THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE movie poster | ©2026 Vertical Entertainment

Rating: PG
Stars: Andrew Garfield, Clare Foy, Nonso Anozie, Nicola Coughlan, Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Billie Gadsdon, Phoenix Laroche, Dustin Demri-Burns, Jessica Gunning, Hiran Abeysekera, Mark Heap, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Oliver Chris, Lenny Henry, Michael Palin, Simon Russell Beale, Jennifer Saunders, Rebecca Ferguson, Judi Dench (voice)
Writer: Simon Farnaby, based on the novels by Enid Blyton
Director: Ben Gregor
Distributor: Vertical Entertainment
Release Date: August 21, 2026

Enid Blyton was a highly successful writer of children’s literature in the first half of the twentieth century. THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE, directed by Ben Gregor and scripted by Simon Farnaby, is based on a series of Blyton’s fantasy novels.

Although the new film of THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE is set in the present, with cellphones, PlayStations and smart fridges (voiced by Judi Dench, no less), Gregor and Farnaby have captured the timeless feel of the original era’s fiction for youngsters.

Polly (Clare Foy) and Timothy Thompson (Andrew Garfield) are the loving parents of three children, tween Beth (Delilah Bennett-Cardy), preteen Joe (Phoenix Laroche) and eight-year-old Fran (Billie Gadston), none of whom can be pried away from their devices at the dinner table.

Polly is an inventor, while Tim is a stay-at-home dad. But when Polly quits her job over a matter of principle, her erstwhile employers take away the family house and car. Timothy persuades Polly to follow one of their youthful dreams and move the family back to the rural countryside where he grew up. He’ll grow tomatoes, sell his special pasta sauce, and they’ll be able to buy the super-inexpensive home he’s found for them.

The home turns out to be a barn. Beth and Joe are completely horrified, although little Fran sees possibilities in her father’s tales of the nearby “enchanted” forest.

When Fran reflexively does a kindness for the fairy Silky (Nicola Coughlan), Silky invites the child to the Magic Faraway Tree. This is the home of fairies and the temporary resting place for other lands, like the Land of Goodies, the Land of Birthdays and so on.

Fran is delighted with her new friends and adventures. Her parents are thrilled that at least one of their offspring is having a good time. Thinking Fran has simply been exploring the woods (sans fairies), Timothy and Polly insist that she bring her siblings with her for safety’s sake. When Beth and Joe are finally bored enough to agree to accompany Fran into the forest – anything to get out of the barn, which is steadily being refurbished – they too encounter the Magic Faraway Tree.

The fairies and their environments are charming, if a bit retro; there’s a sequence with elves that has what sounds like ‘70s disco. Some sets and special effects are more successful than others. There’s a supernatural trader’s shop that’s intriguingly crammed. For that matter, once the barn has been made habitable, it looks downright beckoning.

The cast is all very game, with Garfield and Foy radiating goodness, Gadsdon a standout as the thoughtful Fran, and Bennett-Cardy the epitome of understated British tween snark.

The filmmakers may be a little too faithful in tone to the original material for a lot of today’s kids, who are used to high jeopardy and high stakes in their fantasy. Indeed, the movie feels rather like the indie children’s fare of the ‘60s and ‘70s. THE MAGICAL FARAWAY TREE has fairies and elves, but no kingdoms are at risk.

The scariest characters are an unhinged schoolteacher (Rebecca Ferguson) and a disapproving grandmother (Jennifer Saunders). Then again, since these are figures children can recognize from real life, maybe they register as dangerous after all. A fairy is in peril at one point, but the biggest threats seem to be disappointment, failure, and misunderstandings. We can tell from the overall atmosphere that THE MAGICAL FARAWAY TREE believes in happy endings.

In her day, Blyton was criticized for being racist, sexist and classist. THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE scrupulously avoids being any of those things. Garfield may annoy Italians when his otherwise English Timothy uses an accent to discuss his tomatoes, but otherwise, the movie is inclusive.

THE MAGIC FARAWAY TREE is in no way cool, but for preteens who enjoy reading fairytales and OZ books, it may be playful, escapist fun.

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