The BFG

Movie Name: The BFG
Year of Release: 2016

Director: Steven Spielberg

Stars: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Penelope Wilton, Jemaine Clement, Rebecca Hall, Rafe Spall, Bill Hader, Adam Godley, Daniel Bacon, Olafur Darri Olafsson, Jonathan Holmes

Genre: Adventure, Fantasy

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7

Synopsis:

Following the easily forgotten "Bridge of Spies", director Steven Spielberg is back, with one of his most endearing films, the adaptation of Roald Dahl's "The BFG". The film follows the story of a young orphan by the name of Sophie, who gets taken by a gentle giant whom she names BFG. He takes her since one evening she spots him around her hometown, and since he doesn't want to be discovered, he takes her along to his native land. His fellow giants however, don't share his kind and gentle touch - they eat people and have a general nasty attitude, including towards BFG. Sophie eventually devises a plan to teach those louts a good lesson, and for that she enlists the help of the Queen of England. What follows is a lesson in collaboration between all the parties involved.
Steven Spielberg collaborated for the last time with screenwriter Melissa Mathison for this adaptation (they collaborated previously on "E.T."). The film once again focuses on a young hero at odds with a world that has its fair share of sadness and loneliness. It's another hero whose inner strength surpasses all disbelief and who finds an ally, love and acceptance from another outsider, much like herself. Young Sophie is very much the "Spielberg"-like hero, filled with love, saddened by some traumatic events, but capable of love and filled with an indomitable will. This is a film filled with a joyous tone, where dreams are indeed manufactured, captured and brought to life. The film features fantastic visual effects, and great performances from Mark Rylance and the young Ruby Barnhill. The score from John William is beautiful, as is the cinematography from Janusz Kaminski. A very good film from a master of storytelling.