Whatever is true, pure and lovely… practice these things. ~Philippians 4:8~
VeggieTales The Penniless Princess video description:
Sweet Sara Crewe has everything a little girl could ever want – a loving family, lots of friends and a closet full of frilly dresses! But when life takes a turn and Sara goes from riches to rags, will she realize that her true worth lies not in what she has, but what’s in her heart? Find out in this inspiring new story from VeggieTales, based on the beloved classic novel “A Little Princesss,” that reminds kids who they are in God’s eyes.
Dvd Features:
- Widescreen and Standard Screen versions of featured show, English & Spanish subtitles, 5.1 Surround Sound
- Behind the Scenes
- My Teddy Bear’s from Where?
- A True Princess – Discussion Guide
- Tour of London
- Singalong Songs
- Previews
The Penniless Princess is a nice story about how a young girl keeps her spirits up and encourages others even when life takes a horrible turn for the worst. She knows that no matter what may be going on in her life that she is still a princess in the Lord’s eyes, and that He will always be there for her. Throughout the story, we see how the Lord provides for her in little ways, and she, in turn, reaches out and helps others.
As a military family, we are sensitive to certain topics within books, movies, shows… so I do want to point something out. Sara’s dad is in the military, and he drops her off at a new boarding school when he heads off to war. Her dad reminds her that she will always be taken care of even when he’s not there because she’s a child of the King. Sara’s dad loves to spoil his sweet girl, but she doesn’t act like a spoiled brat. (There is no mention of a mom in the story, so we can only assume that the mom is no longer around.) Unfortunately, because Sara has always been given much, others see her as spoiled.
Later in the story, some military members show up to make the notification that Sara’s dad has died while fighting. While the entire conversation is not shown, Sara is told point blank by the school mistress that her dad is dead. From that point forward, Sara becomes a servant and is treated poorly because of it. The does not break Sara’s spirit, but the mistress is always trying to make her unhappy. The story does have a happy ending, but some kids may have difficulty with situations that are covered in this story even with the happy ending. Each parent will need to decide if their kids can handle the story line. (If mommy or daddy is deployed, you may want to hold off on the story if you’re kids are really sensitive to what’s going on with that.)
We enjoyed the way the story was put together and thought VeggieTales did a nice job showing that true worth comes from within, from the Lord and not outward things/possessions.
The Silly Song included in this episode – Best Friends Forever – was way too funny as it revolves around two friends text messaging each other. Of course, they are using all the texting abbreviations (letters) when they’re singing, so you need to watch the screen to see what everything means if you’re not familiar with text chat. We were just cracking up through the entire Silly Song. I think most kids (and parents) will get a kick out of it.
VeggieTales The Penniless Princess was just released today, Tuesday, August 14, 2012 at retailers nationwide. I’m happy to be able to offer one copy of the dvd to one of my readers. The giveaway ends August 31, 2012 and is open to those in the US.
