This is topic Doogal, or "Even Jon Stewart can be made unfunny." in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.


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Posted by Puffy Treat (Member # 7210) on :
 
Yup, Jon's just one of the many celebrity voices lending their talents to this re-dubbed UK cheapie by the Weinstein Company.

And trust me, they're the -only- talent associated with this flick.

The dub isn't even very good...character voices and mouths are often out of synch.

The film is about 57 hours long.

(Actually 85 minutes, but trust me...it'll feel longer)

It's not even fun in a cheesy, Sid & Marty Krofft/80s Nickelodeon Weekend Special sort of way.

Called "The Magic RoundAbout" in the UK, the film's plot concerns a maiden-voiced mutt named Doogal who loves sugar.

That's his sole personality trait.

There's also a snail who's in love with a cow (it's funny. Laugh. LAUGH, I said!), a cow who likes to sing, a bunny who sleeps a lot, and a farting train voiced by Chevy Chase.

Doogal frees a spring-bottomed, icy wizard named Zeebad (Stewart's character) from a magical merry-go-round...Zeebad immediately goes about collecting magical diamonds that will allow him to freeze the sun.

Oh, the little girl who owns Doogal gets frozen in the merry-go-round...this makes the dog feel vaguely guilty.

He and the misfits go off an tension-free quest, with lots of ugly animation and jokes that peter out or die a terrible death upon completion.

Judi Dench and Ian McKellan somehow got tricked into playing the Narrator and Zebedee, the "good" wizard.

Every 15 minutes there's a joke about defecation, gas-passing, and butts.

I don't mind lesser-quality animation so long as the rest of a production is top notch. Jay Ward's "Bullwinkle" was hardly a polished, PIXAR level production, yet few would argue it lacked quality.

This thing?

It's not even paint-by-numbers good.

And we have so many more cheaply-made, slapped together CGI toons on the way this year. Glee.

Edit: Apparently the original UK version of the film was based on a UK show that redubbed an old French children's cartoon with new dialogue, ala Woody Allen's film "What's Up, Tigerlily?"

That actually sounds pretty funny.

[ February 25, 2006, 05:57 PM: Message edited by: Puffy Treat ]
 

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Posted by Bella Bee (Member # 7027) on :
 
Honestly, though, it's a travesty. The old series of the 'Magic Roundabout', narrated by Eric Thompson (father of Emma) was surreal, funny and wonderful, not only for kids, but adults too. It's a cult classic.

And it's spelt D-o-u-g-a-l. Honestly. I don't know what they were thinking.
 

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Posted by Stone_Wolf_ (Member # 8299) on :
 
You have convinced me, I won't see it. Prolly just saved me 85 min of my life being wasted, thanks.
 

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Posted by Puffy Treat (Member # 7210) on :
 
Yeah, reading the IMDB description of the TV series made me want to watch it.
 

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Posted by Stone_Wolf_ (Member # 8299) on :
 
Ohh, and Jay Ward is friggen genius!
 

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Posted by Puffy Treat (Member # 7210) on :
 
Okay, I just watched the trailer for the UK version of the film, and read the UK version quotes on the IMDB page.

Now I -really- feel cheated. It seems that version was actually watchable!

"Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me."

"Very well. Sam- BREAK OUT THE STICKS AND STONES!"

Now that's clever.
 

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Posted by Advent 115 (Member # 8914) on :
 
It is a universal law that John Stewart is funny to inteligent listeners. Otherwise the whole universe would fall apart.
 

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Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
 

quote:

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It is a universal law that John Stewart is funny to inteligent listeners. Otherwise the whole universe would fall apart.

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