Film
Harold and the Purple Crayon
- Fantasy
- Light-hearted
A live-action adaptation of Crockett Johnson's beloved picture book. Harold steps out of his drawn world into reality, where imagination meets consequence. It's a charming, visually inventive family film that celebrates creative thinking while gently exploring what happens when fantasy meets the messy real world. Warm and sincere rather than cynical.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you enjoy whimsical, gently silly family adventures where the fun comes from a hero's bright imagination and a playful, cartoonish sense of what the world can do.
Skip it if you want something sharp or grown-up; the humour stays broad and sweet, and the story leans on simple lessons more than surprises or real tension.
What it asks of you: It runs a brisk ninety minutes, stays light throughout, and needs little more than a willingness to go along with its colourful, eager-to-please energy.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Paddington 22017
A masterclass in family filmmaking that balances genuine heart with sly adult humour. It celebrates kindness and creativity while remaining endlessly entertaining for everyone in the room.
But If you're allergic to earnestness or find anthropomorphic animals intrinsically annoying, this won't convert you.

The Lego Movie2014
A film about imagination and building worlds that's itself built with imaginative flair. Funny, fast, visually dazzling, and surprisingly moving about what it means to create.
But The constant jokes and references can feel exhausting if you're not in the mood for relentless comedy. It never lets you breathe.

Coraline2009
Stop-motion brilliance that takes the picture-book-adaptation template seriously. Dark, inventive, genuinely unsettling, yet ultimately about courage and home. A film that respects its young audience.
But The creeping dread and some genuinely frightening imagery might be too intense for younger children despite its family classification.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Harold and the Purple Crayon
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Amélie2001
Both films are love letters to imagination as a tool for reshaping reality. Each shows a person learning that their drawings—literal or metaphorical—have real consequences.
Jean-Pierre Jeunet's visual imagination matches Harold's: a film that draws reality into beautiful, whimsical shapes. It's about a character who uses creativity to change the world around her, one small magic at a time.
But The whimsy is relentless and the tone aggressively precious. If magical realism feels cloying rather than delightful, this will test you.

More like this (8)
The NeverEnding Story1984
A film about the power of imagination and storytelling that understands both the magic and the danger of getting lost in it. Lush practical effects and a genuinely moving emotional core.
But The pacing drags occasionally, and some of the creature designs look dated. The tragedy of it might catch sensitive viewers off-guard.

Where the Wild Things Are2009
Spike Jonze's tender, melancholic adaptation captures the original's emotional truth—adventure as escape, imagination as solace, and the ache of growing up.
But It's deliberately slow and introspective. Younger children might find it boring rather than magical; it's more feeling than plot.

Pete's Dragon2016
A live-action/CGI hybrid about a boy and his dragon companion that nails the balance between wonder and real-world stakes. Visually stunning and surprisingly moving.
But The plot is thin and predictable. If you need strong narrative drive, this floats too much in atmosphere.

Mary Poppins Returns2018
A legacy sequel that understands why the original mattered: magic as metaphor for emotional growth. Beautifully crafted, with strong performances and genuine charm.
But Some find it too safe and reverent, lacking the slightly subversive edge of the original. The runtime feels padded.

The Secret of Roan Inish1994
A quiet, lyrical fantasy about imagination, heritage, and childhood agency. John Sayles builds a magical world that feels lived-in, not manufactured.
But It's genuinely slow cinema. There's minimal plot momentum; if you need conventional storytelling structure, this won't deliver it.

Matilda1996
Danny DeVito's adaptation captures Roald Dahl's gift for showing how imagination and defiance can save you. Funny, dark, and deeply sympathetic to its protagonist's alienation.
But The humour is frequently savage; some of the adult cruelty is unrelenting. Doesn't soften itself for comfort.

Craig of the Creek2018
Both explore the threshold between imagination and reality from a child's perspective, but Craig does it through the lived geography of a creek rather than magic. Same emotional territory, radically different approach.
An animated series about childhood wonder that treats its young characters' adventures with genuine respect and real emotional weight. It captures the specificity of being a kid better than most live-action shows manage.
But It's deliberately episodic and low-stakes. If you need serialized plot momentum or high stakes, it moves at a deliberately gentle pace.

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone2013
Both films are fundamentally about someone who creates impossible things (a magician, a boy with a crayon) learning that creation matters precisely because it touches real people. Both privilege the act of making over the mechanics.
A film about stage magic as a metaphor for wonder and creativity. Despite its flaws, it's sincere about why people make things to delight others, and it's visually inventive in unexpected ways.
But The film itself is uneven and occasionally tries too hard. The comedy doesn't always land, and the emotional beats feel earned but scattered.

People
Cast
Zachary LeviHarold
Lil Rel HoweryMoose
Zooey DeschanelTerry
Tanya ReynoldsPorcupine
Jemaine ClementGary
Alfred MolinaNarrator (voice)
Pete GardnerDetective Love
Camille GuatyJunior Detective Silva
Ravi PatelPrasad
Zele AvradopoulosMs. Hemm
Boston PierceSupreme Bro #1
Directing
- Carlos SaldanhaDirector
Writing
- Crockett JohnsonBook
- Crockett JohnsonCharacters
- David GuionScreenplay
- Michael HandelmanScreenplay
Production
- Mary VernieuCasting
- Sydney ShircliffCasting
- Jenny HinkeyExecutive Producer
- Jeremy SteinExecutive Producer
- John DavisProducer