Story

Bea (Cailey Fleming) had a magic childhood filled with tea parties, adoring parents and an imaginary friend who was always there when she needed him. But when her mother dies from cancer, a slightly older Bea is so sad and so scared that she tries to shut herself off from the world so that she’ll never be hurt and never have to feel anything again.

Luckily Bea’s father (John Krasinski) won’t allow her to isolate herself. He’s always there to bring some silliness back into her life, to keep things from becoming too serious and, despite his own pain, to make sure that Bea remembers how to smile.

When her father goes into hospital for surgery, Bea goes to live with her grandmother and soon discovers that she can see IFs (Imaginary Friends), even when no one else can. Cal (Ryan Reynolds), who lives in an apartment upstairs, is secretly trying to help the IFs who have been outgrown by their owners find new kids who can use them. Initially reluctant, Bea meets an IF called Blossom (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) and soon volunteers her services to help the IFs find new children and a renewed sense of belonging.

At a retirement home for IFs, Bea begins to realise that she has the potential to help in ways she had never imagined and that it’s not about finding new people for the IFs but rather helping them find their way back to their original friend. Blue (Steve Carrell), a huge, fluffy, purple creature is the first one to be reconnected with the boy who created him, and others soon follow.

Suddenly Bea rushes off to her father’s bedside, believing that his life hangs in the balance, and it’s Cal who she turns to for comfort and reassurance. It’s his advice and suggestions that brings Bea and her father back together again. When her father is better, Bea can no longer see the IFs – it is as though they have all disappeared – and when she returns to Cal’s apartment to find them, she begins to realise that nothing is as it seems. She begins to question if any of it was ever real in the first place, and it takes a clue from her past to remind her of things she had long since forgotten: a clue that provided the proof she had known in her heart all along.

Themes

Sickness; death: separation from a parent; grief and isolation

Violence

IF has some violence. For example:

• Cal shoves an IF away from him and onto the floor.
• A star blasts through a wall.
• Cal repeatedly trips over an IF and lands on the ground.
• An IF grabs Cal and then shoves his body into Cal’s face.
• Vines grab Cal and pull him through a wall.
• Cal is nearly burned by a blast of fire from a dragon.
• Two soldiers fight with swords.
• Cal is knocked off a balcony into a pool.

Sexual references

There are no sexual references in IF.

Alcohol, drugs and other substances

There’s no substance use in IF.

Nudity and sexual activity

IF has some nudity and sexual activity. For example, Cal tells a banana IF to put some pants on as he is freaking everybody out. The banana then puts both hands between his legs as if he is covering something.

Product placement

There’s no product placement in IF.

Coarse language

IF has some coarse language – for example, ‘damn’ and ‘hell’. Crude humour includes a gummy bear farting. Cal mentions that he can taste it. He then asks others if they can taste the fart in their eyeballs too.

Ideas to discuss with your children

IF is an imaginative adventure, seamlessly incorporating CGI into real-life settings. The movie has powerful messages about dealing with grief, overcoming feelings of uselessness and getting back to where you belong. It’s a family movie suitable for all but the youngest of children.

These are the main messages from IF:

• Sometimes life can be sad, but the memories of those we love will live in our hearts. forever
• The most important stories we have to tell are the ones we tell ourselves.

Values in IF that you could reinforce with your children include kindness, empathy, helpfulness, teamwork and compassion.

IF could also give you the chance to talk with your children about the importance of things like these:

• Being open with feelings.
• Working through issues, and not allowing the difficulties in life to shut you down or derail you from seeing a world full of possibilities or living life to the fullest.