The Wasteland Reviewer

Harold and the Purple Crayon (2024) Written Review

Did you grow up reading Harold and the Purple Crayon? Crockett Johnson created such an endearing and fun series of books that brought so much joy to so many children. The use of imagination is so relatable as all kids have big dreams and ideas that they would love to bring to life. The use of crayons is also relatable as that is an experience that so many had growing up and getting to draw and bring their imagination to life in that way. But today there is a new modernized, live action version of this classic story hitting theaters with a lot of uncertainty.

 Does this new film from director Carlos Saldanha update this classic without missing all the original charm? From the opening prologue, we get a taste of the original hand drawn look of Harold with some classic sounding narration from the ever talented and recognizable Alfred Molina. The film quickly shifts into a “cooler” and more modern animation to show Harold grown up. The animation is solid but just does meet the classic magic of the original. But then Harold finds his way into the real world with his two best friends, Moose and Porcupine, who are turned into humans. The rest of the film is shot in this bland, glossy, and generic television look that makes this experience lack any kind of magic. This looks like a 90-minute episode of a live action Nickelodeon sitcom…and that is not a good thing. Except for the fun finale that has a bit more cinematic personality to it, this feels like an experience devoid of magic and vibrance. 

Does the adapted story at least bring some magic even if the visuals do not at all? Not really. Harold and the Purple Crayon falls into the similar pitfall of so many modern takes on classic stories. It feels like modern studios do not trust the original elements that made these properties so beloved so they try way too hard to craft something they feel like will speak better to modern kids. For this film, that comes in the form of a meta-narrative focused on Harold being the original drawn character except he finds his way into the real world. This does not amount to much consequence minus a nice tour through Crockett Johnson’s Museum which is a nice touch. The rest of the film is filled with a collection of cliches that feel so uninteresting and honestly quite boring. The only piece of the story that really begins to flourish is Harold going toe-to-toe with a jealous novelist turned librarian who will do anything to use the crayon to bring his novel to life. The idea of a crayon that can bring literally anything you can draw to life feels sorely underutilized in this film. But at least the climax really leans into the concept and delivers the most memorable sequence in the whole film. 

Can the cast at least salvage much of this film? Zachary Levi is certainly leaning into his Shazam persona a lot here as he is basically a kid in a man’s body. But his performance is so inconsistent and some of his facial reactions and physical choices just don’t fit the needs of the film and character at any given moment. Benjamin Bottani does a fine job as the young man who befriends Harold along the way. Zooey Deschanel is the type of performer who really needs the right role to work with and this script gives her nothing. She honestly feels lifeless and boring without adding much at all to the film. Lil Rel Howery and Tanya Reynolds are stuck with one note live action cartoons who are not as funny as the film thinks they are. Each of them is so much more talented than this and the film is just so consistently unfunny. But the one shining light in this cast must be Jemaine Clement. His character is admittedly strange and underwritten, but Clement is such a trooper and delivers some of the few laughs in the film with his undeniable charisma. 

Does Harold and the Purple Crayon fall into the latest trend of modern twists on classic properties that fail to realize what made them so great in the first place? 100%. This film has no idea what was so sweet and endearing in the original stories and just runs with the most basic idea of a purple crayon that can bring things to life. This misguided concept just does not click and you are left with a mostly boring and uninteresting film.