It’s always so fun for me to introduce Alivia to things I loved as a child, and we had the pleasure of seeing one of my favourite short stories from when I was little re-imagined on the big screen!
The BFG (Big Friendly Giant) is an adapted short story written by one of my favourite childhood authors – Roald Dahl, his stories have long been favourites across generations and now you can enjoy this charming, family friendly tale on the big screen. With lessons on love, friendship and acceptance – it’s truly easy to fall in love with BFG and be sucked into their giant world.
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 from 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’s 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, this Giant isn’t like others in Giant Country, standing at 24-feet tall with enormously comical ears and very keen sense of smell, The BFG is endearingly dim-witted and keeps to himself for the most part. the BFG is a vegetarian who loves a very unappetizing looking vegetable called the Snozzcumber, and the accompaning Frobscottle fizzy drink that leaves those enjoying it with a bad case of the Whizzpops! Other Giant Country inhabitats including Bloodbottler, Fleshlumpeater, BoneCruncher, Childchewer and MeatDripper on the other hand, are twice as big as the BFG and at least twice as scary (if not more!) and have been known to nosh on humans big and small!
Alivia & I were invited to an advance screening of The BFG and Admittedly, I wasn’t quite sure we were going to make it through this entire movie in the theatre with A. She is a little bit on the sensitive side and I thought hearing about giants that go bump in the night that eat children might be a little bit too much for her.
We were so lucky that before the movie even started we were treated to a short interview with four of the actors who play giants from the movie! They shared with us some of their favourite Gobblefunk words that had A laughing her little heart out before the movie. Gobblefunk is the unique language The Giants use to speak in Giant Country and well.. we won’t ruin it for you, they have some pretty funny ones! We also learned that The BFG not only used the actors voices for the film but also 3D facial and motion capture to bring the giants to life. How cool is that? The actors we met were local so it was neat to hear how the experience was for them, and to see them in person to compare the giant on the big screen.
The movie itself started a bit dark, but quickly picked up and captured Alivia’s attention. We saw it in 3D and the visual effects were stunning and immersive and gave just the right amount of spook and action to keep littles engrossed in the film. For myself, I fell in love with the magic behind The BFG, being brought back to my own childhood enjoying the travels of this friendly giant and the always wonderful Roald Dahl tales. If you were a fan growing up, this movie is a must-see, if you have littles who love a little spook, a big laugh and whimsical stories they will definitely enjoy this film.
All in all, both of us adored this film and still talk about it often – there are so many opportunities in the movie to discuss friendship, acceptance and so much more with your kids which I really loved. Anything that gives us a chance to chat with our kids about life is a win. So, be brave… be adventurous… and be ready to go on a one of a kind ride with The BFG.
A BIG thank you to the Giant actors who stuck around post-movie for a quick photo-op with fans, they were truly wonderful and you could see the pride they had in this film. We were so grateful for the chance to chat with them, and A thought it was pretty cool to get to stand next to REAL giants (well… to her, she’s pretty short, hah!). We snuck in with a photo with the lovely Brandee and her mom from One Crazy Kid for this shot!
If you have the chance, I highly recommend reading the book before heading out to see the movie. There is something so magical about seeing how Disney, the writers and producers turned this well-loved childhood tale into an incredible cinematic experience. Oh.. and when you DO see it? Try to see it in 3D! You won’t regret it.
Will you be heading out to see The BFG? We would love to know how you liked it, or if you’ve read the book (and if not.. make sure to grab a copy!).
We were provided with advance screening tickets to enjoy The BFG, as always our opinions are our own. We loved it, and hope you will too!
