Help, I Shrunk My Teacher Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman September 15, 2021

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher is not kin to the Rick Moranis films Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and Honey, I Blew Up the Kid, but they are in the same ballpark. This is a German production, not Disney, and even made decades later this film lacks the visual excellence and the adventuresome spirit that made the original Shrunk Comedies so memorable. These are serviceable overseas films, clearly taking a page from the classic Disney films but finding ways to shake up the formula while interweaving a plot about a wayward student and a school on the verge of closure into the narrative. It's a perfectly passable distraction but not likely to be remembered as anything more than a sidebar to the Honey films.

Felix (Oskar Keymer) dreams of flying, but his dreams are going to have to be put on hold – or forgotten entirely – if he cannot first make it through school. He has been in and out of various schools; his head is far too deep into the clouds to care about academics, but he promises his father Peter (Axel Stein) that he will do his best to make it through this school unscathed. But he has yet to deal with the school’s infamous headmistress, Dr. Schmitt-Gössenwein (Anja Kling), who is a most difficult teacher, personally and professionally alike. She doesn’t believe Felix has what it takes to make it through school, and he’s on probation until he can prove his academic standing. When he gets mixed up with some of his classmates who challenge him to break into the school one night, he finds himself in a secret chamber inside of which are magical powers that Felix inadvertently uses to shrink Dr. Schmitt-Gössenwein to only inches in height. Now, he must find a way to return her to normal size, but first not before taking advantage of his sudden position of power and, later, by teaming up with Dr. Schmitt-Gössenwein in preventing the villainous inspector Henning (Justus von Dohnányi) from taking control of the school.

Rather than transformed by some school project shrink ray, not unlike the one from Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (or like something from Real Genius), the principal in Help, I Shrunk My Teacher is reduced down to a few inches in height by some secret ritual that is accidentally unleashed upon her. What follows is an exercise in filmmaking futility and predictability as Felix attempts to keep the shrunken school official a secret, and their combative relationship slowly grows to be one of reluctant teamwork to mutual respect. The fledgling student and the strict headmistress make for a good pair, and even if they often share the screen with she digitally inserted (and a few times, obviously as a doll) into the scene the chemistry gradually grows (obvious even in the English dub, certainly more so in the native German) and the shared plight and the necessary teamwork feel at least somewhat authentic. But make no mistake that the movie was made with relatively little in the way of creative spark or emotional depth; it's very straightforward and stale in a lot of places, but for its essential entertainment value and honest efforts at finding a center and a beating heart it's not a terrible little venture.

The budget film cobbles together a solid cast which is robbed of much of its natural talent through the English dub (Echo Bridge does not include the original language track on the Blu-ray). Still, the performance qualities are more than acceptable for a movie of this style, particularly from Anja Kling as "the shrunken one" who is well capable in delivering the goods as the strict school principal and also when she's been shrunk and her ego is ultimately reduced in size as well. The film features a villain played by Justus von Dohnányi in a role that would have been well performed by Jon Voight in a Hollywood production of the same film. Oskar Keymer and Lina Hüesker share a pleasant screen chemistry, particularly once Hüesker's character discovers Felix's secret. The film features some very cool set pieces and design accents, particularly in the waning minutes as Felix and company travel deep within the school's bowels to find a solution to bringing Dr. Schmitt-Gössenwein back to her normal size.

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher arrives on Blu-ray with a satisfying 1080p transfer. The digitally sourced image is certainly prone to showing some noise, frequently though not severely, even in well lit shots and scenes. The picture suffers from no other serious maladies, however, ultimately presenting a crisp, clean image that is sharp and consistently well detailed even considering some of the special effects elements. Viewers will appreciate what are perhaps not striking details but perfectly acceptable facial and clothing complexities, not to mention some of the textures seen in perspective close-ups; Dr. Schmitt-Gössenwein spends a good chunk of the film in Felix's pencil case and therein the picture reveals excellent clarity to the material, zippers, pencils, and erasers inside. Colors are cheerfully full and bright. Contrast is neutral and the picture's abundantly rich and vibrant color palette springs to life in every shot, again whether considering clothes, natural greens, or colorful accents in schools. Black levels are fine, whites are crisp and bright, and skin tones appear spot-on. Viewers couldn't have asked for a significantly better Blu-ray presentation.

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Echo Bridge brings Help, I Shrunk My Teacher to Blu-ray with English dub 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio lossless soundtracks. Unfortunately, Echo Bridge has not included the original German language soundtrack, but optional English SDH subtitles are available. The track offers some modest expansion to the sides. Music and ambient effects alike take good advantage of the front end, stretching naturally to the far ends, never feeling cramped in the center. Surrounds are not prominently in use though they do carry the odd element and also some core musical support as necessary. This is also not a track to put the subwoofer through its paces, either, but there's never a feel of absentee or disregarded LFE usage within the sound design's parameters. Dialogue dominates and it is clear and center positioned; the English dub doesn't miss a beat in terms of essential clarity.

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Echo Bridge's Blu-ray release of Help, I Shrunk My Teacher contains no supplemental content. A DVD/digital copy disc is included with purchase. This release does not ship with a slipcover.

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Help, I Shrunk My Teacher is not at all a poor picture in the grand scheme of things. Inconsequential, absolutely, but it's far from a disaster. The movie brings a few charms and scattered laughs but fails to build characters worth caring about, never mind do anything particularly novel or inspired with the plot. The film plays well as a mostly entertaining curiosity but don't expect the next genre classic. Echo Bridge's Blu-ray release is featureless, unsurprisingly, but it does offer decent enough video and audio. At time of publication the disc can be purchased for a couple of dollars. It's worth it at that price but not much higher.