A Tooth Fairy Tale Review: Animated Journey with a Touch of Kid-Appropriate Preteen Romance
In this animated journey aimed at tweens, the world of fairies is dedicated to gathering baby teeth of slumbering youngsters and placing treasure beneath where they sleep. Board-riding teenage rebel fairy Van (brought to life by Booboo Stewart) shows little enthusiasm about devoting his life to gathering baby teeth—a feeling that’s completely understandable. He’s only slightly more interested in the underlying economics of the situation: the fairies hand over the molars to unseen goblins, who provide metal in exchange. However, Van’s interest is piqued when he spots a goblin (voiced by Larkin Bell), who turns out to be far from the hideous gnome he had imagined.
A Forbidden Bond and Shared Threat
Everything is prepared for an adventure with a gentle touch of young love (though it’s perfectly appropriate for children). The fairy and goblin groups are estranged from one another, and nothing fuels the excitement of secrecy to unite beings together. The two species portrayed in the film are remarkably alike, yet each holds biased views about the other. Fairies are said to be entitled sorts, given to stealing anything they want, while goblins are allegedly stupid, smelly, and backward, but are in fact bright and technologically advanced.
Naturally, such a setup requires a shared foe to join forces against, and that need is met in the form of a group of vicious spiders, with voices by Jon Lovitz and Fran Drescher. They make no secret about their intentions: they want to eat the fairies and goblins, and they serve as quite savage, if not especially competent, villains.
Target Audience and Final Thoughts
You won’t find all that many animated films targeting the viewer group that is beginning to have first crushes, but are not old enough for the content 14-year-olds view these days in lieu of Twilight. If your child falls into this age group, this is unlikely to become their new favorite movie, but it’s a decent choice.
The Tooth Fairy Story releases in movie theaters in Scotland from 10 October and the rest of the UK beginning October 24.
