The Little Ghost – Casper Made in Switzerland (Movie Review)

Story

For a long time, a little ghost had been living in the attic of a castle. Its greatest wish was to see the world by the light of day, but its attempts were all in vain.

But then, three children, Karl, Hannes and Marie, go on a nighttime hike to the castle where they encounter the little ghost. The following day, the little ghost promptly wakes up at noon.

Its joy is short-lived, however. Tinted black by the first sunbeam, the little ghost scares the townsfolk and causes all kinds of chaos. In despair, the little ghost turns to the children for help in trying to get home and return to the former existence as a night ghost.

Stars

It is a lot of fun to see German stars like Uwe Ochsenknecht oder Herbert Knaup dubbed into Swiss German. Nadja Sieger is brillant as the Swiss German voice of the little ghost, whereas Emil Steinberger is rather negligable as the voice of an owl ("Uhu Shuhu").

Style

From a grown-up's perspective, the animation of the little ghost is not as good as what we have learned to expect from its American Idols (e.g. "Casper"). Nevertheless, kids will have no problem identifying with this extremely sympathetic character. The instrumental score by Niki Reiser accompanies the story in a lovely way.

Cinemani Vote

Watching the adaption of a children’s book classic by Ottfried Preussler ("Krabat") is a treat from beginning to end. Never too dark, but always funny and charming. Bring your small kids!

Coming to Swiss theaters on September 26, 2013