🌈Fairyland (2025) – A Poetic Journey Through Love, Loss, and Liberation

“Love is not always easy to define — sometimes, it’s a story you live before you understand it.”

That’s the quiet heartbeat of Fairyland (2025) — a tender, deeply personal coming-of-age drama that explores the bond between a father and daughter against the backdrop of 1970s San Francisco.

Directed by Andrew Durham in his feature debut and produced by Sofia Coppola, this lyrical film is based on Alysia Abbott’s acclaimed memoir Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father. Starring Emilia Jones, Scoot McNairy, Maria Bakalova, Cody Fern, and Geena Davis, the film glows with warmth, heartbreak, and human truth.

Premiering at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and finally released theatrically on October 10, 2025, by Lionsgate and Willa, Fairyland feels like a film both timeless and urgently alive.

🕊️ The Story – Between Grief and Growing Up

“You can’t protect someone from the world if the world is inside them.”

After her mother’s sudden death in a car accident, young Alysia Abbott (Emilia Jones) moves with her father Steve (Scoot McNairy) to San Francisco in the early 1970s — a city bursting with art, activism, and self-discovery.

Steve is openly gay, trying to embrace his freedom after years of repression. But that freedom comes at a cost — his bohemian lifestyle often clashes with the responsibilities of fatherhood.

Alysia grows up amidst the colorful chaos of queer culture and the looming shadow of the AIDS epidemic. As she watches her father’s generation struggle and fall, she learns about love, loss, and resilience in ways no child should have to.

The film gracefully transitions from childhood wonder to adult reckoning, painting a portrait of a family that defies norms yet clings to each other through it all.

🎭 Performances – Heartfelt and Honest

Emilia Jones (known for CODA) shines as Alysia — vulnerable, confused, and fiercely loving. Her performance captures the delicate tension of growing up too fast yet holding onto innocence.

Scoot McNairy delivers a soul-stirring turn as Steve Abbott — poet, activist, and father navigating his own identity. His performance is both heartbreaking and liberating, embodying a man who loves his daughter as deeply as he loves his right to be free.

Supporting performances by Cody Fern, Maria Bakalova, Adam Lambert, and Geena Davis add depth and texture to the emotional tapestry, each playing characters who remind Alysia — and the audience — that family can take many forms.

🎬 Direction & Cinematic Style

For his debut, Andrew Durham brings the eye of a photographer and the soul of a poet. His camera lingers lovingly on San Francisco’s alleys, murals, and late-afternoon sunlight — capturing a city that feels like a living metaphor for freedom and fragility.

Greta Zozula’s cinematography glows with nostalgic warmth, while Michael Penn’s score adds an intimate melancholy that never overwhelms.

Producer Sofia Coppola’s influence is palpable too — her signature sensitivity to memory, youth, and identity flows through every frame.

💫 Themes – Love, Liberation, and Legacy

At its heart, Fairyland is about unconditional love in an imperfect world. It captures the bittersweet beauty of a relationship that grows through misunderstanding and grief.

One of the film’s most poignant moments comes when Alysia tells her father:

“You taught me how to live honestly — even when it hurt.”

🍿 Reception – A Poignant Gem from Lionsgate & Willa

Following its Sundance debut, Fairyland received widespread critical acclaim for its performances and emotional resonance.

• Rotten Tomatoes: 97% (Average Rating: 6.5/10)

• Metacritic: 68/100 (“Generally Favorable”)

Critics praised Durham’s emotional restraint and the film’s heartfelt intimacy. The consensus reads:

“Drawing on one family’s real-life experiences, Fairyland pays poignant tribute to love and resilience in the face of adversity and tragedy.”

🎥 Behind the Scenes

• Director: Andrew Durham

• Based on: Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father by Alysia Abbott

• Producers: Sofia Coppola, Roman Coppola, Andrew Durham, Megan Carlson

• Cinematography: Greta Zozula

• Music: Michael Penn

• Runtime: 114 minutes

• Languages: English, French

• Distribution: Lionsgate & Willa

• Production Companies: American Zoetrope

⭐ Verdict – A Quiet Masterpiece

Fairyland isn’t loud or flashy — it’s a whisper that lingers. It’s a memory written in sunlight and loss, a love letter to queer parents, and a reflection on what it means to grow up in someone else’s shadow — and then find your own light.

⭐ Rating: 8.5/10A tender, nostalgic, and deeply human film that captures the complexities of love, family, and identity.

📅 Release Details

• Premiere: January 20, 2023 (Sundance Film Festival)

• Theatrical Release: October 10, 2025 (U.S.)

• Streaming: Expected to release on Lionsgate+ and Hulu in late 2025

❓ FAQs About Fairyland (2025)

Q1. Is Fairyland based on a true story?

Yes, it’s based on Alysia Abbott’s memoir, which recounts her real-life relationship with her father, writer and activist Steve Abbott.

Q2. Who plays the father and daughter?

Scoot McNairy portrays Steve Abbott, while Emilia Jones plays his daughter Alysia.

Q3. What themes does the film explore?

It explores grief, queer identity, family bonds, and the AIDS crisis — all through the lens of love and resilience.

Q4. Is the film available for streaming?

It premiered theatrically on October 10, 2025, and will soon be available to stream on Lionsgate+ and Hulu.

Q5. How was the film received by critics?

With a 97% Rotten Tomatoes score, critics praised its sincerity, performances, and emotional depth.

🌈 Final Thoughts

Fairyland is more than a film — it’s a diary of love and loss, a portrait of a time when being yourself was both revolutionary and dangerous.

Through Alysia and Steve’s story, we’re reminded that love doesn’t always fit the mold — but it always finds a way to survive.

“We lived in a world that didn’t always love us back,” Steve says softly, “but we made it beautiful anyway.”