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The Magic Roundabout (film)

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The Magic Roundabout
(Doogal in North America)
Directed byDave Borthwick
Jean Duval
Frank Passingham
Written byPaul Bassett
Raolf Sanoussi
Stephane Sanoussi
Butch Hartman (North America)
Produced byClaude Gorsky
Laurent Rodon
Pascal Rodon
StarringKylie Minogue
Whoopi Goldberg
Daniel Tay
William H. Macy
Jimmy Fallon
Ian McKellen
Jon Stewart
Bill Hader
Chevy Chase
Kevin Smith
Distributed byThe Weinstein Company (North America)
Pathé (Europe)
20th Century Fox (UK DVD)
Release dates
February 11, 2005 (Europe)
February 24, 2006 (North America)
Running time
85 minutes (Europe)
78 minutes (North America)
LanguagesEnglish, French
Budget$20,000,000

The Magic Roundabout (released in France as Sprung! The Magic Roundabout and in North America with an amended form, as Doogal) is a film based on the television series of the same name. The film was released on February 11, 2005 in the United Kingdom and France, and on February 24, 2006 in North America.

Plot

The film begins with a shaggy, candy-loving puppy named Dougal ("Doogal" in North American version) trying to get sweets from a candy cart. He goes so far as to place a tack in the road to pop its tire, thinking he'll get a reward for watching the cart. After getting the driver to leave, Dougal is trying to decide which candy he'll ask for, when he accidentally starts the cart up again and manages to crash it into the titular magic roundabout at the center of the village. A blue jack-in-the-box-like creature emerges from the top and flies away, snatching a decorative Foot Guard figurine from the roundabout before leaving. The roundabout freezes over, trapping repairman Mr. Rusty, Dougal's kid owner Florence, and two other children named Basil and Coral within.

The villagers, naturally, are horrified by this development, and call upon the resident wizard, Zebedee, for help. He explains that the roundabout acted as a mystical prison for the evil ice wizard Zeebad and by wrecking it Zeebad is free to work his magic on the world again (it is implied he started the first ice age). The only way to return Zeebad to his prison is to place three magic diamonds in the roundabout, or else the world will slowly freeze over again. Zebedee sends Dougal, Brian the cynical snail, Ermintrude the opera-singing cow, Dylan the hippie rabbit, and the magic train named Train.

Zeebad is not without his followers either. He animates the Foot Guard figurine, Sergeant Sam, and enlists him to find the enchanted diamonds first, for with them Zeebad can freeze the sun itself. Meanwhile, Zebedee's fellowship makes camp in the icy mountains near Zeebad's old lair. It's not long before Dougal wanders off and gets himself captured by Zeebad and taken to his lair, where he's "tortured" by Sam. Ermintrude breaks him out, and after a short chase, Zebedee shows up to battle his evil counterpart. Zeebad quickly gains the upper hand and overpowers Zebedee, freezing him and collapsing the cliff he's stuck on.

Now their "mentor" in saving the world is supposedly dead, the gang focus on retrieving the diamonds, which takes them from a lava-bordered volcano, an ancient temple filled with booby-traps and evil skeleton guards (at which point Dylan reveals an exceptional knowledge of several types of martial arts) to a final showdown with Zeebad, where it turns out Sam, who Zeebad later abandoned, is the bearer of the third diamond, which is inside his body. Zeebad freezes the sun, but Dougal, Dylan, Brian and Ermintrude win, after an infuriated Dylan realizes that without the sun there won't be any grass, which seems to be part of his diet. The film closes with Zebedee back well and alive and Dougal, who vowed to give up sugar when it seemed all was lost, forgets about his former pledge completely, but now realizes the true value of his friends and the good qualities of selflessness, courage, and humility. DOOGAL!

British reception

The Magic Roundabout gained generally favourable reviews from critics in Britain, for retaining its charm from the original television series and its superb animation. [citation needed] While some critics questioned the update for today's children and its subtle drug references[citation needed], the reviews were mostly positive. The public also supported the film, and while some were disappointed on the nostalgia factor, their praise earned this film a total gross of 5.8 million pounds at the box office, as of April 2005[citation needed].

American reception

As of March 16, 2006, the film grossed a total of 7.2 million dollars in the United States box office, which is considered exceptionally low by CGI animated film standards (the average domestic gross for a computer animated film is $134,571,721). In the North American version of the film, where audiences are unfamiliar with the series, the majority of original British voices have been replaced by celebrities more familiar to the American public, and a new storyline made to accommodate pop culture references (see section) and flatulence jokes, neither of which were present in the original release. Critics panned the movie; it got a 5% from Rotten Tomatoes [1] and was named one of the worst animated films ever. It also received an F rating from Entertainment Weekly magazine. After being advertised for a short time, it stopped running, but is widely carried in United States retail outlets such as Safeway as a children's DVD in retail stores and video rentals. The original British version of the film is available in the US under the title Sprung! The Magic Roundabout.

Main characters and talents

Animals

  • Dougal/Doogal: sugar loving puppy dog
  • Dylan: guitar playing hippie rabbit
  • Brian: bashful snail in love with Ermintrude
  • Ermintrude: opera singing cow
  • The Moose (cautious interloper encountered up north, breaks wind in US version)

Humans

  • Florence (girl/orphan in need of saving, has faith in Dougal)
  • Basil and Coral: Florence's friends
  • Mr. Rusty the repairman, appears similar to the Mad Hatter of Alice in Wonderland.

Magical toy-beings

  • Zebedee: a good magician, warmth and love magic
  • Zeebad Carpenter: evil ice sorcerer, cold magic
  • Soldier Sam: Zeebad's slave, holds one of the magic diamonds
  • The Train (Not to be confused with Thomas the Tank Engine(although mentioned), always comes in the nick of time, hardly the Orient Express according to Ermintrude)

Voice teams

British character British actor French character French actor North American character North American actor
Florence Kylie Minogue Margote Vanessa Paradis Florence Kylie Minogue
Ermintrude Joanna Lumley Azalée Valérie Lemercier Ermintrude Whoopi Goldberg
Dougal Robbie Williams Pollux Henri Salvador Doogal Daniel Tay
Brian Jim Broadbent Ambroise Dany Boon Brian William H. Macy
Dylan Bill Nighy Cyral Eddy Mitchell Dylan Jimmy Fallon
Zebedee Ian McKellen Zapatie Elie Semoun Zebedee Ian McKellen
Zeebad Tom Baker Zeebad Michel Galabru Zeebad Jon Stewart
Soldier Sam Ray Winstone Sam Gérard Jugnot Soldier Sam Bill Hader
Train Lee Evans The Train Chevy Chase
Moose Kevin Smith
The Narrator Judi Dench

Music

  1. Main Titles - Mark Thomas
  2. The Magic Roundabout - Kylie Minogue – VOCAL
  3. Meet Doogal - James Venable
  4. Magic – Pilot - VOCAL
  5. You Really Got Me - Bill Nighy & Catherine Bott - VOCAL
  6. Doogal the Mechanic - James Venable
  7. Zeebad Escapes - Mark Thomas
  8. Sam Marches - John M. Davis
  9. The Magic Roundabout - Andrea Remanda and Goldust – VOCAL
  10. Meet Zeebad - James Venable
  11. Setting Up Camp - Mark Thomas
  12. Spinning - Andrea Remanda and Goldust - VOCAL
  13. Duel Of The Springs 2 - Mark Thomas
  14. Simply Wonderful - Andrea Remanda and Goldust - VOCAL
  15. The What-a-Snails Waltz - Mark Thomas
  16. Zeebad Threatens - James Venable
  17. Train's Back - Mark Thomas
  18. Lost In The Cold - Mark Thomas
  19. See The City - Mark Thomas
  20. The Frozen City - Mark Thomas
  21. Frozen Florence - John M. Davis
  22. The End Of Zeebad - Mark Thomas
  23. Florence Awakes - Mark Thomas
  24. Sugar, Sugar - The Archies - VOCAL
  25. I Love To Boogie - T.Rex - VOCAL
  26. Lean Mean Machine - Andrea Remanda and Goldust - VOCAL
  27. Believe Yourself - Andrea Remanda and Goldust - VOCAL (Used during the scene with Dylan fighting the skeleton guards in the UK version)
  28. Bust This Joint - Andrea Remanda and Goldust - VOCAL


See also

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