It is not the special effects, although interesting and visually not exceptional but discrete, it is not the extremely suggestive and curated cinematography, as well as original and effective, it is not the directing, intelligent and well studied; in short, it is not the technical sector, however remarkable, that makes this "I Kill Giants" a great movie, but it is something more, something that is more in depth, are the true and sincere feelings that are perceived for a good part of the movie and that make it special despite being almost a genre movie. A movie that proves itself surprisingly mature, even if its appearance says the opposite, and aware of the path and the goals it wants to achieve; this is felt in different scenes that, for this, effect and in different dialogues taken from a screenplay that is not original but that can raise many questions to the viewer during the film, doing so, even if they do not always receive a gratifying answer, this last will be completely immersed in the atmosphere and spirit of the story and can only be involved in it. Also you can very easily get in tune with the protagonist, a young girl who stands out from the many who have already seen in many other films similar to this, thanks to its unique character that makes the character curious and bizarre and, important and rare thing, never predictable, this means that the viewer never loses interest in it. For the rest what to say, there is Zoe Saldana, good as usual, and a really good Imogen Poots, thanks to a role in which she identified herself perfectly. Unfortunately, the film was, nonetheless, anticipated by a marketing campaign that between trailer and poster deceives the public, presenting it as a film that is not, for this reason will be many who, waiting for a pure fantasy, will remain a bit 'disappointed.

I KILL GIANTS is a film that came across to me like a cheap rip-off of the 2014 film A MONSTER CALLS, albeit with a few twists in the premise. It's another young adult movie in which the protagonist (pleasantly sparky) battles the usual school bullies but hides a secret to boot: she's a monster killer whose role is to travel the globe and take down gigantic creatures of legend. There are some fun stabs at folklore here but overall it's a mildly drab affair, perhaps better in premise than it is in execution. Various stars including Zoe Saldana and Jennifer Ehle make little impact, although the kids are good and the CGI is okay. It all becomes quite trite, predictable, and sentimental towards the climax though.

Barbara Thorson is a troubled teen living on the coast of Long Island. Her brother is annoying and her older sister Karen (Imogen Poots) struggles as the new head of the household. She escapes her reality into a fantasy world where she's a giant killer. She's obsessed with an obscure old time baseball player. New girl Sophia from Britain tries to befriend this strange loner. At school, she's bullied by big girl Taylor and school psychiatrist Mrs. Mollé (Zoe Saldana) is concerned.

I generally like this character and this overall story. I like the battle with the bully. There are a few drawbacks which keep me from fully embracing it. Nevertheless, this is a good solid indie fantasy and much better YA than many of its bigger brethren. It has nice ambition even if it's not executed perfectly. I would make Sophia a bigger role. She should be the second character. I know Saldana is the big star but Sophia is naturally the bigger role. They should have more time together. Their closer connection would make her betrayal more powerful. As for the giants, they should be represented in the real world somehow. Barbara should be tilting at windmills in actuality and that would be more compelling. Her battle with the giants should have real world consequences. Her victories should mean victories in the physical world. There is a victory of sorts emotionally but that's not enough. It should be connected to her mother's sickness and her victory should stop others from suffering the same fate. This needs to connect so the payoff would multiply exponential. As it stand, it's a nice little movie.