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Daily Archive > DVD
of the Day > 04/14/04
A
Poignant, Whimsical Monarch
by Jason DAVIS
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A
fantasy of discovery and enlightenment is brought
to DVD with nothing but its innate charm.
The
Little Prince
Allan Jay
Lerner
Based on
the story by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
 
 
When a downed
pilot (Richard Kiley) meets a strange boy (Steven
Warner) in the middle of the Sahara Desert, a magical
friendship forms as each tries to help the other escape
from their unfortunate predicament. Along the way,
abstracts of the adult world (war, wealth, nationalism,
history, suicide, and so on) are personified and presented
for the absurdities they are. Only responsibility
and friendship remain as the credits roll.
The
Little Prince is a fable and makes no pretenses
to be otherwise. As such, it is presented in a manner
simple enough for a child to understand while presenting
adult concepts in a light that makes even grownups
think twice. The audience is told little of the characters
(no names), but their interaction provides the depth
that endears them to the viewer. Their conversations
are simple, but meaningful. An almost Socratic dialogue
is constructed and the back and forth of their discourse
creates a current that moves the audience along with
the narrative's thrust.
.jpg) As
a fable, the movie can freely poke fun at serious
things like the arbitrary nature of the borders between
nations. Allan Jay Lerner's screenplay takes only
seconds to make the notion seem insane before moving
on to the next mind-boggling peculiarity of civilization.
Satiric vignettes like these appear effortless and
their sheer simplicity makes close analysis almost
as absurd as the concepts they ridicule. On the other
hand, the story's treatment of responsibility, dramatized
with the aid of an anthropomorphic fox (Gene Wilder),
takes nearly a third of the movie's running time and
leaves the viewer wondering why such things as friendship
never seemed as important before.
Leaving aside the script's meaning, it's worth noting
that the story's style of presentation is almost as
simple as its message. Yet it has a peculiar mixture
of whimsy and poignancy the like of which may be unrepeatable
in today's less innocent world. The emotional impact
of the story is as evident as the intellectual and
the experience of viewing the movie is doubly enriching
because of it. To quantify the interaction of these
two somewhat conflicting feelings would be pointless.
It is for subjects such as this that the French have
je ne sais quoi. The film simply is the way
it is, and few would likely argue that this should
not be the case.
Even the musical numbers integrate so perfectly with
the narrative and its tone that they provide no distraction
from the story's delivery. If any criticism can be
offered, it is that the snake (the center of the story's
treatise on suicide) dances a little too long. Of
course, the snake is played by the incomparable Bob
Fosse, so such a complaint would be like arguing that
Da Vinci painted too much.
None. A
film like this deserves some kind of supplementary
material to offer insight into its magic.
.jpg)
Though bereft
of extras, fans can revisit a classic and the uninitiated
can behold a small marvel that makes you laugh, think,
and feel like a six-year-old one more time. The Little
Prince proves that fables still have power despite
their simplicity in an increasingly complicated world.
[Ed.
Note: Antoine de Saint-Exupery's plane was just found,
60 years after the author disappeared during a WWII
spy mission for the Allies.]
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The
Little Prince
Paramount Home Video
Rated G
88 min.
$14.99
Buy it now for
only $12.99 (save 18%)
Rent it now
At the age of 21, Jason Davis was hit in the face
with a car. He has since devoted his life to writing.
He lives in Burbank with his girlfriend, a suicidal
fish, and a plant called Pete..
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