Der kleine Muck (1944)

A lullaby sounds. The Man in the Moon begins to tell a story. He says that he writes in his book the names of all the children who are to be born down on Earth. He remembers what happened twelve years ago. Thirty cannon shots announced the birth of a princess to King Silverhair and Queen Herzelinde. On the same day, the blacksmith Muck had a son, who was also named Muck. The town clerk, Krickel, recorded it all. A short time later, the Man in the Moon appeared before the little king’s daughter, Mareile, and wished her nothing but happy days. And should the little princess ever have to cry, her tears would turn into gleaming pearls. “And only you, Queen, shall know when your little daughter is in danger, and only in your hand shall these pearls turn back into salty tears.” With that, he takes his leave of the queen and goes on to little Muck: “You, too, shall be very happy, little Muck. And if you are ever in trouble, I will help you—I, the old Man in the Moon.” That, the Man in the Moon recalls, is how things were twelve years ago. The princess, now twelve, leads a happy life, but little Muck has lost both his father and his mother. Three men appear one after another, demanding money from the boy that they claim his late father owed them. They all rush to the town clerk to register their claims to the house where little Muck lives. At the same time, the king’s empty carriage, in which Princess Mareile and Prince Goldhair had been travelling, is found. The king is furious that his children were not looked after better. He has those responsible thrown into prison and offers 100,000 gold coins to whoever brings his children back to him. Little Muck has also heard about the reward and dreams of finding the royal children. The Man in the Moon soon appears, encourages him, and assures him that he will help with his undertaking. So little Muck sets off. He tries his luck in Gingerbread Town. Kindheartedly, he helps an old woman who is being teased by the local children. The old lady, whose name is Mrs. Ahavzie, then takes him home with her. Before long, she is ordering him around and making him wait on her. The street dog Bello keeps slipping into the house and whining in front of a locked door, much to the nasty old woman’s annoyance. When she is alone, she is heard rejoicing: “That’ll make a fine roast for my brother Bumbo.” Meanwhile, Bumbo dreams in the forest of finally being able to eat human flesh again. He has the little princess in his power and boasts, “No one could ever know that the giant Bumbo is holding such a precious little bird captive.” He calls Mareile “Goose-Trine,” making her cry when he says he plans to marry her soon. He watches delightedly as her tears turn into pearls, and greedily takes them from her. Little Muck dreams, and at the end of his dream he sees a large key. Bello is with him again, barking at the locked door in Mrs. Ahavzie’s house. Little Muck searches and finds a key. Behind the door, he discovers piles of pearls, as well as the magic wand and magic shoes he saw in his dream. He puts on the shoes so they will take him to wherever Mrs. Ahavzie is, and they bring him to a little forest stream. Then he hears Mrs. Ahavzie’s voice and eavesdrops on her conversation with her brother, the giant Bumbo. She has a fine roast for him: a boy named Muck. In return, she demands lots of pearls. Bumbo calls for Trine, and the moment he talks about marrying her, tears flow and turn into pearls. She will bring him the brat tomorrow. If he refuses, she still has her magic stick; when she says, “Beat, my little stick, beat,” it will drive him to her. Little Muck is glad he heard all this. A little later, he confirms his suspicion that Trine the goose girl is the missing Princess Mareile. When he calls out to her, she is very startled, and her tears fall to the ground as pearls. The Man in the Moon appears and tells Muck to hurry to King Silverhair with the pearls, using the magic stick. At the palace, Muck meets Dünn, the fleet runner hired by the king, and claims he can run faster than him—which he immediately proves with the help of the magic stick. When the pearls fall from his handkerchief, the precious stones are taken to the king and queen. When a tear from the weeping queen falls on one of the pearls, it dissolves. The queen now knows they are her daughter’s tears. A servant is ordered to fetch little Muck at once. When the boy sees a picture of the king’s daughter, he cries, “Yes, that’s her—the Trine, the Goose-Trine.” The king and queen are beside themselves and ask him many questions. Little Muck now wants to bring the princess back, and at his command, “I want to go to Bumbo,” the magic shoes set off. Meanwhile, Mrs. Ahavzie has arrived at the giant’s almost at the same time as little Muck, bringing Bello, whom she intends to offer her brother as a roast in place of the missing Muck. Muck hears her talking to Bello, saying that no one knows he has been enchanted and no one will be able to break the spell, since no one knows his name… “Goldhair!” cries little Muck, quick-wittedly, and a terrible thunderstorm breaks out as Muck brings the stick down on the old woman. She runs away screaming. The prince, now freed from the spell, thanks Muck a thousand times and goes to fetch his sister. Suddenly, the giant Bumbo comes toward them. Muck commands his magic stick: “Dear little stick, beat, beat; beat the silly giant blue, drive Bumbo out of the land, let him be banished forever.” And so it happens. “Now, you two, hold on to the chain,” little Muck tells the king’s children. “I’ll get you home quickly.” At the palace, everyone waits anxiously, wondering whether the children will come. The door opens and cheers erupt, followed by a joyful dance. Little Muck thanks the Man in the Moon for his help.