A Fairly Odd Movie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner!

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A Fairly Odd Movie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner!
"I wish that this movie was never made!" - Timmy Turner
Genre: Comedy
Fantasy
Directed by: Savage Steve Holland
Written by: Butch Hartman
Scott Fellows
Based on: The Fairly OddParents by Butch Hartman
Starring: Drake Bell
Daniella Monet
Daran Norris
Susanne Blakeslee
Tara Strong
Steven Weber
Jason Alexander
Cheryl Hines
Teryl Rothery
Mark Gibbon
David Lewis
Devon Weigel
Jesse Reid
Chris Anderson
Photography: Color
Distributed by: Paramount Home Entertainment
Release date: July 9, 2011
Runtime: 75 minutes (original airing)
90 minutes (extended cut)
60 minutes (re-airings)
Country: United States
Franchise: The Fairly OddParents (2001-2017)
Sequel: A Fairly Odd Christmas


A Fairly Odd Movie: Grow Up, Timmy Turner! is a made-for-TV movie by Nickelodeon and a live-action adaptation of the Nickelodeon animated series The Fairly OddParents with the characters being played by real actors. This movie premiered on July 9, 2011, on Nickelodeon as part of the tenth-anniversary celebration of The Fairly OddParents.

The movie also received two sequels, A Fairly Odd Christmas and A Fairly Odd Summer, released in 2012 and 2014 respectively.

Plot

Life is pretty magical for 23-year-old Timmy. He's managed to avoid all sorts of responsibilities by staying a kid at heart. He's even maintained his 5th-grade status to keep his Fairy Godparents, Wanda, Cosmo, and Poof! But when Timmy's childhood friend, Tootie, returns to town, Timmy is forced to deal with new crush feelings for the once-dorky-now-gorgeous Tootie. Will, he have to (*gasp!*) grow up?? But what would happen to his Fairy Godparents?? Tough questions for Timmy, but that's nothing compared to his big-time battle with power-hungry evil business trying to take over his beloved Dimmsdale! It just might be time for Timmy Turner to do some growing up.

Why It's Not Magical and Broke Da Rules of Good Cinema

  1. Mediocre story with a great concept poorly executed.
  2. Weak CGI animation (by The Animation Picture Company (who also animated Garfield Gets Real). Timmy's fairy godparents, while accurate, look quite ugly in their fairy forms, as Cosmo and Wanda's character models were ripped right out of the Jimmy Timmy Power Hour crossover specials.
    • Speaking of that, if Jorgen is a fairy too, why is he live-action and not in CGI like Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof?
    • It would've worked better if the movie was a mix between live-action and 2D animation used for the fairies, like in The Fairly OddParents: Fairly Odder.
  3. Hugh J. Magnate is a bland and mediocre villain.
  4. Terrible special effects that look fake.
  5. Poor grasp of the source material despite being written by Butch Hartman, the show's creator and Scott Fellows: in the cartoon, when a child turns 18, the Fairy Taxi comes to take their fairy godparents back to Fairy World, and if they refuse to go and try to resist, then the Fairy Taxi pulls out a magnet that attracts fairies to take them away immediately, but in this movie, a child only loses their fairy godparents when they receive their love's first kiss, and their fairy godparents automatically disappear and then go back to Fairy World, which means if a child doesn't receive their love's first kiss, they can keep their fairy godparents for the rest of their life.
    • Speaking of which, the "fall in love and lose your fairies" rule doesn't make any sense, as Timmy fell in love with other girls in the show, and he was never at the risk of losing his fairy godparents, so why does this rule now apply all of a sudden?
    • It didn't help that this movie was made around the same time when the show started to decline in quality.
  6. The live-action characters like Vicky or Jorgen Von Strangle barely resemble their cartoon counterparts. Even Tootie looks nothing like her cartoon counterpart, but more like Trixie Tang.
    • The few flashback scenes that show Tootie as a kid clearly show Daniella Monet with Tootie's glasses and pigtails instead of getting a child actor to play the role like with the pictures of younger Timmy Turner.
  7. On that note, everyone acts like Tootie was Timmy's only love interest, although he had at least two love interests in the cartoon, one of them being Trixie Tang, who isn't even mentioned in the film, and it's never explained what happened to her.
  8. Sometimes, Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof don't even bother to disguise themselves in public, and even then, no one seems to notice them.
  9. Some poor casting choices, like Jason Alexander as Cosmo's human form, Jesse Reid as A.J., and Daniella Monet as Tootie.
  10. Terrible acting from pretty much everyone, with the exceptions of Drake Bell, Daniella Monet, and David Lewis.
  11. Plot hole: How was Timmy able to wish up girlfriends for Chester and A.J. if Da Rules say that magic can't create or interfere with true love?
  12. This movie contradicts the events of the TV special "Channel Chasers", where Timmy grew up and lost his fairies. In the movie, however, he kept his fairies due to acting like a child and did not act selfishly or use them for selfish purposes.
    • Not to mention, Jorgen inventing the Timmy Turner loophole and giving Timmy his fairies back after he lost them due to kissing Tootie and growing up is a huge deus ex machina, and it undermines what would've been a powerful and emotional scene where Timmy's fairies say goodbye to their godchild before disappearing.
  13. Just like Fred: The Movie, this movie would later get two sequels in 2012 and 2014 respectively, neither of which were remotely good.

Redeeming Qualities

  1. The concept of an adult Timmy Turner having to leave childhood, say goodbye to his fairies, and assume the responsibilities of adulthood had the potential to be a fantasy-themed equivalent to Toy Story 3. Although the concept has been poorly executed, sadly.
  2. While not perfect, the performances of Drake & Josh's Drake Bell and Victorious' Daniella Monet as Timmy and Tootie respectively are pretty good.
    • The love relationship between Timmy and Tootie is also pretty good and has some cute moments.
  3. Most of the actors imitate the voice actors from the original show very well, especially David Lewis mimicking Carlos Alazraqui's Crocker voice nearly flawlessly.
    • The voice actors for Cosmo, Wanda, and Poof reprise their roles from the cartoon. Daran Norris also plays the role of Timmy's dad like in the Nicktoon.
  4. At times, it feels like an episode of the original Nicktoon, particularly in the opening where Timmy fights off a bunch of pirates.
  5. The soundtrack is pretty good, as it is composed by Guy Moon, the same composer of the original show.
  6. Poof speaking in Randy Jackson's voice is somewhat funny.
  7. Some of the characters' personalities, such as Timmy, his fairies, his parents, Tootie, and Mr. Crocker, are consistent with the earlier seasons:
    • Timmy, despite his childlike ways at first, is not selfish, as he does do some good things like restoring the park and saving Tootie. He also spends time with Tootie as his crush on her grows, becoming a good boyfriend to her, and being honest with her about his fairies once she finds out.
    • Tootie gets character growth that changes her from a creepy, childish, and obsessive little girl into a mature, smart, and beautiful young woman with an improved personality, and her crush on Timmy is now on a good level and is a good girlfriend to him. Even though Tootie in this movie does not look like her cartoon counterpart, to be fair, she already become a grown woman who likely wears contacts instead of glasses and does not need dental braces anymore as she has matured over the years, unlike Timmy who she met again at their first encounter during a protest.
  8. It's nice to see Tootie for the last time in the series before being forgotten in the last two seasons of the main cartoon and the live-action sitcom series.

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