 |
If you are reading this movie review, then you probably know who Franklin the Turtle is. But just in case you do not, Franklin is a growing young boy turtle who lives in the woods with his family. His friends include other forest animals. Franklin learns important life lessons about such common themes as: sharing, being patient, being a good friend, telling the truth and so on. It's a series for young preschool children. It is a popular series, with many books (by Bourgrois and Clark), 5 animated televsion seasons and 4 movies in the Franklin series to date. The first ever Franklin movie made for the big screen is "Franklin and the Turtle Lake Treasure"...which brings us back to my review of this movie. Running about 75 minutes, it is a good length for young children. Not too long (as to lose their attention) and not so short that it's over just after you pop it in the DVD player. Although the visual 'look' has changed, it's still Franklin and his pals. Same voices, same characters. That's nice. But there is a strong theme throughout this movie that may not be so nice for all viewers...especially the young ones. As mentioned in my title, "death" is a recurring theme in this movie and might be frightening for the preschool audience for which the film is intended. Storyline: Franklin's aunt Lucy and her god-daughter (Samantha) have come to town. At first Franklin does not get along with Samantha. The movie seems to be in line with other Franklin-like kiddie themes, such as 'you should be nice to outsiders' and 'include everyone in the fun' and 'don't hold a grudge'. That is all fine, until Granny Turtle falls ill. From this point on, I feel that this movie takes a turn towards the "Disney" method of film-making. That is, ro scare kids with frightening images and while you are at it, kill off the parents. Difficult material for many young viewers. To continue: Granny Turtle recounts her childhood at Turtle Lake when she saw her parents die in a forest fire, and was nearly killed herself. (Death/Loss) Then she gets very ill and is she not expected to live much longer(Death/Loss). Franklin hears Granny mumbling in her sleep about finding a time capusle box that she buried at the lake but lost years ago, so he decides that they should try to find it for her. An expedition of Franklin, his aunt, Samantha, Bear, Snail and Beaver head out to find the box. Along the way they are guided by Old Turtle, a mystical witch living in an enchanted glen. She is friendly to the group because Franklin's Great Grandfather saved her life when she almost died as a child in a landslide (Death/Loss). Old Turtle owns a talisman that she believes gives her incredible longevity (Witchcraft...if you take offense to such things). At first Franklin asks for the talisman, so he can give its healing powers to his Granny, but if he takes it, Old Turtle will die (Death/Loss), so he does not take it. The group tries again to find Granny's time capsule (which also contains a talisman). Along the way, Snail is almost killed and eaten by eaglets (Death/Loss) and they meet a baby crow whose parents are dead (Death/Loss) The group does find the time capsule, they return home, and Granny gets better. The movie ends in a typical 'Franklin way' again, which is everybody happy and friends again. I believe the movie is unrated, but should be PG for the slightly frightening scenes. A good movie to watch with the kids, and with discussion afterRead full review
Boy, was I disappointed! It has a witch-craft theme in the movie. Franklin's grandma gets sick and might die. Franklin goes to the forest to search for a time capsule buried by his grandma when she was a girl. They meet a witch who tells them that a necklace she wears is the source of her life. She says she doesn't know how old she is because she has been around for so long. She looks up into the sky and has some sort of 'vision' about where the hidden box is that Franklin came to the forest to look for. She is reluctant to give Franklin her necklace because she might die without it. The only other known necklace like it, is in the lost box. Even the trees, butterflies ect seem to do the witch's 'bidding'. The movie has a good ending-- the necklace Franklin finds does not heal his grandma (even though she is healed). I was also a little disappointed that his grandma didn't die. She obviously is old and sick. But I guess Franklin wished 'hard' enough that she got better. How do you explain to your kids that Franklin's grandma got all better just because everyone wanted her to, but your grandma died? Dying is a natural occurrence and happens to everyone, even grandmas we love. I just think the whole video was awful. They could have used a better story line. I cannot believe all this junk was in a Franklin video! The WORST part is that nothing on the back cover of the dvd lets you know about the content. There is no mention of a witch or a magic life giving necklace in the description on the cover. This is a fairly new video and probably one that many young kids may like for Christmas. Without any indication of the witchcraft on the cover, many parents may purchase it and be surprised at the content. Isn't that like false advertising, to let a consumer think they are buying something they aren't getting?Read full review
I desided to buy it cause me and my 3 yr old daughter Loves this show and its just not on tv enought! we are home everyday from 9-10am to watch our franklin on Nick Jr.. we dance and sing da song togeher...real messages for LIl kids to take away from it.sharing, helping ect.... If you get more, I'd be very interested in buy em! i live in the middle of NOWHERE, movie store... is Wal-Mart and no much of selection of Franklin! So keep em coming and we will keep on buyin em!
My little girl loves it
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Cute show
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Best Selling in DVDs & Blu-ray Discs
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- Save on DVDs & Blu-ray Discs
Current slide {CURRENT_SLIDE} of {TOTAL_SLIDES}- You may also like
![Franklin And The Turtle Lake Treasure [DVD] [*READ* Ex-Lib. DISC-ONLY]](https://ir.ebaystatic.com/rs/c/prpweb-src-images-space-98af7172.gif)