This movie suffers the most attacks among Don Bluth's films, and it's not hard to see why. A Troll in Central Park is childish, short, and, well, flowery. But at the same time, there's a charm to it, a sense sincerity, even inspiration, that pays off in the end. Tots movies are often filled mindlessly with clichés and treacle, but Bluth, a passionate animator, was never one to resign himself to that.
The settings are a kingdom of trolls, where bad=good and vice versa, and New York city. The main character is Stanley, apparently the only good troll, who can magically grow things with his literally green thumb. He's caught growing flowers and taken to the Oscar the Grouch gone extreme villain, queen Gnorga, who sends him to a place where nothing grows; New York City. But he lands in central park, where he meets the cute toddler named Rosie and her older brother Gus, who's sorta wild. Thus the (short) plot is set in motion, with Stanley entertaining his two new friends and Gnorga deciding to just finish him off.
There are a couple scenes, such as the trip on Stanley's boat that's made of "a dream", that can be a little intriguing. And the songs are surprisingly memorable. Gnorga's "Queen of Mean" has a nice beat to it, and manages to ride out her "terrible is wonderful" gag for just over two minutes with some amusing images. And Stanley's twice sung "Absolutely Green" is warm and bright. While a basic description would probably make one think "syrupy clichés", the song as a whole actually seems inspired. And when coupled with the animation of the scenes, there's little question of its sincerity. (The idea made me think "John Lennon's 'Imagine' for young kids".)
But that doesn't mean it's not flawed. Sometimes it's too cutesy, mainly with Rosie, and at times it overextends the ho-hum comedy, as with Gnorga's comic relief sidekick, King Lort. It isn't breathtakingly exciting, despite some engaging moments, and there's not much beyond the environmental stance that reaches out to older viewers. I wouldn't call any of the characters deep either, except maybe Gus and Stanley. And while the climax (stepping up the intensity a bit to become a little creepy) and ending were good, the very last bit went too far with New York City itself. (I prefer to think of it as a vision, rather than what actually happens.)
Overall it's a decent, worthwhile kids movie. So if you need a film to watch with kindergarteners, give it a chance. It may charm you more than you care to admit. But if I'm wrong, I'm still glad there's a movie for those seven and under that treats its audience like children, not morons.
The settings are a kingdom of trolls, where bad=good and vice versa, and New York city. The main character is Stanley, apparently the only good troll, who can magically grow things with his literally green thumb. He's caught growing flowers and taken to the Oscar the Grouch gone extreme villain, queen Gnorga, who sends him to a place where nothing grows; New York City. But he lands in central park, where he meets the cute toddler named Rosie and her older brother Gus, who's sorta wild. Thus the (short) plot is set in motion, with Stanley entertaining his two new friends and Gnorga deciding to just finish him off.
There are a couple scenes, such as the trip on Stanley's boat that's made of "a dream", that can be a little intriguing. And the songs are surprisingly memorable. Gnorga's "Queen of Mean" has a nice beat to it, and manages to ride out her "terrible is wonderful" gag for just over two minutes with some amusing images. And Stanley's twice sung "Absolutely Green" is warm and bright. While a basic description would probably make one think "syrupy clichés", the song as a whole actually seems inspired. And when coupled with the animation of the scenes, there's little question of its sincerity. (The idea made me think "John Lennon's 'Imagine' for young kids".)
But that doesn't mean it's not flawed. Sometimes it's too cutesy, mainly with Rosie, and at times it overextends the ho-hum comedy, as with Gnorga's comic relief sidekick, King Lort. It isn't breathtakingly exciting, despite some engaging moments, and there's not much beyond the environmental stance that reaches out to older viewers. I wouldn't call any of the characters deep either, except maybe Gus and Stanley. And while the climax (stepping up the intensity a bit to become a little creepy) and ending were good, the very last bit went too far with New York City itself. (I prefer to think of it as a vision, rather than what actually happens.)
Overall it's a decent, worthwhile kids movie. So if you need a film to watch with kindergarteners, give it a chance. It may charm you more than you care to admit. But if I'm wrong, I'm still glad there's a movie for those seven and under that treats its audience like children, not morons.