I DID NOT HAVE AN IMAGINARY friend growing up, unless you count my special stuffed animals. My first was a monkey that was handed down to me from generations before. When I had him, his name was Zippy, he got a new set of red overalls, but there was nothing to be done about his missing finger. Everywhere I went I had Zippy by my side; we were inseparable. Though he was a good listener, he never solved any of my questions; however, he was such a good companion who never woke me up at night when we slept together. He also was never jealous because I had received other stuffed animals who after time wound up sleeping with Zippy and me. When I look back at this time, I guess I can say these animals were my first friends. One other thing I distinctly remember is I never introduced or let other kids play with my stuffed animals. You could say I was very possessive of them. Where I never carried them out of the house, I had a neighbor friend down the street from us who brought his imaginary friend with him whenever we were outside playing. The only time where it was challenging having his imaginary friend play with us was during a game of tag; otherwise, my friend usually kept his friend always by his side.      THE STRONG CONNECTION I HAD TO my stuffed animals gave me the opportunity to explore and appreciate more the things around me. Many a time I would have Zippy with me when I saw something new and exciting outside my bedroom window or even on the television. Sharing that moment together, I believe, solidified my sense of wonder with the world. I do not know if I was braver because of him, but I do know I enjoyed sharing new experiences. That sense of wonder has stayed with me for all these past decades. Visiting the only palace on US soil and discovering it was the first place in the United States, four years ahead of the White House, to have electric lighting; or visiting a butterfly sanctuary and discovering all different types of butterflies were moments that filled me with such wonder that I still remember them to this day, many years later. I hope I never lose that sense of wonder. Because of it, I succeeded in seeing all fifty US states, where I always found something that brought me a sense of wonder and excitement/joy. Having had experience with imaginary friends when I was incredibly young, there was no way I wanted to miss this animated dramatic comedy.      HAVING ALREADY LOST ONE PARENT, WITH the other needing a major medical operation, a young girl must stay with her grandmother who lives in an apartment building in the city. Early on, the young girl discovers there are other residents that only she can see. With Cailey Fleming (Peppermint, Star Wars franchise) as Bea, Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool franchise, The Adam Project) as Cal, John Krasinski (A Quiet Place franchise, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan-TV) as Dad, Fiona Shaw (Harry Potter franchise, Killing Eve-TV) as Grandmother and Liza Colon-Zayas (The Bear-TV, Naked Singularity) as Janet; the idea for the story was great, but the script needed a couple of rewrites. With beautiful animation and an all star cast of voices, I was disappointed in the blandness of the script. For the first half of the film, I was bored. It really was a shame because I thought Cailey and Ryan did a wonderful job of acting. With a good dose of imagination and its touching story, this movie could have been better. I had to wonder if it was because John was both writer and director, besides his acting role that it was too much to manage, causing for a thin story line. Maybe because I still have such a keen sense of wonder, I was expecting more from this picture. There was a brief non-verbal scene honoring the late Louis Gossett Jr at the end of the closing credits. 

2 stars