Producer George Lucas has turned his charms onto the tale “Strange Magic,” a new animated film that is a madcap fairy tale musical inspired by Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Popular songs from the past six decades help tell the tale of a colorful cast of goblins, elves, fairies, and imps, and their hilarious misadventures sparked by the battle over a powerful potion.
This is an original, visionary, animated musical, inspired by a classic tale by William Shakespeare. An assortment of characters, from fairies to goblins to elves, who live in two different worlds, clash over a magical love potion. Their encounter teaches them all that everyone deserves to be loved.
While the story is inspired by Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer’s Night Dream,” George Lucas has adapted this story in a manner that is enjoyable for younger audiences. That’s not an easy task to do, especially when taking on Shakespeare’s work.
The film’s music spans several decades, from nostalgic rock to pop, and includes various love songs. The song choices are perfect for this film. Every song sets the tone for each scene — whether it’s fast-paced action or slower-paced romance. While the songs appear spontaneously, they are where most of the comedy comes from, and the characters poke fun at them from time to time.
It also helps when there are magnificent voice actors portraying the characters. This film has a talented cast, including Alan Cumming, Kristen Chenoweth, Evan Rachel Wood, and Maya Rudolph. I have a huge respect for voice actors because all the character’s emotions comes solely from their voice. In this film, every actor successfully does that.
The animation and design are exquisite. The characters look exactly like something Lucas would create. The forest is literally flourishing with life. We see beautiful fairies and impressive goblins with incredibly rich details showing their scales, teeth, and wings. Plus, their movements are fluid and believable. You are successfully transported into their world.
My favorite character is the Bog King (voiced by Alan Cumming). Not only do I admire the mosquito look of his character, but also the voice actor who plays him. Cumming is a wonderful performer whether he’s on stage or film. He is a capable singer and actor, which he proves again in his portrayal of this character.
My favorite scene is the duel duet between the Bog King and Marianne (Evan Rachel Wood). This is where the animators really show off their skills. The fight is swift and the witty comments between the two characters make the scene even more entertaining.
The message this film stresses is that everyone deserves love. The love potion supposedly makes an admirer’s crush feel the same way towards him. However, through a misunderstanding, the Bog King doesn’t think anyone can love him, even with a love potion.
I give this film 5 out of 5 stars and recommend it to 5- through 18-year-olds. Adults will enjoy this, too. Kids might be amazed by the imaginative animation, and parents can enjoy the blast-from-the-past music.
— Keefer B., age 14
See his video review at: http://youtu.be/aP2CRCoqt-I
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Strange Magic” is an animated film about two worlds: one where there is happiness, singing, and love in the air. In the second world, everything is evil, with mystery around every corner and its leader — a heartless ruler called the Bog King (voice by Alex Cumming), bans all love in his dark world. These two worlds have always been separated until one fairy princess named Marianne (voice by Evan Rachel Wood) crosses the barrier and changes everything.
I have to admit, this movie is different from anything I have ever seen before, but I’m not sure whether that’s a good or bad thing. It is a musical and most of the songs are by popular artists songs and have been on the radio. For example, Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” is featured, and that is something I liked. But, something I am not a fan of is that the film is directed at children, but has some very mature things in it.
This movie is unpredictable, which isn’t a good thing all the time. “Strange Magic” takes a turn so unexpected that I had no idea how it even happened, to be honest. I don’t even know how it got to where it ended. It all went so fast that I didn’t get time to understand what was happening at the moment. Other times, it is kind of cool seeing what is happening next. But overall, I didn’t exactly like how things move so fast, and I never really got the concept of what was going on.
One thing that I love about “Strange Magic” is that the characters are different. There are fairies, goblins, and imps. I really liked that mythical feel.
This movie may look like it’s for kids, but trust me, it’s not. There are things that I didn’t even understand, so I doubt that kids younger than me will understand what is happening. There are also some mature scenes in the movie that made me unsure if it is kid-friendly or not. For example, the husband cheats on his wife on their wedding day. That happened within the first 20 minutes of the movie.
I am recommending this movie for ages 10 to 13, because it still has a kid-friendly touch that would draw little kids in. But, like I said, it does have some mature scenes. I am giving this movie 3 out of 5 stars, because it isn’t something I liked, but I know that some kids would. Gary Rydstrom, the director, and George Lucas, the producer-writer, do a good job on this film, but it is just not something I personally enjoyed.
— Samantha A., age 11
See her video review at: http://youtu.be/SsnwrNWr2Rg
