Madeline

Madeline
by Daisy von Scherler Mayer

Madeline
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DVD details

Actor: Christopher Plummer, Frances McDormand, Nigel Hawthorne, Stevie Vallance, Tracey Lee Smythe
Director: Daisy von Scherler Mayer
Brand: MCDORMAND,FRANCES
Producer: Allyn Stewart
Producer: Pancho Kohner
Producer: Saul Cooper
Writer: Jennifer Flackett
Writer: Ludwig Bemelmans
Writer: Malia Scotch Marmo
Writer: Mark Levin
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Anamorphic, Color, Dolby, Full Screen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 89 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1998-12-15
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Platform: Mac
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

DVD Reviews of Madeline

DVD Review: Sweet and Charming Children's Movie
Summary: 4 Stars

Madeline is a slight but utterly charming film taken from the children's books by Ludwig Bemelmas. It does not possess the dramatic content of The Secret Garden or A Little Princess, but it's free of the cynicism of the modern five-year old, as in The Rugrats Movie. It has an innocence which is downright old-fashioned. I liked it, and I am cynical and somewhat over the age of five.

Aren't the best stories about little girls often about orphans? That's what bright, adorable eight-year old Madeline is, as are her eleven schoolmates in a small private school in Paris. Usually the students dress alike, but they have several outfits. There are some wonderfully colorful scenes of the young ladies exploring the City of Lights. All have distinct personalities, which causes them to disagree on many subjects. This makes for some charming bits of dialog.

In charge of this group is the wise and tolerant nun, Miss Clavell, and the cold, lonely Lord Covington, whom the girls refer to by such names as Lord Coo Coo Face. These two characters are played by an American treasure, Francis McDormand, and a British one, Nigel Hawthorne. McDormand won an Oscar for Best Actress in Fargo, while Hawthorne was nominated for Best Actor in The Madness of King George. This picture is more of a holiday than an acting job for these major talents, but it's always nice to see them.

Madeline is spirited and exuberant. She gets into one mess after another. She winds up in the hospital, falls into the River Seine, nearly destroys the Spanish Embassy, smuggles a dog into the school and finds herself accidentally kidnapped by circus clowns. As directed by Daisy Von Scherler Mayer and portrayed by the delightful Hatty Jones, Madeline is never seen as a bad girl. She's simply a very bright and curious one.

The plot may be old hat and predictable, but the film is handled in such a light and lyrical style that I doubt many children will care. It's so professionally done that most adults caught having to sit through it should find it a pleasant hour and a half. Filmed on location in Paris, it is indeed lovely to look at.

Madeline got overlooked at the boxoffice in a very crowded 1998. Besides the already mentioned Rugrats, we were treated to three other animated film events - Antz, A Bug's Life and The Prince of Egypt. Hopefully, the less ambitious Madeline will find the audience it deserves on DVD.

Rated PG for a reason called "momentary language". If anyone knows what this phrase means, please let me know.

More Madeline reviews:
1 2 3 4 5 6

Description of Madeline

Adventures of Madeline, a Parisian schoolgirl with a mind of her own.
Genre: Feature Film Family
Rating: PG
Release Date: 1-FEB-2005
Media Type: DVD
The schoolgirl adventures of Madeline, a flame-haired orphan, are lovingly adapted from Ludwig Bemelmans's classic children's books. His sly and witty writing is transferred to this first-rate film, one that should not be thought of merely as childhood entertainment. Spunky Madeline is most adept at finding trouble. She is also a quick-witted and likable child who can solve almost any problem. Her latest scheme is to keep her school, which is also her home, from being sold by its owner, the recently widowed Lord Covington (Nigel Hawthorne). Unlike most youthful movie fare, this adventure boasts high production values that wisely include colorful Parisian locations. Hatty Jones is all spunky self-sufficiency and sweet innocence in the title role, and Frances McDormand is quite humorous as the stern school-mistress, Miss Clavel. --Rochelle O'Gorman

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