Laura's Star

A charming animated film that has earned acclaim in Europe, where it was both a festival favorite and a financial success, filmmakers Piet De Rycker and Thilo Rothkirch's adaptation of a popular German children's book follows the magical adventure of a young girl who feels isolated after her family moves from the countryside to the big city. Unable to sleep, Laura looks out her window and sees a shooting star plummet to Earth. Laura rushes out to find the star, discovers it's been injured, and patches its leg with a Band-Aid. Thus healed, the star scatters magic dust around the girl's room, bringing her toys to life. Laura's new star friend helps her adjust to the strange new surroundings, and she learns that change can be a good thing. The story unfolds with deceptive simplicity, imparting its message without undue preachiness, and while the animation is hardly state-of-the-art, it more than adequately serves the narrative's demands. Recommended. (E. Hulse)