The Peanut Butter Solution
Encyclopedia
The Peanut Butter Solution (French
title: Opération beurre de pinottes) is a 1985 family film. The movie was directed by Michael Rubbo
and is the 2nd in the Tales for All (Contes Pour Tous)
series of children's movies created by Les Productions la Fête.
The ghosts return the following night, giving Michael a second chance to pay him back for giving his money to some homeless people, and also give Michael special instruction not to add too much peanut butter, as it will end in dreadful results. Michael successfully makes the formula this time, but ignores their instructions not to overdo the peanut butter, and wakes up the next morning to find that his new hair has already began to grow. After only a few minutes, Michael has grown a full head of hair. Suspicious of his fast growing follicles, Connie confronts Michael about his unusual ability. When Michael reveals to him his concoction, Connie decides to apply some of it to his nether region in an attempt to cheat puberty's timeline. Connie soon discovers that the joke is on him. Pretty soon, Michael and Connie's hair grows to such lengths that it has become a nuisance for the school and their classmates, resulting in their suspensions. While Michael frantically searches for a solution, Connie discovers that the hair will stop growing by yelling at it.
The art teacher at Michael's school, simply called the Signor, frightens children and forbids them from using their imagination. After getting fired from the school, the Signor finds out about Michael's condition and kidnaps him (and many other neighborhood children) to make magic paint brushes from Michael's ever-growing hair, in which he subdues Michael with a knockout drug. The kidnapped children are put to work
under tough conditions. "We have to make 500 brushes a day, or we don't eat!" The paintbrushes are so powerful that they paint whatever their user imagines. Connie and Michael's sister, Susan, discover the Signor's magical paintbrush factory and try to rescue Michael. Connie tries to use force, but he is overpowered by Signor and his dog James. Instead, Connie tricks the Signor into painting a picture of the abandoned mansion. Connie then dares him to investigate inside, leading "The Fright" to be passed on from Michael to the Signor. Signor, now bald, escapes from the haunted house and chases the children, locking them up. Just as Connie is about to escape with Michael, Susan and their dad find the factory and the Signor is arrested by the local police. The film ends with the family reunited as the mother has returned home, and Michael's hair has stopped growing out of control.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
title: Opération beurre de pinottes) is a 1985 family film. The movie was directed by Michael Rubbo
Michael Rubbo
Michael Dattilo Rubbo is an Australian filmmaker who has written and directed over 50 films in documentary and fiction....
and is the 2nd in the Tales for All (Contes Pour Tous)
Tales for All
Tales for All is a series of children and family films produced by the company Les Productions la Fête. These films were also published as books.-Partial List of Titles:The films are also referred as Tales for All #1, Tales for All #2, etc....
series of children's movies created by Les Productions la Fête.
Plot
Michael Baskin is an average 11-year old boy. His father, Billy Baskin, is a struggling artist and temporary sole caregiver of the children while his wife attends to the needs of her recently deceased father in Australia. Upon hearing the news that an abandoned mansion has recently burned down, Michael and his friend Connie decide to explore the remains. Outside the mansion, Connie dares Michael to take a look inside, leading to a frightening encounter with the ghosts of its homeless inhabitants who had died in the fire. Michael does not know this yet, but his fearsome run in with the ghosts has given him a mysterious illness simply known as "The Fright". Michael wakes up the next morning to find out that "The Fright" has made him lose all of his hair. After a failed attempt with a wig (his wig was pulled off by an older boy during a fight in a soccer game), the ghosts visit Michael in his sleep and give him the recipe of a magical formula for hair growth, the main ingredient of which is peanut butter. Michael's first attempt to make the formula is thwarted when his father and sister think he is making something unwanted and dispose of it.The ghosts return the following night, giving Michael a second chance to pay him back for giving his money to some homeless people, and also give Michael special instruction not to add too much peanut butter, as it will end in dreadful results. Michael successfully makes the formula this time, but ignores their instructions not to overdo the peanut butter, and wakes up the next morning to find that his new hair has already began to grow. After only a few minutes, Michael has grown a full head of hair. Suspicious of his fast growing follicles, Connie confronts Michael about his unusual ability. When Michael reveals to him his concoction, Connie decides to apply some of it to his nether region in an attempt to cheat puberty's timeline. Connie soon discovers that the joke is on him. Pretty soon, Michael and Connie's hair grows to such lengths that it has become a nuisance for the school and their classmates, resulting in their suspensions. While Michael frantically searches for a solution, Connie discovers that the hair will stop growing by yelling at it.
The art teacher at Michael's school, simply called the Signor, frightens children and forbids them from using their imagination. After getting fired from the school, the Signor finds out about Michael's condition and kidnaps him (and many other neighborhood children) to make magic paint brushes from Michael's ever-growing hair, in which he subdues Michael with a knockout drug. The kidnapped children are put to work
Child labor
Child labour refers to the employment of children at regular and sustained labour. This practice is considered exploitative by many international organizations and is illegal in many countries...
under tough conditions. "We have to make 500 brushes a day, or we don't eat!" The paintbrushes are so powerful that they paint whatever their user imagines. Connie and Michael's sister, Susan, discover the Signor's magical paintbrush factory and try to rescue Michael. Connie tries to use force, but he is overpowered by Signor and his dog James. Instead, Connie tricks the Signor into painting a picture of the abandoned mansion. Connie then dares him to investigate inside, leading "The Fright" to be passed on from Michael to the Signor. Signor, now bald, escapes from the haunted house and chases the children, locking them up. Just as Connie is about to escape with Michael, Susan and their dad find the factory and the Signor is arrested by the local police. The film ends with the family reunited as the mother has returned home, and Michael's hair has stopped growing out of control.
Cast
- Matthew Mackay as Michael
- Siluck SaysanasySiluck SaysanasySiluck Saysanasy is a Laotian-Canadian television actor.Saysanasy is best known for playing "Yick Yu", a character from the Degrassi series...
as Connie - Alison Darcy as Suzie
- Michael Hogan as Billy
- Michel Maillot as The Signor
- Helen HughesHelen hughesHelen Hughes AO is Professor Emerita at the Australian National University and Senior Fellow at the Centre for Independent Studies......
as Mary - Griffith BrewerGriffith BrewerGriffin Brewer was a pioneer English balloonist and aviator, who made his first balloon flight in 1891. Brewer met Wilbur Wright in Pau, France, in 1908, and became a very close friend and supporter of the Wright brothers. He made 30 trips to the United States to visit them, earning his pilot...
as Tom - Harry HillHarry HillHarry Hill , is a Perrier Award–winning English comedian, author and television presenter. A former medical doctor , Hill began his career in comedy with the popular radio show Harry Hill's Fruit Corner.-Personal life:Hill was born in Woking,...
as Dr. Epstein - Edgar Fruitier
- Pat Thompson
- Terrence Labrosse
- Doug SmithDoug SmithDoug Smith may refer to:*Doug Smith , former MLB baseball player*Doug Smith , English flat racing jockey*Doug Smith , American former basketball player...
- Nick Manekas
- Patrick St-Pierre
- Jeremy Spry
- Cheryl Zaman-Zadir
- Audie Grant
- Vicki Lee
- Nadka Takahataki
- Anna Vitre
Production
- The original working title of the film was Michael's Fright.
- This film features the first English-language songs performed by Céline DionCeline DionCéline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
(Listen to the Magic Man and Michael's Song). The French-language version of the film features French-language versions of the same songs (Dans la main d'un magicienDans La Main D'un Magicien"Dans la main d'un magicien" is Céline Dion's first single from the movie soundtrack Opération beurre de pinottes. It was released in 1985 in Quebec, Canada....
and La ballade de MichelLa Ballade De Michel"La ballade de Michel" is Céline Dion's second single from the movie soundtrack Opération beurre de pinottes. It was released in 1986 in Quebec, Canada."La ballade de Michel" was issued as a radio single only....
). - Skippy peanut butter paid for prominent product placement in the film.