The BFG (2016)

Jack and I enjoyed this live action/animated hybrid of the Roald Dahl book a month ago. A study in perspective, it goes from a little girl's world to the Big Friendly Giant racing through London streets a block at a stride, to his being dwarfed by bigger, meaner giants. Leave it to Steven Spielberg (last blogged for Bridge of Spies) and his team to facilitate new technology for such a hybrid.

Ruby Barnhill, now 12, is adorable in her feature debut (after a TV show in England) as the spunky, curious, book-loving Sophie. But the movie owes all to the nuanced performance of Mark Rylance. When Spielberg was directing Bridge of Spies, he realized he had his BFG in the talented Rylance and was able to put into motion the project that had been in development for almost 25 years. Apparently Rylance was photographed acting all the scenes and the special effects transformed him into a giant, leaving his many facial expressions intact. More cartoony are the other animated characters, including Fleshlumpeater, voiced by the unmistakeable Jemaine Clement (most recently in What We Do in the Shadows), and his sidekick Bloodbottler, voiced by Bill Hader (last in Maggie's Plan). Penelope Wilton (of The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Downton Abbey) has a nice turn in the third act as a human (I'll leave out her character, in case you don't know the story).

Spielberg has worked many times with cinematographer Janusz Kaminsky (who most recently shot The Judge), but this is the first time they've worked on an all-digital project. Composer John Williams (last scored Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens) joins Spielberg for the 24th time on the fanciful score, which can be streamed from this link.

We saw a wonderful featurette in June but I can't find the link. Here's a different one. I chuckled when Spielberg said in this one, "A little higher with the flashlight," because a cinematographer friend once observed that Spielberg likes to shine lights into our eyes.

Not so beloved by the rest of our world, it's averaging 74% from critics and 63 from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. It's rated PG, due to some pretty scary stuff. I suggest parents read the book and decide for yourselves. Much of it is lovely and magical and there's a good helping of girl power. We found it a nice prelude to fireworks this summer.