Reviews

Zachary Levi proved he could capably play a man-child in the Shazam! films and he’s back in that mode for his new film, Harold and the Purple Crayon.

This fantasy comedy is based on Crockett Johnson’s children’s picture books of the same name, which followed a young boy who could bring anything to life by drawing it with his magic purple crayon.

The film begins in the classic 2D hand-drawn world of the picture books. Once their narrator disappears, Harold creates a door to the “real world” and walks through it with his animal friend Moose – and they find themselves in the live-action world of Providence, Rhode Island. Harold is a youngster trapped in a grown-up man’s body (Levi) and Moose looks like a human (Lil Rel Howery).

Not knowing how to navigate the real world, Harold and Moose become desperate to find their creator and hear his advice. Their mission to find their “old man” (they don’t know his name) puts them in the path of single mum Terry (Zooey Deschanel) and her son Mel (Benjamin Bottani), who insists they must help the clueless companions.

All in the while, Harold and Moose’s friend Porcupine (Tanya Reynolds) emerges from the cartoon world on her own and wreaks havoc on the people of Providence.

Levi does his best CBeebies presenter impression as the super cheerful and ever-positive Harold. He is believable as someone who is blissfully unaware of how the world works and children may find his performance endearing (parents will probably not). He strikes up a sweet friendship with Bottani, an adorable child actor who marvels at Harold’s creations.

Howery and Reynolds should have been the biggest source of humour but the script holds them back. They are still very amusing but the film doesn’t maximise the comedic potential of humans playing animals.

The true star of the show is Jemaine Clement as the villain Gary. The librarian and unpublished fantasy author wants to use Harold’s crayon to bring his realm to life. Clement pitches his performance perfectly and steals each of his scenes.

There are a few fun sequences – such as the climactic duel between Harold and Gary – and there are some laughs here and there but Harold and the Purple Crayon is sadly very generic, forgettable and devoid of imagination.

In cinemas from Wednesday 31st July.

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