Horst in Translation ([email protected])
This is "Hatschipuh", a West German German-language film from 1987, so this one will have its 30th anniversary next year. The writer and director is Ulrich König and he is most known today for his work on Pumuckl. But this film here takes actually a similar path as it also mixes live action with animation and the animation are a bunch of gnome characters, which makes this a fantasy film as well. And honestly, the whole setting and premise sometimes feels as if taken right out of Pumuckl as Hatschipuh and the gang also love playing pranks, but not for the sake of it, instead just to people who are the antagonists. And the gnome gang has a honorable purpose here, namely protecting the farm that is their home and keeping it from being sold to the bad guys. The movie runs for 90 minutes approximately and huge (German) film buffs will find a familiar name here and there in the cast. Co-writer Franz Marischka is also fairly known. He usually made films that were really only for adults, but this one here is actually almost exclusively for children. I guess you must have seen and appreciated it as a child in order to like it as an adult too. I watched it for the first time a couple years ago and now I saw it the second time. It's not bad I guess and there is some charm here and there and sometimes the gnomes are pretty creepy too, so you would not want them as your enemies. But still I overall would say that this is really only a good watch for children. I found the voices more annoying than funny, even if they somehow fit the characters. The story and plot may not be enough to stay interesting for 1.5 hours. I have to give it a thumbs-down. Not a failure, but not recommended either. I prefer Pumuckl!
