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The Princess and the Goblin (film)

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The Princess and the Goblin
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJózsef Gémes
Screenplay byRobin Lyons
Based onThe Princess and the Goblin
by George MacDonald
Produced byRobin Lyons
Starring
Edited byMagda Hap
Music byIstván Lerch
Production
companies
Distributed byUnited States
Hemdale Communications
J&M Entertainment
United Kingdom:
Entertainment Film Distributors[1][2]
Hungary:
Budapest Film[2]
Release dates
  • December 20, 1991 (1991-12-20) (Hungary)
  • December 18, 1992 (1992-12-18) (United Kingdom)
  • June 3, 1994 (1994-06-03) (United States)
Running time
82 minutes
CountriesHungary
United Kingdom
LanguagesEnglish
Welsh
Hungarian
Budget$10 million[3][4]
Box office$2,105,078

The Princess and the Goblin (Hungarian: A hercegnő és a kobold) is a 1991 animated fantasy film directed by József Gémes and written by Robin Lyons, an adaptation of George MacDonald's 1872 novel of the same name.[5]

When a peaceful kingdom is menaced by an army of monstrous goblins, a brave and beautiful princess joins forces with a resourceful peasant boy to rescue the noble king and all his people. The lucky pair must battle the evil power of the wicked goblin prince armed only with the gift of song, the miracle of love, and a magical shimmering thread.

Plot

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In a mountainous kingdom, the widowed King leaves to attend affairs of the state, leaving his little daughter, Princess Irene, with her nursemaid. When Irene is on an outing, she becomes lost in a forest. Deformed animals corner her until a strange singing drives them away. The singing is a young boy, Curdie, the son of a miner, who informs her that the monsters were goblins and are driven away by singing. Everyone except the King (who believed them to be just old miners tales) and his family know of the goblins.

The next day, Irene discovers a magical secret door in her bedroom. She ventures into a tower and meets the spirit of her Great-Great-Grandmother, also called Irene. Grandmother informs the young princess that she will soon be in grave danger. The same day, Curdie and his father are in the mines, and Curdie falls through a pothole and into the realm of the goblins. Hidden, he follows the goblins to a vast cavern where the Goblin King and malevolent Goblin Queen are announcing their scheme to flood the mines and drown humans. Prince Froglip, the spoiled and infantile heir to the goblin throne, states the humans exiling the goblins underground centuries ago and have a plan of revenge.

Curdie escapes and warns his father, who then plans to investigate the goblin kingdom himself. Instead, Curdie sneaks out that night and returns to the goblin realm to find out more about their plans, hearing Froglip's plan is that he shall abduct the Princess and marry her, thereby forcing the humans to accept the goblins as their rulers. However, the goblins discover him and trap him in a makeshift dungeon. That same night, Irene and Turnip follow a magic invisible thread given to her by her grandmother, and are led to Curdie. Irene frees Curdie and together they escape the goblins. The miners are warned of the flooding plan and begin erecting supports to keep the tunnels free of water.

The goblins launch their attack on the castle from a hidden tunnel and quickly gain the upper hand. After Curdie shows the people of the kingdom how to fight the goblins — namely, by stomping their feet and singing — they manage to successfully chase them out of the castle. However, as the goblins retreat, they unleash the floodwaters in a last-ditch effort to wipe out the humans.

Curdie realizes that if the miners are successful, the water will have nowhere to go but up and end up flooding the castle. He tries to get everyone to leave and finds Irene being held captive by Froglip. At that moment, the floodwaters arrive and wash them to the ramparts. Curdie and Irene is on the edge and Froglip shows up to get Irene. With Irene's help, Curdie is able to knock Froglip off of the castle to his demise, saving the kingdom. As the water recedes, the people of the kingdom celebrate their victory in song.

Cast

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  • Sally Ann Marsh – Princess Irene, the sweet and courageous princess of the castle.
  • Peter Murray – Curdie, a mining warrior boy (Paul Keating did his singing voice).
  • Rik Mayall – Prince Froglip, the evil Goblin Prince.
  • Claire Bloom – Great-Great-Grandmother Irene.
  • Joss Ackland – King Papa, Irene's father.
  • William Hootkins – Peter, Curdie's father.
  • Roy Kinnear – Mump. This was Kinnear's final screen role released, following his death on September 20, 1988.
  • Robin Lyons – Goblin King, Froglip's father.
  • Peggy Mount – Goblin Queen, Froglip's mother. This was Mount's final film role.
  • Victor Spinetti – Glump.
  • Mollie Sugden – Lootie, Irene's nanny.

Production

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The Princess and the Goblin was the first animated feature from Wales, and the 25th full-length cartoon from Hungary.[6] The film was produced by the Welsh television station S4C, and the Cardiff-based Siriol studio,[7] along with Hungary's Pannonia and Japan's NHK. Costing $10 million,[4] the film teamed producer/screenwriter Robin Lyons with director József Gémes (from 1975's Hugo the Hippo, 1982's Heroic Times and 1988's Willy the Sparrow).[4] Most of the principal animation was produced at the Siriol facilities.[8]

Release

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Originally released in late 1991 in Hungary, it was released in 1992 and 1993 across Europe. The Princess and the Goblin was picked up for North American release by Hemdale Communications for a summer release in 1994. The film was a critical and commercial failure there, only grossing US$2.1 million from 795 venues, being overshadowed by the release of The Lion King.[9] Coincidentally, this film's star Rik Mayall had been asked by Tim Rice to audition for The Lion King for the roles of Banzai, Zazu and Timon.

Reception

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Halliwell's Film Guide deemed it an "Uninteresting animated feature, with a dull fairy-tale plot dully executed."[1] The New York Times wrote "If 'The Princess and the Goblin' is mildly diverting children's fare, its characters are not sharply focused visually or verbally. In a cinema that teems with terrifying monsters, the goblins appear to be ineffectual and unmenacing even when they are on the warpath."[10]

Rita Kempley of the Washington Post wrote that the movie set a standard as far beneath that of Aladdin.[11]

In a desperate attempt to counter its bad reviews, Hemdale asked several movie critics to view the film with their children and asked those children for their comments on the film; these were subsequently included in its newspaper promotion. Mentioned in the advertisements were Michael Medved's daughter, Sarah, and Bob Campbell's four-year-old daughter ("It gets 91 stars!"). The idea came from Hemdale executives who thought animated films from the Disney company were preferred over those from other studios.[4][3]

The Princess and the Goblin received a Seal of Approval from the Dove Foundation, and the Film Advisory Board's Award of Excellence. It also won the Best Children's Film Award at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival.[4]

Home media

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Hemdale Home Video premiered the movie on VHS sometime after its theatrical outing. The home video release included an advertisement in which an actress portraying Irene's grandmother offered children an emergency pre-paid phone card. The card would allow children who were lost or in danger to make use of payphones to call for help, and also hear recorded messages from characters containing safety tips and advice.

It was released on DVD on 15 August 2005 by Allumination FilmWorks.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Gritten, David, ed. (2007). "The Princess and the Goblin". Halliwell's Film Guide 2008. Hammersmith, London: HarperCollins Publishers. p. 946. ISBN 978-0-00-726080-5.
  2. ^ a b "Credits list for The Princess and the Goblin". Yahoo! Movies. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  3. ^ a b Robert W. Welkos (5 June 1994). "CRITICAL CHILDREN : Maybe They Should Ask Princess Di's Kids Too". Los Angeles Times.
  4. ^ a b c d e Beck, Jerry (2005). "The Princess and the Goblin". The Animated Movie Guide. Chicago Reader Press. pp. 213–214. ISBN 1-55652-591-5.
  5. ^ Lenburg, Jeff (1999). The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons. Checkmark Books. p. 199. ISBN 0-8160-3831-7. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  6. ^ Lendvai, Erzsi. "A magyar animációs film" (in Hungarian). Filmkultura. Archived from the original on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  7. ^ "The Princess and the Goblin". Toonhound. Archived from the original on 11 February 2008. Retrieved 15 February 2008.
  8. ^ "Review of The Princess and the Goblin". TV Guide. Lions Gate Entertainment. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2008.
  9. ^ "Box office information for The Princess and the Goblin". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 18 December 2008. Retrieved 15 February 2008.
  10. ^ "Movie Reviews - The New York Times". The New York Times. 18 January 2022. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  11. ^ "The Princess and the Goblin (G)". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2 May 2016.
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