The Thief Lord (film)

Infobox Film
name = The Thief Lord


director = Richard Claus
producer = Richard Claus

writer = Cornelia Funke (novel)
Richard Claus
Daniel Musgrave
starring = Aaron Johnson
Jasper Harris
Alice Connor
Rollo Weeks George Mackay
music =
cinematography =
editing =
distributor = Warner Bros.
released = 2006
runtime = 98 min.
country = Luxembourg / U.K. / Germany
language = English
budget =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website =
amg_id =
imdb_id = 0430674

"The Thief Lord" is a 2006 family movie directed by Richard Claus. It is a joint production of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., Future Films Limited, Comet Film, and Thema Production. The film is distributed by Warner Brothers. The DVD was released on March 14, 2006, and the one disc-edition includes a theatrical trailer that ran in theaters in Europe and Mosca's cartoon from the movie itself.

The film is rated PG and runs for 98 minutes. It was nominated for the 2006 World Soundtrack Awards, with Original Music by Nigel Clarke and Michael Csányi-Wills. The screenplay was written by Richard Claus and Daniel Musgrave, based on the novel of the same title, by German author Cornelia Funke.

The tale follows two recently orphaned brothers, Bo (Jasper Harris) and Prosper (Aaron Johnson), dumped in the care of a cruel aunt and uncle, who escape their impending separation by running off to Venice. Hiding in the canals and alleyways of the city, the boys are befriended by a gang of young urchins and their enigmatic masked leader, the Thief Lord (Rollo Weeks). From their home base of an old cinema theater, the children steal from the rich to support themselves and soon capture the interest of a bumbling detective. However, a greater threat to the children is something from a forgotten past: a beautiful magical treasure that can change the age of anyone who rides it.

Plot Summary

When Prosper and Boniface's parents die, their aunt Esther attempts to adopt the younger brother, adorable five-year-old Bo (Jasper Harris). She plans to send twelve-year-old Prosper (Aaron Johnson) away to boarding school. However, Prosper rescues Bo from their aunt and uncle's house in Germany and the two boys run away to Venice, the magical city about which their mother often told stories.

Once in Venice, the boys live on the streets, and the money Prosper brought quickly runs out. Bo becomes ill and Prosper is forced to resort to stealing cough medicine from a pharmacy. The boys are nearly caught and lose the rest of their food, but are rescued by the mysterious Thief Lord (Rollo Weeks). The Thief Lord, a mask-wearing teenager whose name is Scipio, invites the boys to come with him to his hideout, an abandoned movie theatre called the Stella. The Stella is home to a handful of orphaned children Scipio has rescued: Hornet (Alice Connor), Riccio (George MacKay) and Mosca (Lathaniel Dyer). They steal from stores and Venice's wealthy tourists, but the majority of their money comes from Scipio, who goes on mysterious raids and always brings back treasures. Unfortunately, Barbarossa - the sleazy antique dealer the children have to sell their stolen goods to - always cheats the children. Bo brags that Prosper "is great at selling things" and Prosper ends up getting Barbarossa to quintuple his asking price. Barbarossa tells Riccio and Prosper there is a client who needs something stolen and is willing to pay big money for it.

Meanwhile,the boys' aunt and uncle, Esther and Max Hartlieb (Carole Boyd and Bob Goody), have traveled to Venice in order to find their nephews and entreated the help of Victor Getz (Jim Carter). The inspector wanders across Prosper and Riccio in front of a pastry shop and chases the boys when they run away. However, he is distracted by a friend, Ida Spavento, and loses the boys.

Back at the theatre, the children celebrate Prosper's success. Riccio tells Scipio about Barbarossa's customer and he decides to take the job.

Cast and Characters

*Alice Connor as Caterina "Hornet" Grimani
*Aaron Johnson as Prosper
*Jasper Harris as Boniface "Bo"
*Rollo Weeks as Scipio Massimo
*George MacKay as Riccio
*Lathaniel Dyer as Mosca
*Jim Carter as Victor Getz
*Caroline Goodall as Ida Spavento
*Alexei Sayle as Ernesto Barbarossa
*Carole Boyd as Esther Hartlieb
*Bob Goody as Max Hartlieb
*Geoffrey Hutchings as Conte
*Anita Wright as Contessa
*Poppy Rogers as Morosina
*Robert Bathurst as Dottore Massimo
*Zak Davies as Baby Barbarossa
*Vanessa Redgrave as Sister Antonia
*Margaret Tyzack as Mother Superior
*Roya Zargar as Maid (Dr Massimo)
*Ann Overstall Comfort as Housekeeper
*Chris Bearne as Newspaper Salesman
*Arnita Swanson as Tour guide
*Malcolm Turner as Chemist
*Dani Linster as Babysitter
*Massimo De Rossi as Barge Man
*Lewis Crutch as Renzo (uncredited)
*Mehran Khalili as Policeman (uncredited)

creenshots and Posters

* [http://www.cornelia-funke.de/l8mimages/corneliaunddiedarstellerausdemherrderdiebe-film.jpgCast and Author]
* [http://www.cornelia-funke.de/l8mimages/de_bildergalerie_filmfotos/Foto6_-Das_Sternenversteck.jpgThe Star Palace]
* [http://www.cornelia-funke.de/l8mimages/de_bildergalerie_filmfotos/Foto2_Mosca_Riccio_Wespe.jpgMosca, Riccio, and Hornet]
* [http://www.cornelia-funke.de/l8mimages/de_bildergalerie_filmfotos/Foto1_Prosper_Bo.jpgProsper and Bo]
* [http://www.cornelia-funke.de/l8mimages/de_bildergalerie_filmfotos/Foto4_Scipio.jpgScipio]
* [http://wwws.warnerbros.co.uk/thieflord/download/plakat.jpgMovie Poster]

DVD

The DVD includes deleted scenes from the movie.

External links

*imdb title|id=0430674|title=The Thief Lord
* [http://wwws.warnerbros.co.uk/thieflord/ Official Warner Bros. Site]
* [http://www.corneliafunke.de/en/film/film-31.html Image Gallery]