Review: Family-friendly folklore ‘Jesse and The Elf Boy’ is available now.

A teenager becomes a renowned hairstylist with the help of an unexpected friend – a forest elf.

Inspired by Scottish legend, this feel-good comedy follows the antics of the solitary forest elf Ghillie Dhu who becomes friends with a girl lost in the woods. When she is unexpectedly whisked away by her mother, a forlorn Ghillie sets out on a quest to find his lost companion. Years later, in the city, Ghillie meets Jessie Macrae, a plucky teenager determined to win favor with her high-flying mother by becoming a renowned hairstylist. When Jessie discovers that Ghillie has a gift for hairstyling, they strike up a unique partnership which causes chaos for the manager of the chic hair salon and catapults Jessie to fame. Thanks to Ghillie, Jessie’s dreams are within reach, but will this meeting of two worlds be enough to overcome the deep hurts of broken relationships through the generations?


A spirited, family-friendly film with notes of Peter Pan whimsy, Jesse and the Elf Boy brings laughter and unexpected depth. The script is a sweet story of friendship, loyalty, family dynamics, and a bit of magic. 

While perhaps a tad random, with the premise that Jesse is a hairstylist, the film has a similar vibe to Edward Scissorhands with a touch of Rumplestiltskin. Performances illicit genuinely laugh-out-loud moments. The script teems with kooky, larger-than-life characters that will make audiences, young and old, giggle. The score from David Shaw is lovely. The standout costume belongs to Ghillie Dhu. It perfectly evokes a childlike wonder, if not a bit noisy for the sound editing. Whittle dons it with an ease that makes it believable.  

Julia Brown is phenomenally charming as Jesse. Her chemistry with Whittle makes for an easy watch. Speaking of our other titular character, Huck Whittle plays Ghillie with a darling innocence. Reminiscent of Jeremy Sumpter in Peter Pan (2003), Whittle is a star.

Getting to the main plot of a mother-daughter reconnection is a bit convoluted, as there are a handful of subplots. But, if you let that go, you’ll be completely charmed. The final reveal makes any inconsistencies worth the watch. 


https://fellowshipfilm.com/


About Liz Whittemore

Liz grew up in northern Connecticut and was memorizing movie dialogue from Shirley Temple to A Nightmare on Elm Street at a very early age. She will watch just about any film all the way through (no matter how bad) just to prove a point. A loyal New Englander, a lover of Hollywood, and true inhabitant of The Big Apple.

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