LOS ANGELES — The magic of childhood, for many, tends to get forgotten as one grows up, but “The Magic Faraway Tree” is a story of one that was not.
Based on Enid Blyton’s worldwide best-selling novel, “The Magic Faraway Tree,” the story follows Polly, Tim and their children as they begin a new life in a remote country village. When their kids discover a magical tree, its enchanted residents welcome them and sweep them into spectacular, fantastical lands beyond their wildest imaginations.
As they discover magic on each adventure, they are reconnected with what matters most — each other.
Film director Ben Gregor told Spectrum News it was a real joy to make “The Magic Faraway Tree.”
“In a movie like this, where anything is possible, the joy was grounding it all and making it feel like a big-hearted family movie,” Gregor said. “It’s the adventure of parenting. It’s the adventure of growing up as much as it is about climbing up a ladder through the clouds.”
Even though it is adapted for the modern world, like Blyton, Gregor’s “The Magic Faraway Tree” transports all who watch to a world of pure imagination while capturing children’s fundamental desire for autonomy and adventure.
For Academy Award nominee Andrew Garfield, one of the exciting parts about playing his character, he said, is that Tim is a big kid. While he does not have kids of his own right now, Garfield told Spectrum News that when he becomes a father, he will not be as whimsical as Tim.
“I am much more controlling, I think,” he said. “I don’t want to be risk-averse. I am not risk-averse with my nephews. I encourage my nephews to go off.”
One thing Garfield pointed out is that modern-world technology is taking away from the magic of childhood.
“I think the last frontier now is our attention, our brain, our imagination, our soul,” he said. “I think we are being invaded. I think our souls, our attentions and our brains are being colonized, invaded … slowly but surely. Particularly young people. They are stripping us of our autonomy in certain ways.”
The theme of being addicted to devices and having a lack of connection with other people is one that Nicola Coughlan, who plays Silky, said will resonate with families.
“That’s sadly really relatable to all of us,” Coughlan told Spectrum News. “I am someone who spends a lot of time on my phone. I am really trying to draw myself away and you find that when you do it … I breathe a little easier, my brain is a little less foggy, I am a bit more present.”
For Coughlan, if we can all be more present and connect with one another, it would make all our lives so much nicer.
Coughlan isn’t new to taking on projects that are based on beloved books. She also stars in Netflix’s hit show “Bridgerton.” She told Spectrum News it is a challenge because readers will already have so many opinions.
“You have to release yourself from expectations,” she said. “I was sort of lucky with both projects. I had not read the books before getting the jobs. There is no way to manage everyone’s expectations for what a character is going to be. I just had to take it from the script. Silky feels very like a character that is very present … very front-footed. Every day is a fresh adventure for her, so I just had to be on the front foot.”
On the topic of adaptation, in this film adaptation of “The Magic Faraway Tree,” not everyone gets the opportunity to go up into the tree. Academy Award nominee Claire Foy, who plays Polly, told Spectrum News she has taken issue with not having been able to go up the Faraway Tree and into the magical lands.
“I really would like to go up the tree. If we make another one [film], I am getting up the tree. I don’t care … they can’t stop me,” she said. “I’ll just be in the back of a shot, really enjoying myself.”
Foy said she was able to go on set for the “Land of Goodies” and while that was great, she would really like to visit the “Land of Spells” because of its mysteriousness, and it reminds her of Harry Potter.
For his part, Garfield said he would want to visit the “Land of Dreams.”
“Dreams are interesting to me … they are never-ending in their weirdness, and you can really let your imagination run wild,” he said. “And I love to sleep.”
For Gregor, he told Spectrum News he is ready to explore new lands.
“I want to go to the land of toys, which is one we want to do in the sequel,” he said.
“The Magic Faraway Tree” opens in theaters on Aug. 21.
Click the video above to watch the full interview.
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