O Pequeno Mágico

When the movie came out, it pretty much disappeared right away, which is often the fate of small movies, simply because the studios don't bother to advertise them. As well, the film was "pegged" as a kid's movie, which is absurd. It's about kids; and kids could watch it with profit and get excited about it; but where kids see a film about a boy who succeeds ultimately in becoming an "escape artist," and using his talents to defeat the bad guys, adults see a whole different film, one that is about a profound emotional connection a boy has with his father who has died. And this side of the tale is made even more affecting by its only slowly being revealed as the film goes on.

One thing that may also have confounded audiences is that it's not a "talky" film. The young hero does things, he doesn't much talk about things, and that makes it a little hard to follow the motivations in places. But it is a lovingly crafted, beautifully put together, piece of work, one that is long long overdue for a release on DVD. The sequence of the young boy cracking the safe is fascinating, as is the dream sequence in the jail where he magically floats his father out of danger. Striking visuals, and a clear dramatic structure. Wonderful.

As of last year, I believe American Zoetrope held the rights to the title, and while it is on their list to release, they've had higher priorities (for example, Coppola's "One From the Heart," which is good, but suffers from Frederick Forrest's unfocused performance) so it may be quite a while before this marvelous film is released. Let's hope that

when it is released, Deschanel has some say in the process, i.e., we get at least a small documentary on what it's like to make your first film, we get an anamorphic transfer, and we get a reasonably high bit rate for the transfer.

If you can find this on VHS, that's not the best way to see it, but it'll do until the DVD comes along. Enjoy

This is a truly wonderful movie experience. The magical score adds to the atmosphere perfectly. It is beautifully photographed by Stephen H Burum and perfectly directed by Caleb Deschanel. The central performance by Griffin O'Neil is very watchable as is a great support cast which includes Elizabeth Daly and the late great Raul Julia. This is THE movie that made me want to make movies. The haunting final shot combined with the beautiful music has stayed with me for years.

I just watched this on Talking Pictures channel in the UK - November 2021.

I'm in a quandary about it now as I don't feel like the film was properly finished. I almost wonder if section(s) of it were missing, either cut by the channel I just watched it on, or by the people that made the film, or maybe they cut it short in production. There were some narrative gaps which I had to fill in by guessing what had happened in between. The acting was all top notch, the score was great and individual scenes were excellent and effecting, but what and why the things that happen do happen is hard to follow, it felt like the middle third of the film was just plain missing. I did however recognise a redemption of the kid's father, and to some extent the mayor's son, who was clearly negatively mentally affected by his corrupt father. This is worth seeing and I would have given it more than a 6/10 if it had been better edited or felt properly finished.

I enjoyed the score, and Griffen O'Neal is quite good. However, I wished there had been another scene with Gabriel Dell...felt like there was something missing...still this is a good movie that could have been better -

This is one of those odd movies which is much greater than the sum of its parts. Leonard Maltin is quite right that it is muddled, and the plot has tons of holes and inconsistencies. The casting is odd and quirky. But when the smoke clears, it stays with you. Maybe it's just the concept of a child prodigy magician. BTW, the contemporary reviews in 1982 were pretty much in accord with this opinion.