The Elm-Chanted Forest

The Elm-Chanted Forest
Directed by Milan Blažeković
Doro Vlado Hreljanovic
Produced by Doro Vlado Hreljanovic
Carroll Rue
Vlado Teresak
Written by Fred P. Sharkey
Suncana Skrinjaric
Starring David Earls
Edward Eyrich
Charles Forrest
Simon Hefter
Chris Helmer
Eric Needham
Francesca Picchi
Paul Powers
Carroll Rue
Lauren Shanahan
David Spelvin
Mark Surkin
Anna Tornhill
Music by Dennis Leogrande
Cinematography Ernest Gregl
Production
company
Croatia Film
Fantasy Forest Films Inc.
Distributed by United States:
Celebrity Home Entertainment's Just for Kids
United Kingdom:
Castle Home Video
Release date
 Yugoslavia:
1986
United States:
July 22, 1988
4 January 1989 (VHS)[1]
Running time
 83 min.
Country Yugoslavia (Croatia)
United States
Language Croatian

The Elm-Chanted Forest (Čudesna šuma) is a 1986 Croatian-American animated musical film; in the U.S., it is also known as Fantasy Forest. It was the first full-length film directed by Milan Blažeković, and also the first animated feature produced in Croatia and Yugoslavia.[2]

Plot summary

After an artist named Peter Palette takes a nap under an enchanted elm tree, he discovers that he now has the ability to communicate with the animals of the forest, and that his paintbrush now has magical powers. To help his new friends survive, he must use his abilities to stop the evil Cactus King from turning the forest into a desert.

Main characters

  • Peter Palette: A painter who gains the ability to communicate with the animals of the forest after sleeping on the magical tree.
  • J. Edgar Beaver: A beaver who owns a saloon in the forest.
  • Bud E. Bear: A friendly pink bear who becomes Peter's ally. He sometimes goes to J. Edgar's saloon.
  • Fifi Fox: A beautiful and delicate red vixen with a French accent.
  • Do, Ray, and Mee: A trio of pink, yellow, and blue hedgehog siblings.
  • Emperor Spine (The Cactus King): An evil king plans to destroy the forest and replace it with a desert. His axe-like henchmen are called the Spinetinglers.
  • Thistle: The Cactus King's timid court magician, who tries everything to please his master. But with friendship of Peter and the others, he helps them to eventually stop the Cactus King's evil plot before the latter changed for good.

English voice cast

  • David Earls
  • Edward Eyrich
  • Charles Forrest
  • Simon Hefter
  • Chris Helmer
  • Eric Needham
  • Francesca Picchi
  • Paul Powers
  • Carroll Rue
  • Lauren Shanahan
  • David Spelvin
  • Mark Surkin
  • Anna Tornhill

Release

In the U.S., Celebrity Home Entertainment's Just for Kids label released The Elm-Chanted Forest on VHS and Beta on 4 January 1989.[1] [3] There was also a 1990 sequel, The Magician's Hat (Čarobnjakov šešir), seldom seen outside its home country. [4]

In 1999, Image Entertainment released only the first film on DVD. [5]

References

  1. 1 2 "Home Video Guide". The Palm Beach Post. 1988-12-30. p. TGIF 22. Retrieved 2010-06-12.
  2. ↑ Škrabalo, Ivo (2004). "Film programmes". HFS Zagreb. Retrieved 2009-02-04.
  3. ↑ Full VHS Tape:The Elm-Chanted Forest on Internet Archive
  4. ↑ The Magician's Hat (1990)-FilmAffinity
  5. ↑
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.