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Trumpet of the Swan (2001)
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Reviews Counted:40
Fresh:5
Rotten:35
Average Rating:3.4/10
Consensus: An uninspired E.B. White adaptation that's targeted at the very young.
Runtime: 75 mins
Genre: Childrens
Synopsis: Young mute trumpeter swan Louie yearns to have a voice. He leaves his family's nest to learn to read and write in order to express himself. After befriending a young schoolboy named Sam, Louie... Young mute trumpeter swan Louie yearns to have a voice. He leaves his family's nest to learn to read and write in order to express himself. After befriending a young schoolboy named Sam, Louie learns to communicate and returns home with a chalkboard on which he writes messages for communication--but then decides that learning the trumpet would truly allow him to express himself. After Louie's father (voiced by SEINFELD's Jason Alexander) steals a trumpet for him, Louie must pay for it to restore his father's honor. He then sets out to become a world-class trumpeter, demonstrating the importance of expressing one's self. This delightful musical was based on the classic childrens' book by E.B. White (STUART LITTLE, CHARLOTTE'S WEB). [More]
Starring: Jason Alexander, Mary Steenburgen, Reese Witherspoon, Seth Green
Starring: Jason Alexander, Mary Steenburgen, Reese Witherspoon, Seth Green, Carol Burnett
Director: Richard Rich, Terry Noss
Director: Richard Rich, Terry Noss
Screenwriter: Judy Rothman Rofe
Story: E. B. White
Studio: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Reviews for Trumpet of the Swan
Despite the strong cast of voices behind the drawings, the most important one -- that of White -- is ultimately missing.
This is one worth missing in the hopes that some day, someone will do it a whole lot better.
Trumpet of the Swan is not just lackluster. It’s also lackbeauty, lackhumor and lackquality.
An unmemorable feature-length cartoon destined for a quick trip to video shelves.
These people are responsible for lots of those bad, bland '80s Disney features like The Fox and the Hound. Now, their generic, cheap, animation style has murdered another beautiful E.B. White novel.
The right messages about finding your own way and your real friends are gently offered, but The Trumpet of the Swan never really takes wing.
This adaptation of E.B. White's classic novel doesn't even live up to the Hanna-Barbera Charlotte's Web, let alone 1999's Stuart Little.
Passable animation for the younger members of the family, but the movie never finds its own voice.
Too bad the director didn't set his mind to making a film parents could enjoy, too.
The only possible audience for this film are young children and their exceedingly bored parents.
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