Quinn and I attended an advanced screen of The BFG earlier this week and I have to say it is pretty awesome. Not that I doubted the magic of Roald Dahl, Walt Disney, and Steven Spielberg, all rolled into one movie! It’s a super family friendly adventure that I enjoyed watching with Quinn.
About The BFG
In the middle of the night, when every child and every grown-up is in a deep, deep sleep, all the dark things come out of hiding and have the world to themselves. That’s what Sophie, a precocious 10-year-old, has been told, and that’s what she believes as she lies sleepless in her own bed at her London orphanage. While all the other girls in the dormitory dream their dreams, Sophie risks breaking one of Mrs. Clonkers’ many rules to climb out of her bed, slip on her glasses, lean out the window and see what the world looks like in the moonlit silence of the witching hour. Outside, in the ghostly, silvery light, her familiar street looks more like a fairy tale village than the one she knows, and out of the darkness comes something long and tall…very, very tall. That something is a giant who takes Sophie and whisks her away to his home in a land far, far away. Fortunately for Sophie, he is the Big Friendly Giant (BFG) and nothing like the other inhabitants of Giant Country. Standing 24- feet tall with enormous ears and a keen sense of smell, the BFG is endearingly dim-witted and keeps to himself for the most part. His brothers are twice as big and at least twice as scary, and have been known to eat humans, but the BFG is a vegetarian and makes do with a disgusting vegetable called Snozzcumber.
Upon her arrival in Giant Country, Sophie is initially frightened of the mysterious giant, but soon comes to realize that the BFG is actually quite gentle and charming, and since she has never met a giant before, she is full of questions. BFG brings Sophie to Dream Country where he collects dreams and sends them to children, teaching her all about the magic and mystery of dreams. With each having been on their own in the world up until now, an unexpected friendship blossoms. But Sophie’s presence in Giant Country has attracted the unwanted attention on of the other giants, who have become increasingly more bothersome. Sophie and the BFG soon depart for London to see The Queen and warn her of the precarious giant situation, but they must first convince her that giants do indeed exist. Together, they come up with a plan to get rid of the giants once and for all.
My Favorite Character: The BFG
I think everyone’s favorite character is The BFG. Steven Spielberg found the perfect guy to personify The BFG. Mark Rylance did a really amazing job bringing him to life. He was goofy, kind hearted and ridiculous all rolled into one. The friendship you see The BFG develop with Sofie is heartwarming. Newcomer, Ruby Barnhill does a great job at playing Sophie!
Is The BFG Appropriate for Kids?
Quinn read The BFG earlier this year and I had no hesitation bring him to see the movie. He’s 8 and already comfortable with other live action movies that might be deemed scary by other 8-year-olds. He was never scared during the movie and was laughing hysterically in several scenes.
The other giants (who have gory names like Childchewer, Bonecruncher, and Bloodbottler) were not scary, more like ridiculous bullies. They do talk a lot about eating children, though. IF your little one might believe giants roam around at night, looking for little kids to snatch out of their bed, you might have them skip The BFG.
The BFG arrives in theaters on TODAY, July 1st!
Don’t miss this fun set of printable BFG Bookmarks with Gobblefunk translations. They are perfect to use if you plan on reading The BFG again!
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Kelly Denton says
Thanks for this. I feel much more comfortable taking Emi now. I was a little concerned about the other giants.
Karen says
I hope Emi likes it!