Rainbow Magic - Return To Rainspell Island [DVD] [2010]

If your kids love Rainbow Magic, they’ll want to watch this. Slightly weird as it’s been drawn in Japan and has a distinct anime feel to it. Also, addresses bullying which is definitely not a theme in the books so be warned!

"Return To Rainspell Island" is based on the popular Rainbow Magic book series. Specifically it is set after book 7 of the series (Heather the Violet Fairy). The plot has best friends Rachel and Kirsty going back to Rainspell Island where they first met in the books. There they are once again called on to save Fairyland from Jack Frost who is intent on conquering it with an army of snowmen. This is a highly enjoyable movie for both fans of the books and people who just enjoy light-hearted fantasy. Rachel and Kirsty are likeable and engaging characters and the movie's overall tone is sweet and uplifting without ever feeling overly saccharine or sickly. The anime-style animation is excellent and suits the characters perfectly. The voice acting is also very good. Some fans may dislike the fact that the movie has some strife between Rachel and Kirsty (as opposed to the books where they never argue). While I respect this view, personally I don't see any problem. The tension between the girls never amounts to much, they never have any major falling-out, and is resolved well before the end. Plus, isn't it a good lesson for children to know that friends can have disagreements and still remain friends? In short, I loved it and I very much hope that there will be more Rainbow Magic movies.

My four year old sat and watched this and both enjoyed it. I think it was a really good idea to have japanese animation which is really well done. Another plus for me was that the characters all had English accents as opposed to American. Overall, something that could have been been an overdose of cuteness is actually pretty good.

The kids would give this 5 stars...i've given it 4 because it's driving me mad now.We have 3 and 5 year old girls who LOVE this. In the first week, they must have watched it a dozen times.It's a nice length...not too long that they get bored or haven't the time to watch the whole film in one go.

My girls discovered the DVD while looking through the official website and embarked on a campaign to convince me to purchase it.The disk made it to us just in time to take along on a road trip and it proved a popular way to keep the kids occupied for an hour. They quite enjoyed the movie, viewing it again, and again, with their relations and friends. No negative reviews from Rainbow Magic connoisseurs so far (and my kids have plenty of the books), and that's good enough for me!

My 7 year old has been a fan of the Rainbow Magic series of books since she was 4, so when we saw they had made a movie she was very excited. She was however a little let down, as most people are when their favourite books are adapted for the screen. I found that the anime style animation was a bit in congruent with the "Britishness" of the books and characters and didn't seem to fit. Something more like the older Angelina Ballerina animations may have suited these stories more.

My daughters age 5 and 7 love this DVD. They love to follow the adventures of Kirsty and Rachel in pursuit of the fairies' lost items and to defeat Jack Frost.The cartoons are drawn in a very 80's japanese comics style.

My daughter has (nearly) all the 'Rainbow Magic' books and she loves them. This was on Sky a few months back, and I recorded it, and she watched it a lot. Couldn't believe it when I saw it was available on DVD. I ordered it straightaway, and she absolutely loves it. The 2 girls' voices (Rachel & Kirsty) are a bit annoying after a while though! One of my best buys. Would recommend for any little 'Rainbow Magic' fans!