Die goldene Gans

Old fashioned, slow film adaptation of the fairy tale by the Grimm bothers. East German DEFA made much better films for children than this one: the colours could have been more bright, the acting is stiff but the sets are nice. And the goose looks as if it has a golden time indeed. Still fun.

'Die Goldene Gans' (its English title being 'The Golden Goose') is quite slight and perhaps lends itself better to a short film or television episode, then again that is not unusual for fairy/folk tales. But it does engage and entertain more than enough with a distinctive Brothers Grimm, as far as their stories go it is more than worthwhile but not one of their very best or most influential, fairy tale tone and nicely drawn characters.

There are not many adaptations of 'The Golden Goose' around, but the few there are a long way from disgrace it. This feature film adaptation makes do, more than does so, and anybody interested in watching an old live action adaptation of a fairy/folk tale should check it out, even if it is just the once and if you find that it is not quite for you. It is enough to make one feel why there aren't any more older East German fantasy/fairy-tale films and why those that exist aren't better known regardless of their overall quality.

Starting with the good things, which outweigh the not so good, 'The Golden Goose' still holds up well visually and looks pretty darn good even. It may not be flashy or big in spectacle, the budget and technology being not as advanced at the time, but the story didn't call for that and appreciated that it wasn't overblown and didn't rely too much on effects at the expense of everything else. The production design is suitably rustic and colourful and didn't look simplistic, while it is beautifully shot in colour. The music score has a lot of atmosphere and character, appealing too on the ears and didn't have any issues with it fitting.

Writing avoids being too childish or complicated, so didn't find myself questioning the target audience or cringing at the unintentional campiness. The story has its charm and has enough to it to make it engaging, avoiding taking simplicity too far or being too dark. The characters are engaging, with an appealing lead especially.

Pacing is an issue at times though, at times feeling over-stretched with the film being just over an hour but could easily have been half the length.

Although the characters carry 'The Golden Goose' very nicely, some of the acting tends to be on the theatrical side.

On the whole, nicely done if not quite golden (though never bronze). 7/10

NOTE: This review is of the English-dubbed version of THE GOLDEN GOOSE, dubbed and distributed in the USA by K. Gordon Murray.

Of all the many children's films exported to the US by "master showman" K. Gordon Murray in the 1960's, THE GOLDEN GOOSE is one of the three of four best in terms of entertainment value. I showed my children (now teens) this film when they were in the 5-8 age range, and they loved the color, the slapstick comedy, the comforting broadly-played characters, and the sense of fun. Also, this film lacks the Gothic touches and overall weirdness found in some of Murray's Mexican imports (although those have a lot of appeal for adults watching them today). The young women in the film are dubbed by adults trying to sound like children, which gives the whole film a non-realistic quality, almost like story time at a daycare! I don't know what frame of reference today's children would have to help them with something like this--perhaps the skits performed at theme parks or when the high school musical comedy players go to elementary schools to perform--but THE GOLDEN GOOSE holds up well as timeless, simple family entertainment for the under 10 crowd. And the visuals are interesting enough that adults would not be bored. Unfortunately, the days when films such as this played in actual theaters were dead by the early 1970's--your best bet today for finding old children's films might be in the DVD/VHS pile at your local dollar store. Some of the children's films imported by Murray in the later 60's were more strange than entertaining, but THE GOLDEN GOOSE still contains a lot of entertainment value for those with old-fashioned tastes, or those parents who want to broaden their children's horizons.