Magic Faraway Tree, The

Story

The Thompsons are a typical modern family. Mother Polly (Claire Foy) is the chief breadwinner, and Tim (Andrew Garfield) is a stay-at-home dad. Polly and Tim have 3 children: Beth (Delilah Bennett-Cardy) is a surly teenager forever glued to social media; Fran (Billie Gadsdon) doesn’t speak; and the youngest, Joe (Phoenix Laroche), is addicted to his gaming device.

One day, Polly delivers a bombshell, announcing that she has quit her job, along with the perks of house and car. Polly and Tim decide to live out one of their student dreams and move to the country, off grid and close to where Tim grew up.

The children are all very upset – particularly Beth, who doesn’t want to leave her friends, and Joe, who can’t cope without wi-fi. But Fran meets some fairies, who identify her as a ‘friendly to fairies’ human and invite her to visit them in the Enchanted Wood. Fran sets out in trepidation, but once inside the Magic Faraway Tree, she’s introduced to all the magical characters and all the fantastical lands she can visit. On her next visit, Fran takes the sceptical Beth and Joe along, and they all get to explore the fabulous places too.

The children eventually learn that there’s much more to life than being stuck to their electronic devices.

Themes

Fantasy

Violence

The Magic Faraway Tree has some mild violence. For example:

Silky, a fairy, pushes a small elf into Fran’s bedroom window. He shouts loudly and falls heavily on his back.
Beth throws a shoe at a rooster to shut it up.
Moonface points a stick at Fran, and a soldier throws a plant at him.
A fruit punch machine punches Moonface in the face.
A car engine explodes, covering Tim in black soot.
The family argues about their situation.
In the Land of the Ice Age, there’s a loud explosion, which causes all the saucepans to fall off Saucepan Man.
Mr Oom Boom Boom traps Silky inside a box and bangs the lid down.
Moonface chases Mr Oom Boom Boom, and Saucepan Man places a large saucepan over his head.
A marshmallow tree grabs Fran because she is too greedy.
Saucepan Man hits a policeman in the groin. The policeman yells in pain.
Dame Snap squashes an insect and eats it. She bangs on a desk and shouts at the children.
The children are put in a cage in detention but manage to blow open the gate.
Dame Snap screams so loudly that things start to shatter and the children’s plane is blown off a cliff.

Sexual references

The Magic Faraway Tree has some sexual references. For example, Polly and Tim kiss a few times.

Alcohol, drugs and other substances

The Magic Faraway Tree shows some use of substances. For example, people drink wine at dinner.

Nudity and sexual activity

There’s no nudity or sexual activity in The Magic Faraway Tree.

Product placement

There’s no product placement in The Magic Faraway Tree.

Coarse language

The Magic Faraway Tree has some coarse language and name-calling, including ‘Oh my God’, ‘What the heck’, ‘loser’, ‘dumb dumb’ and ‘spoiled brats’.

Ideas to discuss with your children

The Magic Faraway Tree is a fantasy movie based on the classic Faraway Tree book series by Enid Blyton. The scary scenes and violence, mostly slapstick, make the movie unsuitable for children under 6 years, and we recommend parental guidance for children aged 6-7 years.

The main messages from The Magic Faraway Tree about appreciating nature, escaping from modern technologies, exploring new ideas, encouraging creativity and imagination, remembering the child within and retaining a sense of magic.

Values in The Magic Faraway Tree that you could reinforce with your children include kindness, curiosity, collaboration, teamwork, and the importance of family.

The Magic Faraway Tree could also give you the chance to talk with your children about real-life issues like the way that fear of the unknown can create prejudice and resentment. For example, some of the folk of the Faraway Tree are afraid of humans and therefore react badly to them.