IF ending explained: Cailey Fleming and Ryan Reynolds’ emotional reunion highlights the importance of childhood wonder

The ending of IF delivers a touching reminder that imaginary friends can always return when we need them most.

IF ending explained

Bea (Cailey Fleming) and Cal (Ryan Reynolds) share a touching embrace in the last moments of IF before she and her father (John Krasinski) depart New York City. Throughout a significant portion of "IF," Bea's dad is at the hospital for an operation. The procedure is successful, with the exception of a major fright at the film's conclusion. Bea and her father eventually depart New York City, but as they pack everything into the car, she accidentally pulls out an old sketch of herself, her parents, and her imaginary friend Calvin—portrayed by Reynolds' IF character Cal—from when she was younger.

Bea's reunion with Cal

After coming to terms with the reality of their connection, Bea quickly returns upstairs, triggering her recollection to reunite with Cal. In his new, brighter clown garb, Cal gives Bea a balloon flower as a greeting, and the film ends with the two of them sharing an embrace. It's an emotionally moving scene that explains many facets of Cal's character and the film's larger themes.

ALSO READ: IF out on OTT in India: Stream John Krasinski’s magical journey feat. Ryan Reynolds on THIS platform

Despite Bea and Cal's separation at the end of IF the film's themes suggest that this may not be their final encounter. A key takeaway from the film is the idea that people might benefit from having an imaginary friend even as they enter adulthood. Even when no one is looking, IFs can provide comfort during difficult times. In the event that Bea requires assistance, Calvin could come back to provide it. It makes no difference whether Calvin stays or leaves New York City; Bea's grandma (Fiona Shaw) still calls it home.

Because of this, going upstairs to Calvin's apartment may be part of any visit to Bea's family. The fact that Cal is truly an IF explains much of his behavior in the film, as well as his invisibility to others. The ending gives Bea and Cal a new lease on life, and it would be fitting if they reunited in the future. It turns out that even Bea's dad is cool with IFs; in fact, by the end of the movie, we learn that Keith (Brad Pitt), who has been invisible the whole time, was actually his IF and had already returned home with them.

Not all of the IFs go home with Bea, but it's obvious that she's had a positive effect on them. Starting with the revelation that Bea's grandmother remembers and can see Blossom (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), we witness several of the IFs reunite with their original folks. In addition to Unicorn (Emily Blunt) and Ally (Maya Rudolph), several minor characters in the film discover that they are the original inhabitants of some IFs and can rejoin their people.

Possibility of future encounters

Even though not every IF gets the chance to reunite with their original person, the film ends with the assumption that retired IFs will continue returning to their people rather than placing them with new children. Benjamin (Alan Kim), who had a bespectacled dragon and couldn't see the other IFs, confirms this. From Blue's (Steve Carell) obvious happiness in boosting Jeremy's (Bobby Moynihan) confidence to the rest of the IFs, it seems like the IFs get some sort of calm by spending time with their original children.

The opening act of IF sets the stage for an unexpected ending. When Bea first meets Calvin and Blue, they are trying to make friends with a new child. Having a structure in place to help the IFs locate new homes outside of the retirement community that Teddy Bear Lewis (Louis Gossett Jr.) built for the elderly is a beneficial idea. Nevertheless, the film ultimately centres around the significance of holding onto a positive imagination, even in adulthood.

This is the crucial lesson that Bea's father wants her to remember, and her experience with the IFs supports this. Returning to their IFs brings true joy to Bea and the other adults. Because kids like Bea and Benjamin can experience and then rediscover their own unique IFs, the film's central message is that play and creativity don't have to be buried or given up. It challenges the assumptions made at the beginning of the film regarding the IFs' potential new dwellings by stating that they already have a home.

Bea's family connection and IFs' importance

The IF finale leaves a lot of room for interpretation, even after the resolution of Bea, Calvin, and the other IFs' emotional arcs. Seeing her grandma in New York City would be a breeze for Bea, and it would also be a wonderful opportunity for her to reconnect with Calvin and the other IFs still living at the retirement home. Nonetheless, the IF universe still has enough unresolved details to make a potential sequel an intriguing prospect. We don't know what happens to IFs as they age, or if they truly disappear. Blue worries that if everyone completely forgets him, he might disappear.

Calvin denies that happens to IFs, but it makes one wonder if they age or die. The greatest approach to dealing with the death of Louis Gossett Jr. who played Lewis, could be to make a sequel that investigates the fate of IFs and their mortality. As Bea matures, her interactions with the IFs may lead her to continue assisting them well into her high school years, providing an ideal context for delving further into IF's central theme of people maintaining their imaginations throughout life.

The IF at the end is a reminder that staying positive and imaginative is crucial, no matter how tough things get. Because of her parents' declining health and her mother's death, Bea has buried her innocent side by the time we meet her in the film. Lewis persuades her that her imagination is still a potent tool, and the other IFs, including Calvin, help bring this back.

Lasting moral message

However, the film doesn't reveal the true impact of the IF and human connection until it reconciles Blossom and Bea's grandma and briefly reunites Blue with Jeremy. No matter how much time passes, the IF conclusion will always remind people of the innocent playfulness that inspired them to build IFs. On occasion, even grownups require them. People should make an effort not to let them go. That's a lovely moral, and it sends a strong message to IF.

You can stream IF on Prime Video in India.

ALSO READ: IF review - John Krasinski's film is a heartwarming invitation to rediscover and cherish your inner child

Share