Jim Button and Luke the Engine Driver (2018)

An orphan boy in search of his origin. A young princess held prisoner in deadly Dragon City. Jim and his friend Luke discovering mysterious lands on the quest of a lifetime.

Director:

Dennis Gansel

Writers:

Dirk Ahner, Andrew Birkin

Stars:

Shirley MacLaine, Michael Herbig, Milan Peschel

1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Shirley MacLaine	...	Mrs. Grindtooth (voice)
Michael Herbig	...	Nepumuk (voice)
Milan Peschel	...	Tur Tur
Uwe Ochsenknecht	...	König Alfons
Christoph Maria Herbst	...	Herr Ärmel
Annette Frier	...	Frau Waas
Hon Ping Tang	...	Guard Lieutenant
Henning Baum	...	Lukas
Volker Michalowski	...	Postbote
Darryl Quon	...	Langer Bonze
Rick Kavanian	...	Die Wilde 13
Thomas Fritsch	...	Erzähler (voice)
Ozzie Yue	...	Pi Pa Po
Leighanne Esperanzate	...	Prinzessin Li Si
Judy Winter	...	Frau Mahlzahn (voice)

Storyline

An orphan boy in search of his origin. A young princess held prisoner in deadly Dragon City. Jim and his friend Luke discovering mysterious lands on the quest of a lifetime.

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Plot Keywords:

magic | transformation | based on novel | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy

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Details

Official Sites:

official Facebook page Official site

Country:

Germany

Language:

English German

Release Date:

8 November 2019 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jim Button and Luke the Engine Driver

Filming Locations:

Studio Babelsberg, Berlin, Germany

Company Credits

Production Co:

Malao Film, Rat Pack Filmproduktion, Studio Babelsberg

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Based on the book by Michael Ende. There is a sequel titled "Jim Button and the Wild 13", originally published in German as "Jim Knopf und die Wilde 13".

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Quotes

Lukas: You'll become a great explorer.
Jim Knopf: I rather be an engine driver, just like you.
Lukas: Engine drivers only follow the tracks that were found by explorers.

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Crazy Credits

The first closing credits are displayed in a book featuring technical drawings of EMMA and whole Lummerland as well as of other places from the story.

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Connections

References Jim Knopf und Lukas der Lokomotivführer (1977)

User Reviews

Excellent rendition of a German children's classic

Michael Ende didn't write as many books as others, but most of his books became instant classics. The tale of "Jim Knopf und Lukas, der Lokomotivführer" ist his best known, next to "Neverending story", which has become a classic both as a book and a film. While the latter aims for adults as well as for older kids, "Jim Knopf" is a great children's story - although it contains elements that will ring more with grown ups.

The book is great in it's detail, and the pictures are fantastic on their own account. Then there's the marionette-version, made for TV by the "Augsburger Puppenkiste", in the 1970s.

Now, Jim finally and well deservingly hits the big screen - and the makers did really, really well! They took lots of inspiration from the beloved TV-Version and didn't change a lot of the story: Jim being brought to the island of Lummerland with only a few habitants and a train engine as a baby, later sailing away (on the engine!) with his fatherly friend Lukas, to explore the secret of his heritage, trying to save princess Li Si from the dragon's city on the way, meeting lots of curious people on their journey...

The director tells the story very straight, the action is well paced, and there are hardly any important parts missing. The visuals are fine, except for Nepomuk, the half dragon, who REALLY looks animated! No 3D, thankfully! The actors are doing a great job, especially both leads, but also all the secondary characters.

A minor annoyance to me was the unnecessary change of the fact that Jim can't read or write at the beginning. That's why he has to DRAW a letter to Mrs. Waas when he's leaving. They kept the drawings in the movie but ADDED additional writing!

Apart from that there's hardly anything to criticise. I rate this fantastic adaption 9/10 and look forward to the sequel "Die Wilde 13"!