A day after Steven Spielberg's adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic tale The BFG premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, Disney has released a new trailer and poster to capitalize on the buzz. (You can read our own Talia Soghomonian's review of the film here.) The first reviews for the film are mixed, with The Guardian praising Spielberg's handling of a film of this size with "boldness and sweep," THR calling it a "less captivating, magical and transporting experience" than the writer/director pair of Spielberg and the late Melissa Mathison's similar effort on E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and The Film Stage warning that "those expecting something for the whole family here may feel a little let down." The general consensus seems to be that The BFG is a big, beautiful picture with Spielberg's signature heart, but a poorly paced plod that only gets interesting in the closing half hour.

Starring Ruby Barnhill, Mark Rylance, Bill Hader, Jemaine Clement, Penelope Wilton, and Rebecca Hall, The BFG will play at the Sydney Film Festival this June before beginning its international rollout on June 30th, opening in the U.S. on July 1st.

Watch the new trailer for The BFG below, followed by a new poster:

Disney's The BFG comes to theaters July 1, 2016!

 

The talents of three of the world’s greatest storytellers – Roald Dahl, Walt Disney and Steven Spielberg –finally unite to bring Dahl’s beloved classic “The BFG” to life. Directed by Spielberg, Disney’s “The BFG” tells the imaginative story of a young girl and the Giant who introduces her to the wonders and perils of Giant Country. The BFG (Mark Rylance), while a giant himself, is a Big Friendly Giant and nothing like the other inhabitants of Giant Country. Standing 24-feet tall with enormous ears and a keen sense of smell, he is endearingly dim-witted and keeps to himself for the most part. Giants like Bloodbottler (Bill Hader) and Fleshlumpeater (Jemaine Clement) on the other hand, are twice as big and at least twice as scary and have been known to eat humans, while the BFG prefers Snozzcumber and Frobscottle. Upon her arrival in Giant Country, Sophie, a precocious 10-year-old girl from London, is initially frightened of the mysterious giant who has brought her to his cave, but soon comes to realize that the BFG is actually quite gentle and charming, and, having never met a giant before, has many questions. The BFG brings Sophie to Dream Country where he collects dreams and sends them to children, teaching her all about the magic and mystery of dreams. Having both been on their own in the world up until now, their affection for one another quickly grows, but Sophie’s presence in Giant Country has attracted the unwanted attention of the other giants, who have become increasingly more bothersome. Sophie and the BFG soon depart for London to see the Queen (Penelope Wilton) and warn her of the precarious giant situation, but they must first convince the Queen and her maid, Mary (Rebecca Hall), that giants do indeed exist. Together, they come up with a plan to get rid of the giants once and for all.

As promised, the new poster for The BFG follows below, but if you're interested in finding out more about the film, take a look at our recent coverage first:

the-bfg-ruby-barnhill
Image via Disney
steven-spielberg-the-bfg
Image via Disney

the-bfg-poster