Why So Blu?

IF (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)

Did you ever have an imaginary friend? I admittedly was never that much of an imaginative kid. I was far too rooted in reality.  I pretended to believe in those particular holiday symbols. I gave up the sham about age 10. I don’t remember having an imaginary friend, and it was OK with me.  But those that had them… what were they like? What did they provide you when you needed them? Do you remember when you stopped needing them? These are all points that become relevant to this film – IF. John Krasinski has made some great films in the first Quiet Place installments and here he tries his hand at a family film.  What’s the result you say? Read on for more below and if your imaginative curiosity gets the best of you, be sure to click the cover art at the bottom to get a copy of IF on 4K UHD Blu-ray!

Film:

IF is a heartwarming and hilarious tale about a girl who discovers that she can see everyone’s imaginary friends, known as IFs. She embarks on a magical journey to reconnect forgotten IFs with their kids, before they disappear. An adventure you’ll need to believe to see, IF is perfect for the whole family.

 

As our story begins, we meet Bea (Cailey Fleming) who has recently lost her mother to cancer. Her father (John Krasinski) now has to have heart surgery and, surprise, surprise, must have the operation and recovery in the same hospital that Bea’s mother passed away in.  As her father undergoes the procedure, Bea stays with her grandmother (Fiona Shaw). The two quietly engage one another, but Bea is worried that she may lose her father too.  As Bea begins to go through old memories that her grandmother has found in the house, Bea begins to remember her mother and also begins to see things.  Walking alone one evening in her neighborhood, Bea sees a figure on the street and follows it back to her Grandmother’s. Later, Bea sees the figure once again, this time with Cal (Ryan Reynolds), a neighbor in the same building.

The figure turns out to be Blue (Steve Carrell), a purple creature who is giant and furry, but also imaginary.  This is when Bea learns she can see the creatures, just like Cal. The two band together and try to find homes for the imaginary friends who have been forgotten and displaced.  Things don’t go as well at first. The children they seek to send IFs to don’t seem as interested.  Then Bea begins to expand her imagination and remembering good memories, she gains a great idea.  When she meets more “retired” IFs, she plans to reunite them with their old human friends.

As with most family or child-oriented films, IF’s premise starts with loss.  There is an incredible amount of grief in films geared towards children, and it’s as if this is something that’s gone on forever, just to better prepare children for loss in their lives.  I don’t know if that’s the case, but it feels like from the time we were watching films, even early films like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, that death shows up.  I don’t think children notice this at first and even in IF the notion of death somehow comes with a whimsical music cue and a quick montage of home movies.  I don’t know how I feel about this, but the death in this film is handled very nonchalantly.

After we face the immediate loss of Bea’s mother, we run right into the plot of Dad having heart surgery in the hospital that Mom died at.  Also, not so great.  Now with Grandma, Bea must learn to fend for herself at times.  It’s clear her grandmother is still not in good spirits following the recent death of her daughter.  She has moments where she disassociates in front of old musicals.  She has things in her head that she wishes she had somehow done in her younger years and it’s obvious.  Bea is a self-sufficient 12-year-old though.  With Cal at her side, she is able to find a way to occupy her time and work hard to give the IFs new people. With the darkness pushed aside, the film begins to take a better shape.

As we dive deeper into the world of IF we are treated to a wide array of imaginary friends.  We hear familiar voices (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Louis Gossett Jr., Awkwafina, Emily Blunt, George Clooney, Bradley Cooper, Matt Damon, Bill Hader, Richard Jenkins, Keegan Michael-Key, Blake Lively, Sebastian Maniscalco, Matthew Rhys, Christopher Meloni, Sam Rockwell, Maya Rudolph, Amy Schumer and Jon Stewart all lend a hand to give the IFs vocal personality.  We also learn that this may not be a family film after all.  Interestingly, as a child becomes a source of help for those needing their own IFs, the shift from those in need from children to adults becomes the focus.  We are rooting for this smart little girl to heal and help these adults.

Does the adult focus cripple the storytelling? It could for some.  The movie sags under the weight of relying on computer generated characters, trying to give the kids something to enjoy, and then the adults wondering where the kids belong in the viewing of the film beyond the cute, animated characters.  I believe the film works better in the context of adults watching it.  We will remember our own imaginary friends and in this time of mental health no longer being a taboo subject, maybe we can find our own comfort in someone imaginary in our lives.  Who knows though? As we all know, films are subjective and therefor so is film criticism.  We all can watch the same movie and come out of it with something different.  For me, IF works best as a film with a child-like heart meant for adults needing that lightness.  For kids though, IF could be a snooze.

Video:

Encoding: HEVC / H.265

Resolution: 4K (2160p)

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Layers: BD-100

HDR:  Dolby Vision

Clarity/Detail: The overall look of IF is nearly flawless.  Grain free, digitally filmed, there are some home movies with a cloudy quality applied to them, but besides that, the film has a nice neat and sharp look about it.  Clarity is intact on screen and looks very pleasing to the eye.

Depth: As IFs and humans move around on screen, we have sharp focus and no softness in the frame.  Everything looks very clean.  Focus never begins to fade and this adds to the reality the filmmakers wanted to bring to the fantasy.

Black Levels: Black levels are excellent with no crush.

Color Reproduction: There are plenty of colors to behold in IF, with rich primaries popping, especially in the scenes at Coney Island or in the Tina Turner video sequence.  There aren’t many moments where colors look muted, unless that’s the intent of the scene. Some interiors look shabby, but they should, because the set pieces are shabby.

Noise/Artifacts: None

Audio:

Audio Format(s): English Dolby Atmos, English Descriptive Audio, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1

Subtitles: English SDH, Español, French

Dynamics: Paramount’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack for IF is full bodied. Not the most dynamic, it still fills the soundstage with the sounds of New York, music cues and echoes. There isn’t a lot of dull air in the proceedings so it’s nice to hear the speakers all get some work to do.

Height: The height channels carry more ambience than dynamic sounds.  There is more heft to the background noise and the music can come out on top of you in some scenes.

Low-Frequency Extension: Deep bass accompanies some of the music, as well as some IF sound effects.

Surround Sound Presentation: Surrounds keep you in the world of IF with Bea and Cal, with the ambience of the city, old buildings and Coney Island coming alive for the audience!

Dialogue Reproduction: Clear.

Extras:

IF comes to 4K UHD Blu-ray with a digital code and slipcover and what appears to be an abundance of bonus features, which actually add to about 25 minutes of content…

The Imagination Behind IF—Hear from writer and director John Krasinski plus the cast and crew as they dive deeper into the process of bringing their imagination to life on screen.

Imagining Imaginary Friends— Take a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of each imaginary friend.

Giving IFs a Voice— Meet the all-star cast responsible for voicing each character. Hear from Steve Carrell, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and more!

Blending The Real and the Imaginary— Join John Krasinski as he incorporates a practical filmmaking approach to make the imaginary feel real.

Tina Turner Forever!— Experience the reimagining of the iconic 80s Tina Turner music video as John Krasinski recreates this legendary sequence with the IFs.

The Imaginative World of IF— From Brooklyn Heights to Coney Island, go behind-the-scenes with the cast and crew and experience the magic of New York City like never before.

Gag Reel— You won’t have to imagine the hilarious antics on set once you check out this gag reel!

Learn to Draw Blue from IF— Learn to draw the loveable and cuddly “Blue” in this fun, interactive tutorial.

Summary:

IF has its heart in the right place.  There is a sweetness to the film that is very appealing.  If there had been a though as to whom this film was for, I believe it would have worked better overall.  There are some real moments of joy here and some really good CGI work for the characters also.  The problem lies in the story’s pacing and it’s demographic.  This may work better for adults who need something mellow and child-like to watch.  For kids, as mentioned above, this may not fill the bill. Technical merits for the disc itself are excellent, while the bonus material is mid-tier at best. Worth a look for fans of harmless fantasy, and for people looking for their very own IF.