Olivier et le dragon vert

"Dexter the Dragon & Bumble the Bear" is an adaptation of a Dutch comic book series. Just like "The adventures of TinTin, the secret of the Unicorn" (2011, Steven Spielberg) it is based on multiple stories from the series. Unlike the TinTin adaptation the comic stories are translated to animation and not to a film with real actors. In this way the film remains closer to the original.

The "Bumble the Bear" comic stories occupy a special place in Dutch literature. The text is more important than in ordinary comic books and does not appear in text balloons inside the pictures but as freestanding text below the pictures.

Not only the place of the text in the story is noteworthy but also the language used. Some characters in the series use a very archaic version of the Dutch language. Some of their expressions have developed into almost proverbs.

The status of almost serious literature that this comic series has acquired is also due to the fact that some of the characters have their origins in the medieval story about the fox Reynard (between 1257 - 1271, Willem die Madocke maecte).

In my opinion the film does not do justice to the status of the stories of almost serious literature. In the film almost inevitably dialogue becomes less important than images. In some scenes this is an advantage. The ballroom scene is one image in the comic book but can be extened in the film. In general however the emphasis on images does not benefit the depth of the story.

Added value does have the fact that in the film the voices of the characters do come to live. The voice actors are well chosen. However to create this added value a film adaptation is not strictly necessary, a radio play suffices. These radioplays are made and to be honest they are more to my taste as a Bumble the Bear fan.

Sadly, the only full-length animation feature ever to emerge out of the Netherlands has a predictable story development and substandard animation that doesn't live up to contemporary standards, let alone today's standards. To put it mildly: the film is a grossly infantile simplification of Marten Toonder's immortal comic strip novel, which is full of subtle humor, to be appreciated at an up-grown level, with characters like caricatures of class society: the ruling classes (the marquis, sir Bommel himself, the mayor), their henchman (police commissioner Bulle Bas, the middle classes (the shopkeeper, the civil servant)and the everyday folk (mainly commoner Wammes Waggel, the childish goose). Now in the film, all this is spoiled by playing down the critical messages , aggravated by stupid animation: everything moves at the wrong time, expressions changing rapidly, lips not keeping up with speech etc. The redeeming factor is the voice acting, which is superb in almost every single case. The shopkeeper Grootgrut outdoes them all, except the marquis, who is played by Ger Smit, best remembered for a series of classic voices for animated TV-series De Fabeltjeskrant. Grootgrut is played by Paul Haenen, who is best known as Bert of Ernie of Sesame Street. The few songs are highly superfluous. Continuity: the eyes of miss Doddel change for white to yellow in almost every cut. Now for some faulty story telling: at the point at which Bommel and his dragon are arrested, the film jumps to a news report from which we learn they are at large. How's that? And why is the dragon prone to stealing? Is also not explained. All in all, the beast is utterly unconvincing. As is the film as a whole. Alas.

This is a must for every dutch child. It's a dutch memory you don't want to miss... like a chocolate letter at SantaClaus. I love this movie, it's based on real literature, Olivier B. Bommel by by famous Martepn Toonder, that even kids like. It's a must to see.

Als je begrijpt wat ik bedoel is a hand drawn masterpiece. It's strange there's never made a sequel. There are not many Dutch animated movies wich is a shame if you see how well this is animated. The style of the movie is exactly the style of the books. The story is simple and not complicated at all wich is a good element because the old comics and books also didn't try to be something big or complicated. We see a lot of characters we love and know with voices that fit them perfectly but we also get to know new characters that are as likeable. There also is a simple moral that has enough reason to be in the movie but could be removed. We got to know some new location and there is a bit of a dark tone om the beginning that has a great atmosphere. There are some songs in the movie that you'll probably remember. All these things together create a nostalgic masterpiece that people that loved the comics will love but will also give your kids a great time!

Excellent animation film. Plain and simple. Perhaps somewhat dated now, but I watched it many times when I was a kid. My little brothers used to watch it, rewind it, and watch it again. Time after time. We know most phrases by heart. :) I don't know about the English/American version, but the Dutch voices are superb. Haven't seen anything of this quality since, in this category.

Rating from the Dutch judge: 8 (out of 10).