The Start of the Lovely World is a 2011 animated action-adventure film directed by Max Lane and written by Christopher Burke and Jacob Lloyd from a story by John Collins based on the television series of the same name. It is the first film in the Lovely World film series.
The film is based on episodes 23–29 of the first season of the animated television series and follows main characters Edward and Michael as they embark on their first expedition and discover an island full of residents. It was initially revealed in a television program on Children's Avast Television in May 2011, following the airing of the episode "The Spring". Following the publication of several promos and posters, The Start of the Lovely World was theatrically released by Avast Television in the United States and other countries on November 12, 2011, marking the franchise's only theatrical release. It includes a short called "The Slow Motion," which was part of the film's opening and shown on the network on January 7, 2012, as part of the second season.
The Start of the Lovely World was met with generally mixed to negative reviews by critics, who praised the animation, but felt like that the film was a compete retelling of the previous episodes. Despite its initial response, the film was well accepted by moviegoers and fans of the show, and it became a great hit, generating more than $29 million at the global box office against a $5 million budget.
Plot
- Main article: Lovely World season 1
Michael and Edward started making plans as their journey got underway. John, meantime, feels lonely, but he finds hope in remembering Edward's voice. In the meantime, hoping to find something special, Michael and Edward build their own boat to start their journey. A large sea animal they remember reappears while they are on their boat. Before the beast bursts into their home, Edward covers Michael's mouth as he starts to scream. They spotted a group of locals in a private boat in the meantime and called for assistance, but the individuals ran in fear, and Edward gave them "the finger." They found another private boat fighting the sea creature, and they pulled Edward and Michael to safety while the water thing kept crashing into him. The townspeople start attacking the beast in the meantime. The sea creature is eventually killed, and everyone is safe. Following the fight, Michael and Edward are taken to an island where the inhabitants had formerly gone and left food, supplies, and water. Out of worry for them, the villagers decided to stay with them in the hopes that they may live here for the time being, even though they had planned to leave them behind. Michael is adamant that they stay on the island for the time being, even though Edward is aware that he has a house and wants to go back there. In the meantime, the island experiences a moderate earthquake, and the locals and friends are startled to learn that the island is home to yet another monstrous species.
When the locals witnessed this, they attempted to battle the huge monsters, but the beast killed most of them. One of the villagers, a teenager, then chose to test his skills by using his sword and knife to assault the large creature. Edward looks incredulously. After killing the creature, the teenager laments the deaths of some of his friends. The teenager has the backing of Edward and Michael, who have chosen to temporarily return home. However, the island is now covered with sand, has few trees, and their boat has been destroyed. As they make their way back to their island home, Edward and Michael face the same obstacle: a massive storm is on their way, but with to Edward's abilities, they manage to survive it; however, the winds lead them to get lost in the middle of the ocean. The young man shows off his combat skills in the meantime, and they work together to produce more materials and lumber for their building. Soon after, they construct a crafting bench for later use. They are struck by powerful water surges, but Edward manages to fight the waves with Michael's assistance, and they soon arrive at land. When they reach the shore, they find that it is just another big island with settlements on it, not their home.
Edward and Michael started making plans to spend some time on the island before going back home. The child surprises everyone by creating a diamond sword, something they have never made before. The boy, Edward, and Michael have to deal with a group of zombie-infected animals on the night of their island stay. The wolves fight first, but Edward manages to save the dogs. One of the zombies eventually bites Michael, killing him, but since Michael is probably going to turn into a zombie, the gang must find a way to a different settlement. As a result of their surprise, the gang finds a new settlement that is rather large and furnished with modern technology, including cars, a working TV, and even little airplanes. In the end, Edward wants to stay in the village because he likes it better than the last one. Michael wanders the village and finds a puppy on the streets while the teen gets all the rehabilitation he needs. Because Edward already has two dogs and does not want to deal with another, Michael decided to care for the animal himself.
Cast
- Main article: List of Lovely World characters
- Louie Brown as Edward, the main protagonist of the television series
- Enrique Harding as Michael, the former's friend.
- Aiden Cunningham as The Teenager, a person that Edward and Michael meet.
Production
Avast Television approached John Collins and the production team in January 2011, before the Lovely World television series aired, to develop a full-length film. However, John rejected, preferring to focus on the series before developing a feature concept. During the first airing of the episodes, John and the production crew came up with various ideas for a picture, but they reportedly failed, and the project was abandoned in April of that year. According to John, an early version of the film would have "contained an original storyline". Following the airing of the episode "The Spring" on May 11, that year, Avast Television announced that a film based on upcoming episodes from the first season would be made and distributed in theaters by November of that year. The film was based on episodes 23–29, which broadcast between July 2 and August 13, 2011, and began production while the episodes were being developed and before to their premiere. Because the episodes had already been completed, John and the production crew were wondering "why they were producing the film in the first place" as they had to reanimate the same scenes while adding newest scenes to the plot. Very few rewrites take place during the film's production of over eight months, the shortest for any feature-film by Avast Television at that time. In a press statement, Avast Television noted that the film was made due to the success of the animated television series and that making a feature will "drive audiences to check out new media from the series".
Music
The soundtrack to the film, titled The Start of the Lovely World: Music from and inspired by the Motion Picture, was written and composed by Oliver Clark, Lucas Ellis and Maximo Compton to the first Lovely World film in the United States and other countries. The opening theme contains the song "The Lovely World" by Calvin Matthew, which had been previously used for the first two episodes of the television series, while the ending theme featured "The Sun Will Rise!" by Kayla Richards and Katherine Schwartz as its lead. The soundtrack was originally scheduled to be released on November 19, 2011, but was pushed back to a week earlier on the same day as the film.
Release and broadcast
The Start of the Lovely World was originally theatrically released in the United States and other selected countries by Avast Television on November 12, 2011. Following the theatrical release of the film, Lovely World was then broadcasted on Children's Avast Television on December 31 of that year. In 2021, during the first broadcast of the Alpha Series, the film was spilt into three 24-minutes episodes and aired from January 1 to 3 of that year.