Customer Reviews

Dazzle [VHS]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It is amusing that the one reviewer was turned off by the fact that this movie, The Fairy Princess, should have fairies in it. The movie is in fact fast-paced with the plot taking a new direction every few minutes. If you're bored by this, you should be playing video games. It's not at all predictable. I thought of several possible endings (and could give you one that would be better than the one they used).

Small children as well as grownups should delight in this film. It has a pleasant story. The casting, for a change, is good. The child is appealing. The father is okay. The fairy is quite appealing. In fact, the movie avoided all of the mistakes usually found in family fare.

The only reasons I withhold the highest rating are the scene at the school play where the midgets dance. It wasn't amusing and went on too long. And the rock music during the birthday party. It was inappropriate for this kind of film. Also, rock music at the end while the credits are passing, but you can stop the DVD at that point. Too bad, though, because good music at the end can be a nice cap for a pleasant experience.

Bottom line: don't miss adding this one to your collection. Even at regular price, it would be worth it. At this price, it's a steal.

Dazzle is a love story between a fairy and a human. A fairy falls in love with a young widower (whom happens to also be an accomplished author about fairies) and his young daughter. She actually goes through quite a bit to stay with him. I loved it (and no, it's because I love fairies although I admit that's a good part of it :D). This was a great family movie and although it did seem to drag at times, and was a bit cheesy here and there, all in all I enjoyed it. I actually missed the first few moments of this when I first watched it because it had already started when my Dad found it, but it was still pretty easy to figure out. The only thing that wasn't really explained well enough for my taste was the role of The Collector. I understood that he came to collect fairies when they stayed in the mortal realm too long, killing them in the process. What I didn't understand was his interest in Crystal, the fairy. I couldn't figure out if it was just the main she's a fairy and she has to go home thing, or if there was an extra element there. The dialogue pointed to an extra element that just wasn't fulfilled. This is a nice movie, that's a mite predictable at times and it really didn't explore all avenues that it could have. All in all an excellent kids movie that I actually enjoyed watching myself and loved adding to our collection of safe movies for the whole family.

What a wonderful movie. Kept my interest all the way through with no violence, sex, or foul language. We need more of these!

Good family movie, combines a fairy tale with real life. If you get into fairy stories with plenty of magick, you'll like this.

Tom Nightingale (Maxwell Caulfield, 'Electric Dreams'), a writer of children's books, falls prey to a serious case of writer's block, after the loss of his wife. He now spends his time reading fairy stories to his young daughter, Melissa.

But they are not alone, for each night a real fairy, Crystal, listens in on the stories. Meanwhile, Tom's pet dog is keeping an eye on Crystal and one night decides to chase her. Crystal collides with a tree and is knocked out. She is suddenly transformed into human form and subsequently suffers amnesia.

Tom finds crystal and eventually falls in love with her, much to the disappointment and disapproval of Melissa's teacher, Miss Martinet (Mia Sara, 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off). The only trouble is Crystal has to return to Fairyland before The Collector (Jeff Fahey, 'Darkman III') can capture her and send her to the dark world. And she only has six days!

With only the help of two clumsy midget detectives, Oddkin and Bodkin, can Tom find the spell that will save Crystal?

'Dazzle' is an enchanting film, suitable for all the family, but especially for children. It is a tale of courage and love, spiced with a sprinkling of humour and a dash of madness. The cast put in good performances all round, and there are some dazzling special effects.

Matthew J Lee-Williams, Review

Synopsis:
Dazzle is the story of Tom Nightengail (Maxwell Caulfield), a well known chidren's author, and writer of books about fairies. Recently widowed and now the single parent of a daughter, he has lost all joy in his life and all that he his left is in his daughter Melissa.

Every night he reads to her, and unbeknownst to them both, a real life fairy named Crystal (Chantell Stander) listens in as well by the window. Yet on one particular night, the little fairy suffers an accident that transforms her into a human being, complete with amnesia.

From there she enters the Nightengails' lives and turns them upside down... in a mostly good way. But not all is well, because others are searching for her, others whose plans are not kind.

The question is, can the Nightengails keep her safe and will Tom learn to love again?

About the Movie:
Dazzle stars Maxwell Caulfield, Chantell Standler, Mia Sara and Jeff Fahey among others.

Overall, this is standard direct to DVD fare. Made in England with mostly English actors, its production values are higher than many more adult oriented films, but the script and storyline are purely kid focused, including slapstick elements that make it somewhat cheesy. It's a pure fantasy film, involving fairies and gnomes and an evil wizard who collects fairies for sport. Most adults and older children wouldn't have the patience to sit through it, but many younger kids would probably enjoy it.

There really isn't any objectionable content in this film, except perhaps, the fact that when the Nightengails meet the fairy, she's naked. Of course, nothing explicit is shown and it's all implied. It also deals quite a bit with magic, though not of the incantation sort.

Overall, this is not that great a movie. Most adults would become bored of it quickly. It drags rather badly at points. But kids would enjoy it and though the film appears to be unrated, it's certainly safe for them to watch.

About the DVD:
The Dazzle DVD comes in a hard case in full screen format in Dolby Digital Stereo. It has no subtitles and is in English only. Total running time is 85 minutes. Both sound and picture in this DVD release are decent.

The bonus features are a pair of filmographies of Maxwell Caufield and Jeff Fahey respectively.

Bottom line: 2 stars

This is a cute little fairy tale with a nice mix between drama and comedy. The make-believe and comedy keeps the drama from becoming too serious for the young audience. I like it and will enjoy watching it again.