Overwhelmed by the excitement around "the new Cheburashka", I decided to watch the film with the whole family. I wish this never would have happened...
The film with a strong cast is nothing but a collection of loosely connected scenes. Even if some of them are well-played one can easily throw away and destroy 30-40 minutes of the film without losing something valuable or ruining the storyline.
The main character - Cheburashka is cute and that's probably the only positive point of this movie. Toddlers from 3 to 6 can watch and enjoy it, but for all the elder ones the film will be quite boring; I would even say... disturbing because loneliness is a leitmotiv running through the entire movie: a lonely Cheburashka, lonely children, lonely adults, strange, useless characters of the second plan with uncomprehensive behaviour and useless dialogues.
Add to this a soundtrack where a big part of the musical sequences are completely out of sync with the camera movement and the acting of the main characters and you will obtain a bitter cocktail of sentimental fuzziness.
The jokes are flat (but OK, many people like that), and the twists are predictable (with the exception of different reactions of Tanya, whose son Grisha was silent for five years and suddenly spoke thanks to Cheburashka; but guess what!? Tanya, as well as other family members who saw this miracle produced by a strange fluffy creature sitting next to their dear son, scream and shout and then... they all forget about it in the next five seconds of the same scene. What the...?)
Well, guys, do not waste your time on this and do not trust paid comments or the ones made by film creators, cast or their friends (this is the reason why I give it one star as I wish to counterbalance it). The film is suitable for a family evening with 3-6 years old kids, but would you enjoy it? I think not, especially if you are familiar with the original story created by Eduard Uspenskiy. The fact that the creators of the film did not include a mention of him in the credits, nor of Leonid Shvartsman, who designed the famous image of Cheburshka, leaves a bitter after taste of this Chebispoliation...
