One of the most translated novellas globally, The Little Prince has reportedly found its way into253 languages and dialects, selling as many as 200 million copies, but has rarely been made into a film.

全球翻译次数最多的中篇小说之一，《小王子》已被译成253种语言和方言，销量多达2亿份，但很少被拍制成电影。

Now, around seven decades after the birth of the 1943 French classic, an American director has found a way to recreate the fantasy world of the title role and his friends on the big screen, making a big splash in China.

七十年后，这一1943年创制的法国经典之作被美国导演搬上银屏，书中的奇幻世界、小王子和他的朋友们被重塑。现在，这一电影来到中国，人气爆棚、反响巨大。

The $77.5-million movie of the same title, one of the most expensive French films of all time, opened in Chinese mainland theaters on Oct 16.

电影耗资7,750万美元，是史上“最贵”的法国电影，中文版于10月16日在大陆影院首映。

Resonant¹ with nostalgia² and exquisite³ imagery, The Little Prince has won critical acclaim⁴ from the country's major film-review sites, scoring 8.7 points out of 10 on Douban.com and 8.1 on Mtime.com. Commentators⁵ call the movie a touching tale of a universal value－maintaining a sincere and true heart.

画面制作怀旧、精致，《小王子》在国内各大影评网站赢得了一致好评，豆瓣评分8.7，时光网评分8.1。评论称影片充满了天马行空的感动，有着一颗赤子之心。

China has more than 70 translated versions of the novella, with the first published in World Literature magazine in 1979. The story by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, the legendary⁶ French pilot and author, is embedded⁷ in the collective memory of several generations, and Chinese fans are looking to see if the cinematic adaptation is close to the original.

《小王子》在中国有70多个译本，1979年首次刊登于世界文学杂志。该书是由安东尼·德·圣-埃克苏佩里创作的经典儿童文学作品，作者也是一名传奇飞行员，作品深深嵌入了好几代人的记忆。中国观众期待看到由该书改编的电影是否忠于原著。

Such faithfulness was a challenge from the start for New Jersey-born director Mark Osborne, known for his Oscar-nominated Kung Fu Panda.

影片由出生于新泽西的马克·奥斯本执导，以奥斯卡提名电影《功夫熊猫》为世人熟知。对于导演来说，要忠于原著，这无疑是巨大的挑战。

"I really wanted to make an animation⁸ reflecting the experience that the book can give you. The adaptation of the large story is very faithful given all our intentions to respect the original ideas and themes," Osborne tells China Daily.

“我想给观众带来一部和原著相同阅读体验的动画电影，我们本着尊重原创理念和主题的心态，故事的改编是非常忠于原创的。”奥斯本接受中国日报的采访时说到。

Following two timelines, the 108-minute film weaves the prince's poetic⁹ tale into a modern story, which revolves¹⁰ around a studious teenager's struggle and compromises with her pushy¹¹ mother.

电影共108分钟，主要有两条时间线，将原著演绎成具有时代感的故事，故事围绕一个听咄咄逼人的母亲吩咐、拼命学习的小女孩展开。

Bored by her tight lecture schedule, the young girl befriends an aging pilot next door and becomes fascinated by his story of the little prince and the asteroids¹².

厌倦了紧锣密鼓的课程安排，小女孩和一位年老的飞行员邻居成为了好朋友，老人对女孩讲述了小王子的故事，便开启了小女孩追寻小王子的探索世界之旅。

The first half mainly narrates¹³ the book's tale, while the latter half centers on the girl's adventure in a populated planet exclusively for adults to rescue the prince, whom the girl believes will save the dying pilot.

影片前半部分主要讲述了原著的故事，后半部分着力于小女孩在大人的世界中，寻找小王子的经历和探险，她相信小王子能拯救这个病危的飞行员。

Osborne says the crew paid a visit to the copyright holders¹⁴ of The Little Prince. "I didn't want to make a film that they didn't support ... and I was very nervous to present my idea to them," the auteur says.

奥斯本说，剧组还拜访过《小王子》的版权持有人。“我不想制作一部没有他们支持的电影...... 向他们提出我的拍摄想法时，我很紧张”，导演说。

After the owners reacted with applause, laughter and even tears, Osborne took nearly six years to prepare and shoot the film, which he describes as "a full immersion¹⁵". "Even when I was sleeping, I was still thinking about it, or dreaming about the scenarios," he says.

当看到版权持有者为之鼓掌、欢笑、感动流泪后，奥斯本花了近六年的时间准备和拍摄这部电影，他说那个时候他是“完全沉浸”在电影里。“即使是在睡觉的时候，我还在想着它，还会梦到一些情景”他说。