Mr Car and the Knights Templar Review: Netflix’s latest Polish action-adventure flick (Pan Samochodzik i Templariusze) stars Mateusz Janicki as Tomasz, Anna Dymna as Laima, Maria Debska as Karen, Jacek Beler as Adios, Sandra Drzymalska as Anka, Olgierd Blecharz as Eagle Eye, Piotr Sega as Mentor and Kalina Kowalczuk as Squirrel. The movie is based on the Zbigniew-Nienacki novel of the same name and has a runtime of 1 hour 45 minutes approx.
-Mr Car and the Knights Templar Review Contains Spoilers-
Mr Car and the Knights Templar Plot Summary
Treasure hunter Tomasz finds a Templar Cross that is supposed to be a clue that leads to a treasure of riches discovered in the Holy Land during the Crusades. As expected, there is a bad guy Adios who is also after the treasure for his personal motives. What makes the matter more serious is when Tomasz’s close friend Petersen is killed right after he informs Tomasz that the treasure is powerful enough to obliterate entire armies. Tomasz has to unwillingly team up with a group of 3 kids and a news reporter whom he dislikes, to find the treasure before Adios can lay his hands on it. Will they be able to find it?
Mr Car and the Knights Templar Review: Discussion
Mr. Car and the Knights Templar is a movie for children. Period. Offering all the traditional requirements of a classic Tintin-like treasure hunt, the movie is commendable for the way the makers produced and executed it. It did give me time to wonder how things could have been different and better but kept me engaged in whatever was happening on screen. This is what makes any movie better, its ability to grab the audience’s attention.
Keeping in mind how children play an important role both inside and outside the movie, care has been taken to not make things graphic. There is not a single drop of blood anywhere despite the use of swords, explosions, and traps. Using the three characters of Eagle Eye, Mentor, and Squirrel, the movie not only manages to portray the thirst for adventure that kids have but also sends the message of how important it is for them to go out and explore the world and its secrets.
The kids of today need such motivations for sure to come out of the world of mobile phones and tablets. Another very clear aspect that proves that the movie is directed toward kids is the clear difference between the good and the bad folks. Tomasz looks no less than a superhero while Adios, with a scarred face, is the villain.
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There is also a strong message that Mr. Car and the Knights Templar ends with. All throughout the film, we hear how the treasure can be magic or plague, or weapon. It is when Tomasz finds the treasure i.e. the scroll that he finds out that the treasure is children who are now in different parts of the world. It is not where they are but who they are that matters.
Children are the future. And based on how we teach them about the world and its significance, they can either be magical and make for a better future or they can be a plague just like us who are leaving no stone unturned to deplete the world of its natural resources and leading humanity to its untimely extinction. Within the movie, the magical children also pose an imminent threat since if they fall into the hands of a bad guy, they can lead to mass destruction. What the movie aims to tell us is that a treasure is only so in the hands of the right person.
Mr Car and the Knights Templar Review: Final Thoughts
Despite being a true-to-form adventure action-adventure movie, I didn’t find Mr Car and the Knights Templar that convincing and was waiting for something more to happen. It was predictable without offering anything new. However, this doesn’t mean that it isn’t enjoyable, especially for kids whom the movie majorly aims to entertain. That’s what it is and aims to be; a family entertainer that allows parents to have good time with their children on a binge-worthy Sunday afternoon.
My only issue with the movie is that it’s a bit too long. There are parts that could have been avoided to add more thrill to the quest. In conclusion, I would like to say that Mr. Car and the Knights Templar does its job of entertaining its viewers. It doesn’t offer anything more and it doesn’t have to.
It doesn’t try to be a Mission Impossible level action movie nor does it try to be Indiana Jones adventure movie whose latest part, by the way, failed miserably. The characters are distinct, the morals are clear and what’s more, we get the clue of a sequel too that will take Tomasz on a quest for the “mystery of mysteries”. A one-time watch but deserves to be watched.
Mr. Car and the Knights Templar is available on Netflix.
Have you watched the film? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.
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