Pippi Langstrumpfs neueste Streiche

It seems like I'm one of the few Americans who read translations of the Pippi Longstocking books, AND saw this movie as a kid. At this point, I can't remember what came first for me, the books or the movies, but I will say that as a child, I enjoyed both.

Pippi is a GREAT character in literature, I could consider her arguably one of the greatest female characters ever created.

She's strong, she's independent, she's fun, intelligent and gifted.

What girl WOULDN'T want to be like Pippi? I know that reading about her as a little girl, I was endlessly jealous of Tommy and Annika who got Pippi as a playmate. I wished she'd move next door to me.

This movie doesn't do such a great job of translating the Pippi character. She seems less creative and imaginative, and more crazy and dim. There's something about the character of Pippi that is lacking in the movie and the movie loses a lot because of that.

But Pippi aside, the movie isn't ALL bad. It's a late 80's kids movie with cheesy special effects, poor acting, and a silly story. But through all this, it is still enjoyable. The situations that Pippi and Tommy and Annika get in are still fun, and it's a good movie for young kids. If you do show this movie to your kids though, be sure to buy them the books afterwards and show them what Pippi is REALLY like. This movie is a good starting point to get kids introduced to the great character of Pippi.

There are many possible reactions to this curious adaptation of Astrid Lindgren's classic children's books, with most reactions being a bit polarized on the "liked it" or "hated it" scale. This review will hopefully be a non-polarized summary for those who are interested in finding out more about this movie.

This adaptation is true to the spirit of Lindgren's books (though it is set in America rather than Sweden), faithfully recreating the plucky, wildly pigtailed Pippi Longstocking and her endearing anarchy at the Villa Villekulla, complete with her horse, her monkey, her gold coins, her "whopper" tales, her superhuman strength, and her constant besting of adults. Though a bit old-looking for the role of a (supposedly) nine-year-old girl, Tami Erin does manage to capture Pippi's spunk, mischief, and childlike appeal.

The curious aspect of the film comes in the form of its incongruously modern-sounding songs, playing against a 1950s backdrop (though the songs are quite catchy), as well as a slightly choppy narrative, with several abrupt scene changes that make certain sections of the movie seem somewhat incomplete. There is a silly, cartoon-style feel to parts of the movie, though other parts are quite amusing.

It is a G-rated movie in the first sense, with absolutely nothing inappropriate (though do keep in mind that Pippi can do anything she wants, including climbing all over the roof of her house), and its fine supporting cast of adults include Dennis Dugan as the ever-exasperated father of neighbors Tommy and Annika, John Schuck as Pippi's father, and Eileen Brennan, who is her usual hilarious self as the stuffy head of the orphanage.

The most curious thing about this film is that, in spite of its little oddities, you find yourself feeling quite happy when the film is over. I was eight years old when the movie came out in 1988, and I absolutely adored it at the time. After all, Pippi gets to do all the things that children wish they could do if they knew they could get away with it. Though there is a slight 80s quality to the film, it seems to hold up fairly well, and can still be seen on video shelves at major retail stores, which says something about its appeal these decades later. It is a children's film (as opposed to a family film), which means it will greatly appeal to, of course, children. . .or children-at-heart. But since that is the essence of Pippi herself, then the film seems to hit the mark.

I'll be the first to admit that this film is light-hearted and often silly. After all, the Pippi books are silly and light-hearted, so why shouldn't a movie version be? The character of Pippi is a great character study for kids: She is imaginative, creative, confident and above all, a good-willed and courteous child. Anyone who expects her and the stories she stars in to be methodical depictions of the serious side of life should re-examine his/her life and priorities. Maybe then the detractors will realize that life can be fun, at all ages.

After her father's ship is carried off by a sudden storm, the spunky Pippi Longstocking is stranded with her horse, Alfonso, and monkey, Mr. Nilsson, and takes up residence in the old family home, which is thought by neighborhood children to be haunted. Soon, two children, Tommy and Annika, venture into the house only to meet up with Pippi. The three soon become friends and get into various adventures together, including cleaning the floor with scrubbing shoes, dodging the "splunks", going down a river in barrels, and helping Pippi with the problem of having to go to a children's home. Older children will probably get the most out of this movie.

I've always liked Astrid Lindgrens children's books very very much, and watched the original Swedish TV-series of Pippi over and over again (with Dutch subtitles). I think the Swedish girl (Inger Nilsson) who played Pippi in the original version was WAY better then this annoying American teenager pretending to be all cute and 10 years old! True, the original series look rather out of date now (being filmed in the 1970's), but for me, that always added a kind of innocense and charm to it. And the horse and monkey were not supposed to talk! Why add such "It's a kiddy movie, so all animals are fluffy and can speak" nonsense to an already great story ?

The only possible justification I can think of for "improving" the Swedish series like this is that the original TV-series isn't available in the US. Maybe American kids like this new version, but I will surely NEVER watch this crap again! I still have some of the original episodes on tape, and my cousins still laugh every time they watch them (despite the lousy special effects and the subtitles)!

I give this terrible rip-off 1 star out of 5 (maybe kids who don't know the books or the Swedish version like it)