Bea goes upstairs to say goodbye to Cal but no one answers the door. The landlady hears Bea knocking and reveals that the door opens onto an old storage room. While packing her things in the car, Bea finds an old picture she painted of her, her parents and a clown named Calvin and she suddenly remembers that Cal was her own IF, forgotten after the death of her mother. She closes her eyes and remembers, restoring her ability to see Cal and the other IFs.

Some time later, the other IFs reunite with their original kids, including Keith, an invisible IF who likes to trip people, who was Bea's father's IF.

Cast[edit]

Voices[edit]

Production[edit]

In October 2019, Paramount Pictures outbid Lionsgate and Sony, among others, to win the rights to Imaginary Friends, a project developed by John Krasinski and Ryan Reynolds, with Krasinski set to write and direct it.[5] In May 2021, Krasinski's Sunday Night Productions and Reynolds's Maximum Effort signed first-look deals with Paramount.[6][7] In October 2021, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Fiona Shaw joined the cast.[8] In January 2022, Steve Carell, Alan Kim, Cailey Fleming, and Louis Gossett Jr. joined the cast, with the film retitled IF. The film reunites Krasinski and Carell, who both starred in The Office (2005–2013).[9] In August 2022, Bobby Moynihan was added to the cast.[10] Brad Pitt signed on to voice an invisible imaginary friend.[11]

Filming began on August 31, 2022, with Janusz Kamiński as cinematographer, and wrapped by early May 2023.[12][13] Animation director Arslan Elver and VFX supervisor Chris Lawrence worked alongside Krasinski on set and during pre- and post-production.[14][15] Framestore provided the visual effects and animation.[16][17] Michael Giacchino composed the film's score.[18]

Release[edit]

IF was released in France on May 8, 2024,[4] and was released in the United States on May 17, 2024 by Paramount Pictures.[19] It was originally scheduled for November 17, 2023 and May 24, 2024.[20]

Reception[edit]

Box office[edit]

In the United States and Canada, IF was released alongside The Strangers: Chapter 1 and Back to Black, and is projected to gross around $40 million from 4,000 theaters in its opening weekend.[21]

Critical response[edit]

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 55% of 93 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.9/10. The website's consensus reads: "A sweet ode to rediscovering one's inner child, IF largely works as old-fashioned family entertainment despite an occasionally unfocused and unnecessarily complicated plot."[22] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 48 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[23]

Adrian Horton of The Guardian awarded the film 3 out of 5 stars. She wrote that it "checks the boxes" on the elements of a family friendly movie but that it does not "fully conjure the magic" of other films in the genre.[24] Tomris Laffly of Variety wrote that the movie was "in desperate need of some coherent world-building", while praising the performance of Cailey Fleming in the lead role.[25] Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, Frank Scheck described the movie as "plagued by significant tonal shifts and pacing issues".[26]

Several critics noted the film shares similarities to Cartoon Network's Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends.[27][28][29][30][31]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "IF (U)". BBFC. April 25, 2024. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  2. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (May 14, 2024). "John Krasinski & Ryan Reynolds' 'IF' To Give More Lift To Summer Box Office With $40M Opening – Preview". Deadline Hollywood.
  3. ^ "IF – Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "IF (2024)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  5. ^ Kit, Borys (October 15, 2019). "Ryan Reynolds, John Krasinski Teaming for Fantasy Comedy Imaginary Friends (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  6. ^ Kroll, Justin (May 3, 2021). "Ryan Reynolds And His Maximum Effort Banner Sign First-Look Deal With Paramount Pictures". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 23, 2022. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  7. ^ Kroll, Justin (May 11, 2021). "John Krasinski And His Sunday Night Banner Signs First-Look Deal With Paramount Pictures". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 23, 2022. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  8. ^ McClintock, Pamela (October 28, 2021). "Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fiona Shaw Join John Krasinski's Next Movie (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 31, 2023. Retrieved April 18, 2022.
  9. ^ Kroll, Justin (January 25, 2022). "Steve Carell, Alan Kim, Cailey Fleming & Louis Gossett Jr. Join Paramount And John Krasinski's IF Starring Ryan Reynolds". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 1, 2023. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  10. ^ Kroll, Justin (August 29, 2022). "Bobby Moynihan Joins Ryan Reynolds In IF From John Krasinski and Paramount". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 1, 2023. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  11. ^ Smith, Rachel (May 14, 2024). "IF: John Krasinski Confirms Brad Pitt Plays Invisible Character Keith (Exclusive)". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  12. ^ Krasinski, John [@johnkrasinski] (August 31, 2022). "Beautiful day to kickoff a movie! #IF" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 31, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2022 – via Twitter.
  13. ^ Kroll, Justin (May 2, 2023). "How WGA Strike Could Impact Movies Gearing Up For Production". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 3, 2023. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
  14. ^ "You are being redirected..." www.animationmagazine.net. Retrieved May 8, 2024.
  15. ^ Giardina, Carolyn (February 5, 2019). "Visual Effects Society Awards: Avengers: Infinity War Wins Top Prize". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  16. ^ "IF". Framestore. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  17. ^ "Imaginary Friends ARE Real in IF Teaser Trailer". Animation World Network. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  18. ^ "John Krasinski on Getting Bradley Cooper, George Clooney, Ryan Reynolds to Join 'IF': 'Most Yeses of My Career'". The Hollywood Reporter. May 11, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  19. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (October 23, 2023). "Mission: Impossible 8 Jumps To 2025; A Quiet Place: Day One Goes To Summer In 2024 Theatrical Shake-Up Due To Actors Strike". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 19, 2023. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  20. ^ Murphy, J. Kim (July 19, 2022). "Paramount Sets A Quiet Place: Day One and John Krasinski-Directed Ryan Reynolds Film IF for 2024". Variety. Archived from the original on October 27, 2022. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  21. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (May 14, 2024). "John Krasinski & Ryan Reynolds' IF To Give More Lift To Summer Box Office With $40M Opening – Preview". Deadline Hollywood.
  22. ^ "IF". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  23. ^ "IF". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  24. ^ Horton, Adrian (May 15, 2024). "If review – John Krasinski's so-so, sentimental family fantasy". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  25. ^ Laffly, Tomris (May 15, 2024). "IF Review: John Krasinski's Ryan Reynolds-Starring Children's Tale Has a Classical Look, but Messy World-Building". Variety. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  26. ^ Scheck, Frank (May 15, 2024). "IF Review: Ryan Reynolds Leads a John Krasinski-Directed Family Film That's Easier to Admire Than Enjoy". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  27. ^ Bibbiani, William (May 15, 2024). "'IF' Review: John Krasinski's Kid-Friendly Fantasy Rings Mostly Hollow". TheWrap. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  28. ^ Loughrey, Clarisse (May 16, 2024). "IF review: John Krasinski and Ryan Reynolds aim (unsuccessfully) for Spielbergian wonder". The Independent. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  29. ^ Tyler, Adrienne (December 17, 2023). "John Krasinski's New Comedy Is Oddly Similar To An Underrated Kids Show From 19 Years Ago". Screen Rant. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  30. ^ Stenzel, Wesley (April 24, 2024). "Steve Carell and John Krasinski have an Office reunion in new IF promo". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  31. ^ LaMarche, Lee (January 14, 2024). "John Krasinski's IF Looks Eerily Similar to Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends". MovieWeb. Retrieved May 17, 2024.

External links[edit]

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