Originally broadcast on British television and now receiving a limited theatrical run here, “The Color of Magic” mashes together a pair of comedic fantasy novels by Terry Pratchett into one long, rambling saga. Directed by Vadim Jean, who adapted the books with help from Mr. Pratchett, it is by and large a droll, ingratiating affair, albeit one whose rickety effects and lackadaisical pacing are decidedly more suited to the small screen than to the large.
What’s refreshing here (aside from the inimitably British mock-epic tone) is precisely this sense of an immense fantasy played out in a diminished scale. Where even the quietest moments of the “Harry Potter” films bludgeon the viewer with the immensity and expense of their production, “Magic” has a charmingly modest, artisanal feel about it.
