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Based on the well-known children's book by Kate DiCamillo from 2009, The Magician's Elephant is a gorgeously animated film. Due to the enthralling plot, friendly tone, and inspirational lessons that can inspire us all to 'never give up,' even in the face of impossibility, it is one that the entire family can enjoy and become immersed in.
The film is set in the made-up town of Baltese, once a vibrant and beautiful place where kids playfully zapped one other with magic and adults used their gifts to work wonders.
Things changed when a major conflict affected the region, and many Baltese people lost loved ones in fighting. Because of the anguish that engulfed them, joy and their capacity for magic, both vanished.
Their optimistic outlook was replaced by a great deal of sadness and pessimism, and the clouds obscuring the sun's dazzling radiance symbolised this.
Even though it focuses on sombre subjects like bereavement and conflict, this endearing story yet has a sense of hope.
Peter, a good-hearted young child who lost his parents in the war, represents that hope. A soldier called Vilna discovered him and decided to raise him as his own son. Today, Vilna shares the same pessimism and cynicism as many locals, but Peter, who longs to be reunited with the sister he was estranged from years ago, has maintained his optimism.
One day while grocery shopping at the market, Peter notices a fortune-telling tent that has unexpectedly materialised in the centre of his town. He asks the fortune teller a query about his long-lost sister using the money Vilna gave him rather than utilising it to buy food for their tea.
He is informed, much to his relief, that his sister is still alive and that he must 'follow the elephant' to find her. Considering that elephants don't exist in Peter's region of the planet, this would appear to be an impossibility. Yet Peter recognises an opportunity to reconcile with his sister when a magician unintentionally summons one of these beasts during a botched magic trick.
You won't have difficulty guessing the ending because the movie's main theme is 'nothing is impossible.' Although the story's outcome is always clear, you shouldn't skip this movie.
It looks visually appealing- thanks to the animated style that is reminiscent of a storybook with pastel-coloured illustrations, and the talented cast, which includes Noah Jupe as Peter, Mandy Patinkin as Vilna, and Benedict Wong as the defeated magician, makes it easy for us to be enraptured by their characters.
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