Children’s film
Funny and amusing: “New stories from Pumuckl”
Director Marcus H. Rosenmüller grew up with Pumuckl. photo
© Felix Hörhager/dpa
Gustl Bayrhammer and Hans Clarin, as Masters Eder and Pumuckl, were the heroes of countless children. Now the story continues – with a new Eder.
It’s the same thing with new editions of cult series. Fans often fear terrible things and like to protest loudly. The series “New Stories from “Pumuckl” should convince even nostalgic people.
Marcus H. Rosenmüller’s new work is a tongue-in-cheek nod to the much-loved episodes from the 1980s, carefully brought into the present day, with a little melancholy, a lot of heart and the unique Pumuckl humor. A few weeks before the series starts on December 11th on streaming provider RTL+, the first three episodes can be seen in cinemas.
The nice thing is that the series doesn’t even try to foist on the audience an actor other than master carpenter Eder, who Gustl Bayrhammer played so wonderfully based on the books by Ellis Kaut. Instead, it’s about Eder’s nephew Florian, who, after his uncle’s death, takes over his workshop after being vacant for 30 years – including the Pumuckl, which due to a mishap once again gets stuck to the glue and becomes visible. Now he has to stick with the new Eder – Goblin Law.
Formative: “You grew up with Pumuckl”
Rosenmüller stages the new stories with a lot of passion, which probably also has to do with a fair amount of respect. “We grew up with Pumuckl. It was definitely one of the most formative Bavarian series for me,” he says, praising Bayrhammer and the former Pumuckl spokesman Hans Clarin. “Two self-confident characters with opposite orientations: one loving peace and order, the other adventure and chaos. But both with a lovable and friendly nature.”
There are always echoes of old times, often combined with a quiet melancholy. For example, when master carpenter Eder’s old glasses turn up in the dusty workshop. Or when Ilse Neubauer, as caretaker Mrs. Stürzlinger, checks on everything. And the children are still cheeky rascals who prefer playing pranks to playing on their cell phones.
Pumuckl is Pumuckl
Pumuckl definitely hasn’t aged. The red fuzzy head, the potato nose, the big ears and the tummy are just as you remember them. Excited and highly emotional, the animated imp jumps and runs through the workshop, sings, screams and writes poetry, jumps into the swing, hides keys or drops the paint pot from the shelf. Florian Eder first meets this busy descendant of the Klabautermanns with disbelief, later amused, sometimes slightly annoyed and always very patient.
Florian Brückner (“Das Boot”) plays with great dedication and proves to be a worthy descendant of Bayrhammer, who died in 1993. He had shaped the role of the humorous and kind-hearted craftsman who could also be strict and sometimes used methods that are not compatible with today’s understanding of education.
The new one is less grumpy, even if the goblin’s turbulent activities sometimes make him despair. But mostly Florian happily gets involved in the jokes and word games of his goblin, who in the new episodes is voiced by Maxi Schafroth (“Hello Baby”). Also nice: the series retains its Bavarian character, as the new carpenter speaks just as beautiful Bavarian as his uncle.
AI in the use of voices
The fans even don’t have to do without Clarin, who spoke Pumuckl in such inimitable high tones. According to the production company, Schafroth’s voice was edited using artificial intelligence to resemble Clarin’s, albeit less shrill. This version can also be heard in the cinema. When the series starts on RTL+, viewers can also hear Schafroth’s own interpretation of the goblin’s voice if they wish.
In any case, the chemistry between Pumuckl and Florian Eder is right. This becomes clear right from the start, when young Eder stares in amusement and quite astonishment at the little red-haired guy jumping around in front of him. Just as Pumuckl is now tied to Eder, the carpenter will soon no longer be able to get away from him; this wretch has grown too close to his heart. He just can’t quite believe that this little creature dreams of drinking a pint of beer.
Things get particularly intimate in the second episode, in which Pumuckl tries to understand what “dying” of old Eder means. The fact that Eder is in the grave in the cemetery is unimaginable for Pumuckl, who wants to dig up his old companion as quickly as possible. Florian finds beautiful words and talks about the dying of the body and the soul that lives on. Things that Pumuckl understands, albeit with difficulty. “At some point there has to be an end to death,” he says. “That’s terribly boring!”