On August 2, 2024, Columbia Pictures released ‘Harold and the Purple Crayon’, which has received a mixed reception from critics, currently holding at 36% on Rotten Tomatoes. In the film, the iconic book character enters the real world when he becomes an adult, leaving behind the pages of his book, discovering that his magical crayon can create more hijinks than anticipated. When his magical instrument is threatened, he must work with newfound friends to save not only the world of his book but ours. The ensemble cast includes Zachery Levi, Zoey Deschanel, Alfred Molina, Lil Rel Howery, Benjamin Bottani, and Jemaine Clement. But what did the critics say?
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| Photo by Quaid Lagan on Unsplash |
Jeff Ewing of Collider writes, “There are quite a few elements to like about Harold, including its smart casting, entertaining meta-concepts, and its ability to find humor in chaos, but it's a film with nearly as many conceptual, narrative, and thematic misses as hits.” Adding, “It's an interesting route to take for the live-action adaptation of a beloved children's book. Making the narrative a live-action entry following an adult Harold in our own world, the world of the series' author, does allow for a wider (and more cinematic) range of circumstances than merely the simple story of a boy using a crayon to draw things like animal friends out of thin air. It's additionally an interesting way to play with the implications of the purple crayon. First, in our real world, an overgrown child warping reality would create massive chaos and confusion, which is great for both humor and drama. Second, the books have a cartoon Harold creating objects that are a bit rougher in style and form than himself (his creations are in one color of crayon, after all), while his creations here are in our real world, permitting extravagant detail (though still purple as ever). Finally, it's a unique opportunity for Harold, a creator, to examine his own existence as a subordinate creation (it's an opportunity that the film doesn't make full use of, but the potential is there). All this makes Harold and the Purple Crayon one of the wilder live-action, young-audience-friendly films in recent years.”
Carla Hay of Culture Mix notes, “Harold and the Purple Crayon is as sloppy and muddled as someone doodling while drunk. This mishandled movie looks like a rejected TV show aimed at children, with most of the cast members looking embarrassed to be there.”
Linda Marric of HeyUGuys praises the film, stating, “This is a delightful adaptation that captures the magic of the beloved book while adding a fresh & vibrant perspective. It is a joyous celebration of imagination and creativity; a heartwarming & visually stunning film which leaves a lasting impression.”
Jack Martin of Film Feeder was less impressed, stating, “In a way, like the original book, it comes and goes through one ear and out the other, leaving little to no impact whatsoever, though this film doesn’t have the luxury of just being a handful of pages long.” Continuing, “From the naïve man-child of a main character taking regular sayings and mannerisms literally, to them befriending the child of an overworked parent – played, in this case, by Zooey Deschanel – who has lost their own imagination in some way, to a villain (who here is Jemaine Clement’s librarian and would-be fantasy author) who seeks to claim something precious to the hero for their own purposes, there’s no trope left unused by these filmmakers. It’s almost like if Barbie was given endless studio notes to appeal much more to younger audiences than anyone else, but unlike Barbie, this film doesn’t really have the intelligence to be anything other than typical family-friendly fare that you have undoubtedly seen time and time again in stuff like The Smurfs or Sonic the Hedgehog.”
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