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"Long
ago and far away..."
So begins
the latest direct-to-video CGI-animated Barbie movie, Barbie
as the Princess and the Pauper. Based on Mark Twain's
classic tale, this video/DVD is a modern-retelling of the
story. It's Barbie's first musical, and it does a fantastic
job of both entertaining kids and giving them something to
think about.
At the
same moment, two identical baby girls were born. One,
Princess Anneliese, had everything, while Erika, born to a
poor village family, lived a life of hard work and poverty.
Both girls were equally loved, but their circumstances were
starkly different. The girls looked amazingly similar,
with the exception of hair color!
Princess
Anneliese's mother, a widowed Queen, was encountering some
serious problems. The gold had run out, and the her Kingdom
was now bankrupt. In order to care for her people, she
planned that her daughter meet Dominick, a young King in
"need" of a wife.
This
movie explores the urge for freedom and the desire to be
responsible. The princess is compelled to fulfill her duty
to her mother and their kingdom by marrying Dominick. Erika,
the pauper, feels responsibility to her own family, hoping
to repay her parents' debt.
Both girls are determined and
adventurous, and their lives quickly become intertwined
after Preminger, the Queen's "trusted" advisor,
kidnaps the Princess. Erika will need to assume Anneliese's
identity in order to foil her kidnapper. More suspense and
complications arise when King Dominick falls in love with
Erika, mistaking her for the Princess. A rather royal cat, Serafina, and her rival, Midas (a French poodle) are funny supporting
characters in this exciting musical. The songs are
charmingeven Preminger sings a deliciously evil little
ditty.
The DVD
is loaded with bonus features, and initial orders of both
the DVD and VHS include a bonus musical soundtrack CD.
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