The Quixote in Cartoon Form

From The Guardian:

It is the book that Spaniards like to pretend they have read, though few really work their way through its two lengthy volumes. But now there is no excuse for not knowing the plot of Don Quixote de la Mancha, Miguel Cervantes’ 17th-century epic: the first animated version of the novel to make it into the cinema opens across Spain next week.

Ummm . . . great. I mean, it’s a good thing that more people will be familiar with one of the greatest books ever written, especially if the cartoon is reasonably faithful to the book . . .

The adventures of Don Quixote may take up hundreds of pages in Cervantes’ classic, but the film’s producers have by necessity played fast and loose with the story in their adaptation. Squeezing the novel into 80 minutes, it gives starring roles to Don Quixote’s trusty steed, Rocinante, and Sancho Panza’s donkey, Rucio – who bears a striking resemblance to the donkey from the successful Shrek series, voiced by Eddie Murphy.

Damn. Maybe it’s absolutely fantastic . . . More than likely that’s another $20 million that could’ve been spent in a better way.