“Harold and the Purple Crayon” Blu-Ray Review

Inside of his book, adventurous Harold can make anything come to life simply by drawing it. After he grows up and draws himself off the book’s pages and into the physical world, Harold finds he has a lot to learn about real life. (from IMDB)

Family movies always seem to be a mixed bag. While I can’t say the trailers for Harold and the Purple Crayon didn’t look like the movie could be too goofy for its own good, I’ve enjoyed watching Zachary Levi since his days in the TV show Chuck, and I’ve since also enjoyed his performances in the two Shazam films for DC. But the fish-out-of-water premise about a cartoon character (in this case, from a childrens book) coming to the real world isn’t necessarily the most original concept. Enchanted, for example, or even Elf immediately come to mind. But Levi can play the innocent, boyish charm with ease, and he seems perfect for this kind of role.

What’s interesting to me about this movie’s premise is that Harold’s entire motivation for coming to the real world is in search of his maker. It’s not hard at all to draw comparisons to one’s search for God, either, and there seemed more than just a couple hints at this kind of idea throughout the film — even if the end result deviated considerably from that notion. But in this story, Harold comes in contact with a discouraged single mother named Terry – played by Zooey Deschanel – and her son, Mel, who appear to need a dose of the kind of relentless optimism that Harold radiates. He and his pal Moose (a literal moose that turns into Lil Rel Howery in the real world) quickly latch onto them, and Mel soon finds new hope and joy in his life. In fact, the upbeat and imaginative nature of the film – no matter how silly it gets at times – is what makes Harold and the Purple Crayon a really enjoyable watch. While there is a suprisingly dismal turn later in the story – that is short-lived and inevitably undone (think Elf) – the bulk of Harold and the Purple Crayon is just pure joy. So if you can stomach the silliness and goofy antics of Levi and Howery, Harold is kind of a delight.

Again, the DNA of the movie isn’t exactly original, but that doesn’t necessarily make it null and void either. Harold conjures up some really fun stuff with his purple crayon, and it can spark even some of that youthful imagination in the adults watching. But all in all, Harold and the Purple Crayon is a kids movie. It’s got some laughs and lots of heart, and it thematically aims to remind adults who’ve lost the joy in their passions and dreams to rediscover them. For example, Terry was once a musician who loved to play the piano, but after the death of her husband, she lost the heart for performing, surrendering to a mundane life working at a local Ollie’s discount store. But through Harold’s unbridled optimism, he helps Terry rediscover her love for music, and it’s a lesson many adults can learn from these days. The stresses of adulthood and parenthood can extinguish the passions in life all too easily, and sometimes we just need a little nudge to remember how important they are to us.

Content-wise, Harold and the Purple Crayon is pretty family friendly. The single mom/fatherless son theme might be sensitive to some viewers, but it isn’t dwelled on too much. There’s a good dose of action in the movie, but it’s mostly pretty mild – and never lethal. Two instances briefly show blood when Harold gets a little cut on his finger and we see it in close-up, and later when Mel accidentally elbows a school bully in the face when he grabs him, causing the bully to have a bloody nose (but it isn’t focused on). The climax of the movie features some crayon-wielding fighting between Harold and the film’s villain, but it’s mostly done in a rather fun and entertaining way. There’s nearly no profanity in the movie, but there is one “Oh my G-d” and one barely noticeable “Oh, G-d.” For the most part, Harold and the Purple Crayon is an upbeat and fun film that keeps things pretty light for most of its runtime.

Harold and the Purple Crayon may be not be the most original family film, nor may it be for everyone, but it offers enough lighthearted fun to be worth checking out if it looks like the brand of silliness you might like. If Levi’s style of relentless glee and joy doesn’t get on your nerves, Harold is an enjoyable family movie for viewers of all ages.

– John DiBiase (reviewed: 10/5/24) 

Harold and the Purple Crayon is now available on digital and Blu-Ray disc. (I’m not quite sure why it’s not getting a 4K disc release.) We received the Blu-Ray for review and it includes a MoviesAnywhere digital HD copy as well (no DVD). The movie looks excellent in HD, so I definitely recommend the Blu-Ray (or HD digital release) over a standard DVD.

The disc and digital copies includes the following extras:How to Draw Harold, Porcupine, & Moose (5:43) – Pascal Campion, Head of Animation, uses a digital screen to show us how to draw Harold, Porcupine, and Moose.

“Colors” Sing Along (1:33) – This is a lyric video for the song at the end of the movie “Colors.” The song is performed by Boots Ottestad feat. Jordy Searcy, and the video features various clips from the movie.

How Do You Spell Imagination? (1:54) – This brief segment features Zooey, Zach and Lil Rel Howery taking turns taking a letter from the word “imagination” and using it to encourage viewers with different ways to use their imagination.

Deleted Scenes (7:13)

1. Harold and the Crosswalk (0:32) – In this short moment, Harold thinks the “Walk/Don’t Walk” street sign means he should walk slowly and like a robot while crossing the street.
2. Gary at the Police Station (0:53) – Gary shows up at the police station — after Harold and his friends escape — because he wanted to post bail for them (he hadn’t known they escaped). The cops tell him to wait there for questioning, but Gary sneaks out.
3. Death by Chocolate (2:17) – Harold and Gary sit in a restaurant after everything went bad for Harold. Harold genuinely thinks eating a dessert called “Death by Chocolate” will kill him, and he eats it expecting it to be his way of giving up.
4. Vendor Interview (0:40) – A park vendor talks to two cops about what he saw when he saw Harold and his friends using the crayon.
5. Porcupine Break In (0:52) – While inside someone else’s house (after she wanders in), Porcupine drinks wine she finds in a glass in the kitchen before she tries some cake lying out and then lounges on a nearby couch. The owners of the house find her and she dashes out the door.
6. Moose on the Loose at Ollie’s (0:57) – We see Moose playing with a fishing rod, then trying to get into a hammock, then scratching his back on a fake tree, and finally trying to make s’mores while watching real moose play in a field on a big screen display in the store.
7. Porcupine Diner Disruption (1:02) – This is an extended version of Porcupine causing trouble in the diner. After a waitress scolds a child for drawing on a table top, Porcupine grabs a marker and draws on a framed photo on the wall. She then defiantly eats some items from the salad bar, and as the waitress scolds her, Porcupine rubs her back on a booth to leave her “scent” in the diner before she runs toward the door.

– John DiBiase (reviewed: 10/6/24)

 

 Sex/Nudity: At an author’s book reading in a library, Gary describes a muscular man’s pecs and large nipples; When Gary asks Harold if he’s “with” Terry, Harold says he was with her the day before and stayed over her house, which makes it sound to Gary that Harold might have slept with her. (Obviously, he didn’t.)
 Vulgarity/Language: 1 “Oh my G-d,” 1 “Oh G-d”
 Alcohol/Drugs: None.
 Blood/Gore: Harold gets a little cut on his finger and we see it in close-up; Mel accidentally elbows a school bully in the face when he grabs him, causing the bully to have a bloody nose (but it isn’t focused on).
 Violence: In the animated opening: We see a cartoon dinosaur roar at Harold. A few moments later, it comes back and roars at him again, scaring him; As Harold flies through the air, some flying piranha birds hit him, knocking him out of the sky. Moose crashes to the ground and his antlers crumble off. Harold then redraws them for him; The dinosaur burns Harold’s face and we see it blackened with some of his hair burned off; Porcupine sticks Moose in butt with quill, startling him; In the real world: An old man hits Harold with a cane in his leg (and he reacts in pain); Terry almost hits Harold and Moose with her car while they’re on a bike and they go flying onto the grass as her car goes off the road and its tire pops. Harold briefly holds up his finger that has a bloody cut on it (and he says his insides are coming to the outside); Mel draws a “spider fly” that startles Harold and then eats the butterfly that Harold drew; The spider fly hovers in front of Terry as she lies in bed. It startles her and she swats it out of the way. It hits the window and slides down it; Harold runs at an old man, thinking it’s his creator, and the man flips Harold over to the ground; Moose falls on his back while rollerskating; Harold, Mel and Moose jump out of a plane and descend on a parachute. They crash land on the grass and roll down a hill, getting entangled in the parachute; A couple bullies grab Mel in school, trying to take the whistle tied around his neck. Mel tries to shake them off and accidentally elbows one of the bullies in the face, giving him a bloody nose; Harold draws a propeller on a stationary helicopter ride. It then lifts off and the mother of the kid riding it grabs onto the copter as it flies through the store, knocking merchandise off shelves and causing lots of destruction. An old lady accidentally grabs onto the mother hanging off the helicopter and they continue to crash into things in the store. We see balls and feathers from a torn pillow and other falling debris land slowly behind Moose as he sits listening to a video with headphones. A light then falls behind him and when he looks at it, it catches on fire; We see a live puma in the store chewing on a plush animal. It startles some people in the store; Porcupine runs through a restaurant and over the top of tables, causing mayhem as she evades people trying to stop her. One man grabs her legs, but she breaks free and steps on his back as she runs away; A cop tackles Porcupine to the ground; A purple wrecking ball breaks through a brick wall; The bullies attack Mel again and rip the whistle off his neck. They then shove him into a janitor’s closet and lock him in there. The bullies see something is pounding on the other side of the door and then it gets knocked down by an animated dragon. It proceeds to run through the school halls, breaking things and making a mess. A teacher comes out of her classroom at one point and is about to scold Mel when the dragon knocks her down back into her classroom, shutting the door behind her; Two characters suddenly vanish in a cloud of dust (which may unsettle some younger viewers); Terry’s tire disappears and her car veers off road (She and Mel are okay though); Gary shackles Harold to a wall. Mel enters the room and Gary shackles him by the wrists as well. Gary then uses the crayon to draw a gigantic sink hole in the floor and it collapses, as does the ceiling; A zipline Harold forges clotheslines Gary, knocking him down; Harold ropes Gary who then cuts it with an ax. Gary then throws the ax at Harold and it sticks into a log that Harold has drawn. Gary then draws a mace and runs at Harold, who blows him away with a big fan; Gary creates a catapult that shoots a large rock at Harold, who creates a gigantic spring, which bounces the rock back into the catapult, destroying it. The spring then acts as a Slinky and knocks Gary down; Gary eats part of a crayon and transforms himself into the character from his book. He then manifests rocks and a large lava pit in the ground, trapping Mel and Terry on a rock surrounded by lava; Carl blows fire at Gary who uses a shield to block it. Gary then throws an object that knocks Carl out of the sky; Gary knocks Porcupine down with a blast of his special powers; Harold sends a spider fly after Gary. It goes into Gary’s mouth. Moose then turns into a moose and charges at Gary, knocking the spider fly out of his mouth; Carl burns a doorway up into ashes.