Customer Reviews

Madeline [VHS]

5 star:		(44)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Parents, you will love this movie. My four year old (and I) have seen it about 20 times already, and we limit TV to 30-60 minutes a day.

There are only 2 scary parts: Pepito wears a red devil mask and says "boo" to the girls who have sneaked into the kitchen; Pepito and Madeline are kidnapped by Pepito's tutor. I know the latter sounds terrible, but for some reason, it was not terrifying to my daughter. (We almost always watch with her.) This beats Disney the frightening animated movies in many ways. (Mary Poppins is a terrific exception.) There was one "damn" that I counted.

This was beautifully written, directed and acted.

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.

A really exquisite movie that will make you laugh, cry, and keep putting it on again for more
The movie is about a girls school in Paris and the adventures of 12 adorable little girls, with the cutest and most interesting of all being the plucky flame haired little tyke, with a heart of gold Madeline (Hatty Jones).
With adventures taken from the timeless books, including little Madeleine's appendicitis, and her rescue from the water by the golden retriever Genevieve, the centerpiece of the story is the battle of the girls and their loving guardian Miss Clavel (Frances McDormand) to keep their school and their dog, against the cruel plans of Lord Covington (Nigel Hawthorne) and also foiling a thuggish tutor cum kidnapper Leopold (Ben Daniels)

This is really beautiful, not only for kids, but for all young at heart aged 2 to 122 years of age.

There are just so many wonderful memorable heart-stealing scenes, funny cute and poignant.

My 7 year old daughter and I saw Madeline at the movies and can't wait for the video! I rarely buy videos, but this is a must have. Every little girl should see Madeline. It's very clean, action packed, funny and touching all rolled into one. My daughter spoke with a French accent for weeks after seeing the movie.

I think Madeline is a fabulous movie. It is especially funny when the girls stop people from buying the house by unscrewing the doors. I also think it is sad when the old lady dies. Hatty Jones is a wonderful actress. I was rather scared when she got kidnapped by the circus, though. The story is wonderful.

I am 6 years old. I don't really like any of the Madeline "animated" shorts. This movie was an exception. I don't know why it's rated PG? This was a very appropriate movie. It should be in every family's house!

We are currently going through a major addiction to all things Madeline and especially this movie. It represents my daughter's first venture into a fantasy world (she's 4.5 yrs) that she has created for herself and she now spends her days repeating bits of the film, pretending to be Madeline or Miss Clavel and generally being happy playing. I'm not sure how much I really like this movie as I've now watched it upwards of 20 to 30 times. I doubt even the filmmakers thought anyone would study any film so closely. I'm now looking for contunity errors or obscure turns of phrases to keep me interested! As other reviews have said, the movie really departs from the books and creates its own world. The art direction of the film is very good but the movie seems to lack some final layering that would make it a truly memorable film. Frances McDormand seems to sleep walk through the film or wasn't given enough to do. The kids roles are good, however. But the proof is in my child: she's obsessed. For that, I don't mind. It could be something like Eminem or Pokeman.

Our 4-year old enjoyed it, with a little explanation in order about Miss Clavel's habit, and about the motives of the kidnappers.

A very nice extra on the DVD is an old 1952 animated short based closely on the original Bemelmans book, with the text and cartoon style nearly identical. Amusingly, Miss Clavel is therein depicted as a sort of governess, rather than as a nun; perhaps a sign of the times, or maybe the cartoon's producers were not Catholic?

I thought Hatty Jones did great in the title role -- wonder what ever happened to her?

Every little girl has wanted to become the incorrigibly adventurous Madeline as introduced by children's writer Ludwig Bemelman and this movie brings her to new life.

Madeline (Hatty Jones) resides in a French orphanage, wears a little blue suit and cap and creates havoc wherever she goes. Help is only a step away with Miss Clavel (Frances McDormand) at hand and she rescues little Madeline often and with good cheer. But the orphanage is scheduled to be sold by the owner Lord "Cucuface" Covington (Nigel Hawthorne) and the girls who live with Madeline devise a plan to save their home. All sorts of antics take place against the backdrop of the beautiful Parisian scenery that surrounds the worried little orphans.

Hatty Jones is really superb as the classically mischievous orphan in blue, Madeline. Hatty has the perfect button nose and red hair to pull off the look but she also manages to capture the impish thoughts of the little character as well. Frances McDormand is highly likable as the Sister who adores her home full of orphans. Nigel Hawthorne pulls off the uppity roll of a wealthy property owner who could care less about the future of a few bratty orphans. But it is the beautiful city of Paris that steals the show, with glimpses of perfection at every corner how could an orphan in Paris ever be sad. No wonder little Madeline has remained such a happy sight for generations of children and adults.

I don't watch many movies, and have recently lost my taste for kids' movies in particular--which are also the few movies which don't have gratuitous sex, violence, and cursing. This movie manages to transcend genres, a witty film that those who have outgrown the "Madeleine" cartoons will enjoy.

Madeleine, played by the excellent Hatty Jones, is a little French girl at a boarding school in France, along with eleven other girls (also flawlessly acted) and their teacher Miss Clavel (Frances McDormand). The movie follows her clashes with the Spanish ambassador's son, Pepito, and with Lord "Cuckooface" Covington, the man who owns the school upon the death of their sponsor--and who wants to close it down; also with such problems as a ransom plot, and the loyal dog Genevieve.

Madeleine purists should be warned: this movie is not just a live-action version of the book stories. The movie exists as a series of vignettes loosely based on the books, such as Madeleine's appendectomy and her rescue by Genevieve. Two of the central plots are not in the books, however: Lord Covington's wish to sell the school, and the kidnapping plot concerning Pepito. Occasionally dialogue will be lifted (a difficulty, given the almost complete lack of REAL dialogue) such as Miss Clavel's midnight "Something is not right" or Madeleine's defiant "pooh pooh!"

The actors and script contain the necessary amount of innocent cuteness and comedy (the visits of the various ambassadors to the school) while also having poignancy. One thing that will irritate Madeleine purists is Madeleine's family situation in this movie, but it does give her the ability to interact with Lord Covington.

McDormand is excellent as the rather put-upon nun Miss Clavel, who stiffly glides through real life while trying to keep her twelve little girls in something approaching order without squelching them. Thank God the old "authority figure as clown" thing never came into play. Hatty Jones is cute and sprightly without being annoyingly so, while the actresses for such characters as Vicki and Chantal are perfect in their roles. The girls REGISTER as being real people. So does Kristian de la Osa, as the attention-hungry Pepito--the movie hints quietly at why he is such a "bad hat," while simultaneously giving us sympathy for him and Madeleine alike. And kudos to the best original character, Helene the cook!

Music is overall very good (thankfully no one breaks into spontaneous song) with sedate music playing for Miss Clavel and the girls, sad music during poignant moments, and excellent Spanish numbers as we focus on Pepito. The final number stinks, though, it clashes with the setting and plotline.

The minimal violence is cartoonish and there is no innuendo; one (bad word) creeps into the script, via a bad guy.

This movie is a delight from start to finish, a witty and charming movie that will take you back to your childhood. Or if you didn't like your childhood, it'll take you somewhere nice...