A Tooth Fairy Tale Film Analysis: Cartoon Adventure with a Sprinkling of Kid-Appropriate Preteen Love Story
Throughout this cartoon adventure for preteens, the world of fairies focuses on collecting teeth from slumbering youngsters and leaving treasure under their pillows. Skateboarding teenage rebel fairy Van (brought to life by Booboo Stewart) is less than thrilled about spending his future to gathering baby teeth—a feeling that’s completely understandable. He’s only a bit more interested in the underlying economics of the situation: the fairies hand over the molars to mysterious goblins, who provide metal in exchange. But Van’s curiosity is piqued when he spots a goblin (voiced by Larkin Bell), who turns out to be not at all the ugly gnome he expected.
A Forbidden Connection and Shared Threat
Everything is prepared for an adventure with a light sprinkling of teen romance (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 bring people together. The two species portrayed in the film are remarkably alike, yet both maintain biased views about the other. The fairies are said to be entitled sorts, prone to taking whatever they fancy, while goblins are reportedly dim-witted, smelly, and primitive, but are in fact intelligent and technologically advanced.
Naturally, such a setup requires a shared foe to join forces against, and that need is met by a group of vicious spiders, voiced by Jon Lovitz and Fran Drescher. There’s no beating about the bush with these guys: they want to eat the fairies and goblins, and they serve as quite savage, if not especially competent, villains.
Target Audience and Final Thoughts
There aren’t all that many animated films targeting the viewer group that is beginning to have early romances, but aren’t yet old enough for the content 14-year-olds view these days in lieu of Twilight. If your child is in the right age bracket, it probably won’t to be their next all-time fave, but it’s a decent choice.
A Tooth Fairy Tale releases in Scottish cinemas starting October 10 and the rest of the UK from 24 October.
