'King Shakir Recycle' Review: Be Kind to the Planet

An animated movie from Turkey lands on Disney Plus (?!).

Now Streaming: To be honest, I didn't realize the movie was Turkish until I started watching. 

The title popped up last month when I was researching new films and TV shows heading to various streaming services. Looking for something to watch over lunch, I decided to see what, exactly, it might be. (From the title alone, it sounded like a show aimed at preschoolers, and probably outside my bailiwick, i.e. something that might also appeal to single adults.)

Disney Plus labels it as "science fiction, family, comedy, action adventure," self-rated it TV-PG, and listed the running time at 92 minutes, all of which encouraged me to sample it, at minimum. The film begins with two talking heads on a live network television show, with a map of the Northern Hemisphere stretched out behind them, discussing the imminent launch of rockets into space, carrying the initial load of the planet's garbage into outer space, as a means to clean up Earth. 

Simultaneously, two knuckleheads are in the rafters above the studio, trying to gain access into the studio so that one of them, scientist and inventor Dr. Meerkat, can demonstrate his fabulous invention that will effectively and efficiently recycle garbage into something environmentally friendly. His invention fails, sadly, and the rockets launch to pollute the universe. 

One year later, it seems that all the aliens on other planets are not very happy that Earth did that, so they are coming to get revenge by destroying all humans. All that stands between careless humans and an unforgiving race of alien creatures bent on revenge is King Shakir and his family … 

Wait a minute, who is King Shakir? Why are some of the signs in the background not in English, and what language is that? 

It took about five seconds on the internet for me to learn that Disney's original announcement in December 2022 mentioned that the "Turkish animated movie" would be coming to Disney Plus. Per the press release: 

The film is based on “King Shakir”, which is a Turkish TV cartoon created by Varol Yaşaroğlu, along with the creative works of Berk Tokay and Haluk Can Dizdaroğlu and produced by Grafi2000 for Cartoon Network Turkey. The series follows the adventures of the lion Shakir and his friends and family. It was launched in 2016 as Cartoon Network Turkey’s first local series. Since then, the TV cartoon series has aired in more than 20 countries in many languages, reaching millions of children across Europe, Middle East and North Africa.  The TV series has tackled a range of sustainable development challenges, including climate action, recycling, responsible consumption, gender equality, biodiversity and healthy lifestyles.

After reading that, I fiddled with my TV's setting for "Accessibility" and, checking under "Audio Track," I saw that a bunch of languages are available, along with a host of caption options. So I chose "Turkece" and "English" for subtitles, and continued watching. 

Having that in mind changed my perspective on the movie. A smaller country in the Middle East, recognizing that environmental issues are important worldwide? That's cool. 

It also made me more forgiving of the production values, which I'm sure are produced on a lower budget than North American animated movies. As you might hope from a movie entitled King Shakir Recycle and clearly aimed at children, it leans heavily on the humor, including a buffet of slapstick, and features lovable, buffoonish characters, who all look to be child-sized, including all the adults.

According to Wikipedia,  Kral Şakir ("King Şakir") debuted as an animated television series on Cartoon Network Turkey in 2016 as their first local series. Some 234 episodes, all just a few minutes in length, have been shown. 

I got a kick out of King Shakir Recycle, and appreciated that the film also leans toward its roots in Turkey, which is noticeable in the character types, and even some of the costuming. It's a lovely addition to Disney Plus for youngsters, and the movie is worth sampling, especially in its original language. [Disney Plus]