“Lyle – My Friend the Crocodile” takes place in the New York borough of Manhattan. When the Primms (Scoot McNairy, Constance Wu) move from the suburbs to the city, their son Josh (Winslow Fegley) is particularly hard hit. The boy misses his familiar surroundings and his old friends. He’s also having trouble finding connections at the new school.
But then he discovers Lyle (voice in the original: Shawn Mendes), a huge but apparently completely harmless crocodile in the attic of his new home. Lyle can’t speak, but she can sing, dance and even play the piano. As it turns out, he is the stage fright plagued stage partner of the apartment’s previous tenant: Hector P. Valenti (Javier Bardem).
Since small artist Hector is always in need of money, he had to go on tour in the meantime and leave Lyle at home. Josh is only too happy to take care of his new friend for so long – especially since his parents quickly succumb to the unique charm of the reptile. Everything could be so nice if it weren’t for her grumpy neighbor Mr. Grumps (Brett Gelman). Because he is anything but enthusiastic about the green housemate and wants to get rid of him immediately, and ideally the Primms as well…
“Lyle – My friend, the crocodile” will be released in German cinemas nationwide on October 20, 2022.
The film is based on a book by Bernard Waber. Anyone who would like to read this before or after going to the cinema will find what they are looking for at online retailers such as Amazon. The title is currently only available in English, but this edition is – out of consideration for young readers! – deliberately kept in simple language:
” The book “Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile” by Bernard Waber at Amazon*
The $50 million production was directed by Will Speck and Josh Gordon (“Office Christmas Party,” “The Frozen Princes”). The screenplay was written by How to Train Your Dragon and Puss in Boots author William Davies.
The human leads are played by “No Country For Old Men” and “Skyfall” star Javier Bardem and young actor Winslow Fegley (“Christmas Hunt: The Festival of Games”). Also joining Constance Wu (“Crazy Rich”), Scoot McNairy (“Non-Stop”) and Brett Gelman, conspiracy theorist Murray from “Stranger Things”, included. Canadian pop singer Shawn Mendes lends his voice to the computer-animated title hero in the original version.
For those who want to check out the English language version with Shawn Mendes as Lyle, here’s the official US trailer:
*The link to the Amazon offer is a so-called affiliate link. If you make a purchase through this link, we will receive a commission.
