Madeline: Lost in Paris
Encyclopedia
Madeline: Lost in Paris is an animated Madeline
television film, produced by DIC Entertainment
and released on Direct-to-video
on 3 August 1999. It was released to VHS
by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. In 2009 the film was released on iTunes
for the film's 10th anniversary
.
) and (Paul O'Sullivan
) but sadly she no longer has them to turn to, thus believing she has no family left. Heartbroken, the girls wail at Madeline's story, but are soon comforted by Miss Clavel, who was awoken by the noise. She reminds the girls that they all love and look out for each other, and that they all are just as much a family as anybody else, bringing peace of mind to all of the girls. Everybody returns to bed with sweet dreams.
After Miss Clavel feels better, a letter is delivered to the house, saying Madeline's long-lost Uncle Horst from Vienna
is coming for a visit. (Jason Alexander
) Ecstatic that she still has a family, Madeline eagerly awaits his arrival. Uncle Horst arrives later in the week, and is reacquainted with his niece, whom he remembers fondly. Madeline is pleased to meet him, and Horst presents all twelve girls with lace collars as a gift. Uncle Horst then announces that he has been made Madeline's new legal guardian, and that she is to accompany him to his hometown of Vienna, where she can attend a fine finishing school
. Although nobody wants her to leave, Madeline reluctantly agrees to go.
That evening, Uncle Horst returns to dine with the girls, as well as Lord Cucuface and Pepito's family. At dinner, Horst tells of the Austrian School
to the girls, certain that it will be more fulfilling than Madeline's current school. The girls, wanting to prove that their home is just as good, puts on a musical to display their talents to Uncle Horst. Horst, however, does not sway from his intent and informs Madeline that they leave the next morning, while assuring her that she will come to love Vienna. Uncle Horst leaves for his hotel that night, during which Lord Cucuface reminds him of Madeline's inheritance, which Horst says he will be responsible for.
The night before Madeline was to leave with her uncle, Pepito tried and failed to stop the sun from waking up by preventing the rooster
from doing his morning crowing. Soon, Madeline leaves with her uncle for Gare de l'Est
where the Orient Express
will take them to Vienna. Before leaving, Miss Clavel gives Madeline her mother's bead
ed necklace
, which she was to give Madeline "at the right time". The two then depart for Vienna. However, the man though to be Madeline's uncle instead took her on the Paris Métro
and to an unfamiliar part of town, even abandoning her pet dog Genevieve on the way. Fearing that she is being kidnapped, Madeline throws pieces of her necklace to make a trail to where she is taken to. Madeline is soon taken to a lace
store run by Madame LaCroque, (Lauren Bacall
) where Uncle Horst accidentally reveals that he is French
, not Viennese German
as he had claimed. It is then revealed that Horst isn't her uncle at all, but a man named Henri, a failed Shakespearean actor. Inside are girls who were also kidnapped and were forced into making laces to sell. One of the girls, Fifi, befriended Madeline.
Shortly after Madeline left, Miss Clavel, the girls, and Pepito tried to stop her and Horst so that Pepito could give her his parting gift: A shrunken head
from Brazil
. They arrive at the train station, only to learn that the two had taken the Métro, not the Orient Express. They also find Genevieve abandoned at the station. Fearing the worst, Miss Clavel enlists the police to help them rescue Madeline.
Meanwhile, at the lace shop, Fifi's cough turns one of LaCroque's laces yellow, and she banned her from using white lace, and must instead make black lace in the dark. Madeline defends her, only to be thrown into the detention room. Fifi tells Madeline of how LaCroque was once a cabaret
dancer who had once torn her dress and fell off stage when performing. In total humiliation, she refused to perform, and sold her long hair to make lace. She then went into the lace business and kidnapped all of the girls to work as her miserable servants.
Meanwhile, Pepito and Madeline's friends go off to find her on their own and discover the trail of beads that led to the lace store. A customer claims to LaCroque she wants red lace, which gives her the idea to cut off some of Madeline's hair.
Madeline tells her new friends when an escape plan fails that they may be small, but can follow as one. LaCroque interrupts and cuts off some of Madeline's hair, while Pepeto is able to swipe off LaCroque's wig while outside the window. Miss Clavel and the police were able to discover the so-called uncle after a boy trips him after refusing to give any change.
While Madeline is still in the lace factory, Pepito and the girls use the shrunken head to first knock off La Croque's wig, and then frighten her to the ground. Meanwhile, Miss Clavel is able to convince Henri to lead them to Madeline by telling him " Surely, if you help, the cops won't be so hard on you." Henri reluctantly agrees to lead them there.
Madeline and all of her friends are able to tangle LaCroque in lace just as the police car pulls up. Henri, feeling guilty, tries to escape, only to be tripped by Pepito's lace trick, allowing the girls to tangle him up as well. LaCroque accidentally kicks Henri during the chase, just before he trips. She and Henri are arrested by the police and taken to jail. The other factory girls still have no place for home. Madeline has a great plan, though.
That night, Madeline tells her friends that they can do with their reward money. Danielle will go shopping for fashion, clothes and jewelry, Chloe will travel to exotic countries around the world, and Nicole will own a zoo.
Madeline receives a huge reward after returning home because of her work, and used it to open a school for the orphaned girls and realize that she has family all around her. All of the girls from both schools rejoice in the fact that they are all truly a happy family.
released Madeline's first-ever full length film, Madeline: Lost in Paris, on DVD in April 2010.
Madeline
Madeline is a children's book series written by Ludwig Bemelmans, an Austrian author. The books have been adapted into numerous formats, spawning telefilms, television series and a live action feature film...
television film, produced by DIC Entertainment
DiC Entertainment
DIC Entertainment was an international film and television production company. In addition to animated television shows such as Ulysses 31 , Inspector Gadget , The Littles , The Real Ghostbusters , Captain Planet and the Planeteers , and the first two seasons of the English adaptation of...
and released on Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
on 3 August 1999. It was released to VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. In 2009 the film was released on iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
for the film's 10th anniversary
Anniversary
An anniversary is a day that commemorates or celebrates a past event that occurred on the same day of the year as the initial event. For example, the first event is the initial occurrence or, if planned, the inaugural of the event. One year later would be the first anniversary of that event...
.
Plot
It is winter-time in Paris and the girls all set off at half-past nine in two straight lines, as part of their usual routine. However, they soon learn that Miss Clavel has a cold, so they wait for Dr. Cohn to come and treat her. Meanwhile, Miss Clavel is interrupted by Pepito, who is practicing the violin next door. He promises Madeline that he will not play again until Miss Clavel is well again. Dr. Cohn says for the girls to give Miss Clavel love and warmth, and that soon she shall be well. That night, the girls reminisce on the happy times they have with their families at home, like at times when they too are sick. Madeline tells them of the times she spent with her parents, (Melanie ChartoffMelanie Chartoff
Melanie Chartoff is an American actress. Among her most prominent roles are her voice role in Rugrats, her comedic work on the ABC series Fridays from 1980–1982, and on the early 1990s Fox sitcom Parker Lewis Can't Lose....
) and (Paul O'Sullivan
Paul O'Sullivan
Paul Thomas O'Sullivan, AO is Australia's High Commissioner to New Zealand and former Director-General of Security. Prior to his appointment to head ASIO in July 2005, O'Sullivan was former Prime Minister John Howard's senior foreign affairs advisor.O'Sullivan attended Marcellin College, Randwick,...
) but sadly she no longer has them to turn to, thus believing she has no family left. Heartbroken, the girls wail at Madeline's story, but are soon comforted by Miss Clavel, who was awoken by the noise. She reminds the girls that they all love and look out for each other, and that they all are just as much a family as anybody else, bringing peace of mind to all of the girls. Everybody returns to bed with sweet dreams.
After Miss Clavel feels better, a letter is delivered to the house, saying Madeline's long-lost Uncle Horst from Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
is coming for a visit. (Jason Alexander
Jason Alexander
Jay Scott Greenspan , better known by his professional name of Jason Alexander, is an American actor, writer, comedian, television director, producer, and singer. He is best known for his role as George Costanza on the television series Seinfeld, appearing in the sitcom from 1989 to 1998...
) Ecstatic that she still has a family, Madeline eagerly awaits his arrival. Uncle Horst arrives later in the week, and is reacquainted with his niece, whom he remembers fondly. Madeline is pleased to meet him, and Horst presents all twelve girls with lace collars as a gift. Uncle Horst then announces that he has been made Madeline's new legal guardian, and that she is to accompany him to his hometown of Vienna, where she can attend a fine finishing school
Finishing school
A finishing school is "a private school for girls that emphasises training in cultural and social activities." The name reflects that it follows on from ordinary school and is intended to complete the educational experience, with classes primarily on etiquette...
. Although nobody wants her to leave, Madeline reluctantly agrees to go.
That evening, Uncle Horst returns to dine with the girls, as well as Lord Cucuface and Pepito's family. At dinner, Horst tells of the Austrian School
Austrian School
The Austrian School of economics is a heterodox school of economic thought. It advocates methodological individualism in interpreting economic developments , the theory that money is non-neutral, the theory that the capital structure of economies consists of heterogeneous goods that have...
to the girls, certain that it will be more fulfilling than Madeline's current school. The girls, wanting to prove that their home is just as good, puts on a musical to display their talents to Uncle Horst. Horst, however, does not sway from his intent and informs Madeline that they leave the next morning, while assuring her that she will come to love Vienna. Uncle Horst leaves for his hotel that night, during which Lord Cucuface reminds him of Madeline's inheritance, which Horst says he will be responsible for.
The night before Madeline was to leave with her uncle, Pepito tried and failed to stop the sun from waking up by preventing the rooster
Rooster
A rooster, also known as a cockerel, cock or chanticleer, is a male chicken with the female being called a hen. Immature male chickens of less than a year's age are called cockerels...
from doing his morning crowing. Soon, Madeline leaves with her uncle for Gare de l'Est
Gare de l'Est
is one of the six large SNCF termini in Paris. It is in the 10th arrondissement, not far from the Gare du Nord, facing the Boulevard de Strasbourg, part of the north-south axis of Paris created by Baron Haussmann...
where the Orient Express
Orient Express
The Orient Express is the name of a long-distance passenger train service originally operated by the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits. It ran from 1883 to 2009 and is not to be confused with the Venice-Simplon Orient Express train service, which continues to run.The route and rolling stock...
will take them to Vienna. Before leaving, Miss Clavel gives Madeline her mother's bead
Bead
A bead is a small, decorative object that is usually pierced for threading or stringing. Beads range in size from under to over in diameter. A pair of beads made from Nassarius sea snail shells, approximately 100,000 years old, are thought to be the earliest known examples of jewellery. Beadwork...
ed necklace
Necklace
A necklace is an article of jewellery which is worn around the neck. Necklaces are frequently formed from a metal jewellery chain. Others are woven or manufactured from cloth using string or twine....
, which she was to give Madeline "at the right time". The two then depart for Vienna. However, the man though to be Madeline's uncle instead took her on the Paris Métro
Paris Métro
The Paris Métro or Métropolitain is the rapid transit metro system in Paris, France. It has become a symbol of the city, noted for its density within the city limits and its uniform architecture influenced by Art Nouveau. The network's sixteen lines are mostly underground and run to 214 km ...
and to an unfamiliar part of town, even abandoning her pet dog Genevieve on the way. Fearing that she is being kidnapped, Madeline throws pieces of her necklace to make a trail to where she is taken to. Madeline is soon taken to a lace
Lace
Lace is an openwork fabric, patterned with open holes in the work, made by machine or by hand. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric. Lace-making is an ancient craft. True lace was...
store run by Madame LaCroque, (Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
) where Uncle Horst accidentally reveals that he is French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
, not Viennese German
Viennese German
Viennese German is the city dialect spoken in Vienna, the capital of Austria and is counted among the Bavarian dialects. Even in Lower Austria, the state surrounding the city, many of its expressions are not used, while farther to the west they are often not even understood.- Linguistic...
as he had claimed. It is then revealed that Horst isn't her uncle at all, but a man named Henri, a failed Shakespearean actor. Inside are girls who were also kidnapped and were forced into making laces to sell. One of the girls, Fifi, befriended Madeline.
Shortly after Madeline left, Miss Clavel, the girls, and Pepito tried to stop her and Horst so that Pepito could give her his parting gift: A shrunken head
Shrunken head
A shrunken head is a severed and specially prepared human head that is used for trophy, ritual, or trade purposes.Headhunting occurred in many regions of the world. But the practice of headshrinking has only ever been recorded in the northwestern region of the Amazon rain forest...
from Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. They arrive at the train station, only to learn that the two had taken the Métro, not the Orient Express. They also find Genevieve abandoned at the station. Fearing the worst, Miss Clavel enlists the police to help them rescue Madeline.
Meanwhile, at the lace shop, Fifi's cough turns one of LaCroque's laces yellow, and she banned her from using white lace, and must instead make black lace in the dark. Madeline defends her, only to be thrown into the detention room. Fifi tells Madeline of how LaCroque was once a cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
dancer who had once torn her dress and fell off stage when performing. In total humiliation, she refused to perform, and sold her long hair to make lace. She then went into the lace business and kidnapped all of the girls to work as her miserable servants.
Meanwhile, Pepito and Madeline's friends go off to find her on their own and discover the trail of beads that led to the lace store. A customer claims to LaCroque she wants red lace, which gives her the idea to cut off some of Madeline's hair.
Madeline tells her new friends when an escape plan fails that they may be small, but can follow as one. LaCroque interrupts and cuts off some of Madeline's hair, while Pepeto is able to swipe off LaCroque's wig while outside the window. Miss Clavel and the police were able to discover the so-called uncle after a boy trips him after refusing to give any change.
While Madeline is still in the lace factory, Pepito and the girls use the shrunken head to first knock off La Croque's wig, and then frighten her to the ground. Meanwhile, Miss Clavel is able to convince Henri to lead them to Madeline by telling him " Surely, if you help, the cops won't be so hard on you." Henri reluctantly agrees to lead them there.
Madeline and all of her friends are able to tangle LaCroque in lace just as the police car pulls up. Henri, feeling guilty, tries to escape, only to be tripped by Pepito's lace trick, allowing the girls to tangle him up as well. LaCroque accidentally kicks Henri during the chase, just before he trips. She and Henri are arrested by the police and taken to jail. The other factory girls still have no place for home. Madeline has a great plan, though.
That night, Madeline tells her friends that they can do with their reward money. Danielle will go shopping for fashion, clothes and jewelry, Chloe will travel to exotic countries around the world, and Nicole will own a zoo.
Madeline receives a huge reward after returning home because of her work, and used it to open a school for the orphaned girls and realize that she has family all around her. All of the girls from both schools rejoice in the fact that they are all truly a happy family.
DVD Releases
Shout! FactoryShout! Factory
Shout! Factory is an entertainment company founded in 2003 that was started by Richard Foos , Bob Emmer and Garson Foos initially as a specialty music label...
released Madeline's first-ever full length film, Madeline: Lost in Paris, on DVD in April 2010.
Voice cast
- Christopher PlummerChristopher PlummerArthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
as the Narrator - Lauren BacallLauren BacallLauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
as Madame LaCroque, the main antagonist. - Jason AlexanderJason AlexanderJay Scott Greenspan , better known by his professional name of Jason Alexander, is an American actor, writer, comedian, television director, producer, and singer. He is best known for his role as George Costanza on the television series Seinfeld, appearing in the sitcom from 1989 to 1998...
as Uncle Horst / Henri, the secondary antagonist. - Andrea LibmanAndrea LibmanAndrea Eva Libman is a Canadian actress, television writer, and singer, whose most popular on-screen appearances are on the Little Women movie, Andre and a guest-role on The X-Files...
as Madeline, the protagonist. - Stevie Vallance (as Stephanie Louise Vallance) as Miss Clavel
- Additional voices include Jennifer Copping, Brittney Irvin, Tabitha St. GermainTabitha St. GermainTabitha St. Germain is a Canadian stage actress. She has made the transition from stage work to voice work, and has since become one of the core female voice actresses working with Ocean Productions in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.- Anime :* .hack//Roots - Asta, Nazo Grunty* Black Lagoon -...
, Veronika Sztopa, Rochelle Greenwood, French Tickner, Michael Heyward, Garry Chalk, Dale Wilson and Jane Mortifee.
Songs
- Family - Madeline & 11 Little Girls
- We Can Sing, We Can Dance - 11 Little Girls, Uncle Horst and more
- Something is Not Right - Miss Clavel, 11 Little Girls, Madeline and Uncle Horst
- Where is the hope that I once knew? - Madeline & Laceshop Girls
- Together - Madeline & Laceshop Girls
- Family (reprise) - Madeline, 11 Little Girls & Laceshop Girls