Kirikou and the Sorceress

December. 09,1998      
Rating:
7.5
Trailer Synopsis Cast

Drawn from elements of West African folk tales, it depicts how a newborn boy, Kirikou, saves his village from the evil witch Karaba.

Doudou Gueye Thiaw as  Kirikou enfant (voice)
Maimouna N'Diaye as  La Mère (voice)
Awa Sène Sarr as  Karaba (voice)
Robert Liensol as  Le Sage dans la montagne (voice)
William Nadylam as  Kirikou jeune homme (voice)
Sebastien Hebrant as  Kirikou jeune homme (voice)
Rémi Bichet as  Kirikou adulte
Moustapha Diop as  Le fétiche sur le toit
Isseu Niang as  La femme maigre

Similar titles

Legend of Firefly Marsh
Legend of Firefly Marsh
Firefly Marsh is a fog-enshrouded corner of the world, steeped in mystery. Stories of what lurks in the dark waters date back to Indian lore. But could Firefly Marsh really hide a prehistoric creature like the one in Loch Ness? Twelve year-old Charlie Curtis and his friend Jim may have found the answer after "something" swamps their dingy in the marsh. Was it the monster? For Charlie, that night sparks a personal odyssey that will take over half a century to finish. The memory of what he saw becomes his obsession, his lifelong passion. When Charlie's grandson, Kevin, comes to visit for the summer, he becomes caught up in his grandfather's stories. Are Charlie's stories just to entertain the local children or is there some truth to the old man's tale? Soon the curious teenager begins his own adventure, a quest to solve the mystery behind The Legend of Firefly Marsh. - Written by Gabe Torres
Legend of Firefly Marsh 1987

You May Also Like

The Prince of Egypt
Prime Video
The Prince of Egypt
The strong bond between two brothers is challenged when their chosen responsibilities sets them at odds, with extraordinary consequences.
The Prince of Egypt 1998
Extremis
Netflix
Extremis
A purely observational non-fiction film that takes viewers into the ethically murky world of end-of-life decision making in a public hospital.
Extremis 2016
An All Dogs Christmas Carol
Prime Video
An All Dogs Christmas Carol
Charlie B. Barker and Itchy Ford are back with Sasha and the gang having a Dicken's of a time as they try to save Christmas from Carface and an evil spirit that wishes to use dogs all over the world to ruin Christmas forever.
An All Dogs Christmas Carol 1998
Momo
Momo
Momo is a young orphan girl who lives in the ruins of an old Roman amphitheater and becomes friends with everybody in the neighborhood. But when a powerful international corporation starts stealing everybody’s time, nobody has any time left for her, let alone their friends or families. Momo, together with Master Hora, the custodian of time, are the only ones who can go up against the time thieves before all is lost forever.
Momo 2001
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You
Precocious yet sensitive teenager James has a deep perception of the world but no idea how to live in it. Finding no help from his divorced parents nor his older memoir-writing sister, he decides to reject the beliefs adults try to push on him, starting with the college career that is looming over his last summer in New York, and embarks instead on a search for wisdom through nontraditional means...
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You 2012

Reviews

Raetsonwe
1998/12/09

Redundant and unnecessary.

... more
Siflutter
1998/12/10

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

... more
filippaberry84
1998/12/11

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

... more
Griff Lees
1998/12/12

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

... more
brittybits
1998/12/13

Kirikou is by far one of the most unique characters I have yet to come across in a film or a book. For one, who ever heard of a baby that decided on his own that he was ready to come out from his mother's womb? In addition, Kirkou has a mind of his own and makes it his goal to get rid of the sorceress. However, I think it was very wise for the writer of this film to ensure that once Kirikou found the reason for the Karaba's agony and sufferings, Kirokou then understood them to be accidental and had to put an end to them. The graphics were beyond belief beautiful and the personality of each character were spot on. Karaba had a mystical voice which sounded purely evil and her hair was not unlike that of Medusa's. The warthog was also greatly reminiscent of Pumba from the The Lion King. Kirikou's journeys through the ground and around the mountain were nonetheless entertaining. His antics of camouflaging as a bird and constantly asking "but why?" were warming. The illustrations of the different sizes of the women was greatly acknowledged, for it is well known that women come in all shapes and sizes. The tree that was put into the forest by Karaba was much like the Tree of Good and Evil in the book of Genesis, representing temptation at its finest. I especially enjoyed the lessons put forth in the film, particularly from the grandfather.If you enjoyed this film, I highly suggest you check out The Secret of Kells. It's an animated fantasy about a boy who discovers the Irish Book of Kells, which does in fact exist.

... more
mehmelae
1998/12/14

Kirikou et la Sorcière is a story that has many morals. For example, the story demonstrates that even the smallest person can be a hero; and also that it is because he is small that he has not been corrupted to the ways of the world and into accepting his lot in life. Kirikou has courage, wisdom, and curiosity that helps him to save his village from the Sorceress, but also the Sorceress from her evil power. He is small, but he is not afraid to do what is right, and what has to be done. Since Kirikou was so tiny he was able to crawl into the water spout and find out what had stolen the water from his villagers. He was able to crawl through the underground maze to see the Wise Old Man of the Mountain. One does not have to be big to be brave.Another moral is that relying on one's family for help is not a bad thing. Kirikou seeks help from his mother throughout the whole movie, especially in the end. He loves his mother very much. Kirikou also seeks help from his grandfather who helps him many times as well with his wisdom. A family is there to help whenever help is needed, and Kirikou was not so grown up, though of course he wanted to be, that he would not ask for help when he needed it.An important moral is forgiveness. The Sorceress was evil and very cruel to the villagers. She supposedly ate their men, stolen their water, gold, and children, but in reality she only did one and tired to do another. She was cruel; however, Kirikou saves her from the evil power that has corrupted her. When he brings her back to the villagers they refuse to accept that she is no longer evil and they threaten to kill the Sorceress and Kirikou. She was truly sorry for the things she did while under the influence of the evil power, the villagers should have given her a chance to prove her sincerity.Though for some this movie would be laughable because of its graphics and how the story is written. The women of the village are drawn with varying shapes and sizes that are hilarious. Also the village elder is portrayed as a complete imbecile. However, one has to look beyond the literal text to see the metaphorical meanings. The director uses the colors and graphics as symbols. The colors in the village and around it very beautiful; they are so bright and vivid. They symbolize life and goodness. The colors around the Sorceress hut are dark, dreary colors symbolizing evil and ugliness.This movie would be best for little children because they will not pick apart the movie looking for bad directing or horrible graphics. Those things do not matter to children. They will see that Kirikou is a small boy that does great things, and they will love it. Also they are more likely to pick up on the morals of the story than adults who always think meanings have to be hidden, and who cannot see the easy things. Of course, many adults will like this movie if they like challenging their minds to see beyond the surface of the story into what it really is all about.

... more
kutchehl
1998/12/15

I really liked watching Kirikou and the Sorceress because the story was a classic struggle against evil. The hero is about as unlikely as they come (how many newborn babies match wits with sorceresses?) he's brave, and kind, and smart, and sometimes he feels "a little small and frightened." What I love best about Kirikou as a hero is that he is a child. Kirikou tells his grandfather that he would like to be grownup so that he can defeat the sorceress, but his grandfather tells him that "none of the grown-ups succeeded." The story of Kirikou and the Sorceress was beautifully told. I didn't notice the soundtrack very much, but when I did notice the music it was quiet and pleasant to listen to. Even though the songs with words are earworms that got stuck in my head, those were also pleasant to listen to. The animation makes me think of watercolor paintings. The pictures on the screen are fairly sparse, the village scenes don't have a lot of added details, the plants are stylized, and the people are mostly outlined blocks of color, but this is perhaps the strength of the animation. I think this reflects the simplicity of the story, it isn't supposed to be a really complicated story, just what matters.I would recommend this movie to people who are invested in the concept of story and suggest that they consider the differences in classic American story (descended from European story) and classic African story.

... more
jasonhahnfl
1998/12/16

I felt that the animated film Kirikou and the Sorceress, directed by Michel Ocelot, and was an enjoyable film. Ocelot does a great job portraying African culture in a fun and traditional manner.This culturally rich African folklore presents a classical hero story which was great because of the unique manner in which it was presented. Although the film was your typical hero story, it was the introduction of an unlikely hero that first got me. Little baby Kirikou, fresh out of the womb; lighting quick and very wise is what first took me out of my comfort zone. In addition to our hero being a naked infant, all the characters run around topless which wasn't bad thing, just different. The movie was very simple and yet very complex at the same time. Simplistically speaking it was the actual story line, the graphics, the communication between characters it all very direct meaning if there was a problem the character would state the problem and then how he should fix it, which made the story easy to follow. The colors in this film made it clear how you were suppose to feel. With technology and the evil sorceress being represented in dark colors and culture, tradition seen as the village represented in light colors and fun music. I felt the complexity lied in the overall message the movie was trying to convey and by many people this message could be interpreted in different ways.Overall I enjoyed the movie because it conveyed a serious message in a fun and entertaining manner. As I stated before, the movie was culturally different for me but this unique experience also kept the movie exciting. I would recommend this film to anyone who likes anime-folklore films or almost any Disney fan of any type because I felt this film had a strong "Disney" element to it. Disney element, basically meaning the film was friendly and the manner in which they told their story was cute and fun.

... more