Secret Magic Control Agency – Quick Review

The age old story of “Hansel and Gretel” gets a new spin in the 2021 Netflix animated film “Secret Magic Control Agency” directed by Aleksey Tsitsilin. In this story, the brother-sister duo are not kids, but working adults, living their own lives. While Hansel is a charlatan of a magician, his sister Gretel works for secret royal agency that studies/investigates/monitors all forms of magic. The two are forced to work together to crack the mysterious kidnapping of their king by an evil witch on the orders of the ‘Secret Magic Control Agency’.

So how was this 21st century mash of an age old ‘fairy tale’? Well, it is a cute film that would make for a fun watch for kids below age 15, the older crowd might not find themselves too tickled with its silly comedy and old tropes. There are all sorts of things in the film, animated food that seems to be fashioned on the lines of the ‘minions’ from ‘Despicable Me’, mermaids that like to party, evil witches, among other things. The real excitement begins when adult Hansel & Gretel accidentally turn into kids due to a magic potion – so they have to save the king as kids.

Like I said, it’s a fun film, the kind the whole family can watch with the little kids in the house. The story is sweet, showing the misadventures of feuding siblings, who have to put their egos aside to fight evil. The animation is sparkly and pretty to look at. The overall mood of the film is very light, bright, with close to no dark themes, not unless you really want to think hard and dwell upon it. Older animation fans however might be left disappointed. It’s a 5/10 from me.