Rating: Summary: A wonderful and enchanting film! Review: This is a truly charming film for people of all ages. Danny Kaye is perfectly cast as the famous and wonderful story-teller, Hans Christian Anderson. I highly recommend this very enchanting film, and would give it ten stars if I could! Buy it, and your in for a real treat.
Rating: Summary: Great Kids Musical Classic Review: This is the fictional version of Hans Christian Anderson-musical version. Classic songs include "Ugly Duckling", "Thumbelina", "Copenhagen", "Inchworm" and many great others. Young cobbler apprentice has a "Walter Middy" daydreaming and storytelling habit that gets him into trouble. He takes off for the "big city" to see the world and more trouble waits for him. A lovely musical with a small love story thrown in. Very appropriate for children of all ages. Songs will become favorites...and should lead to the reading of the Classic stories of Hans Christian Anderson. Enjoy!
Rating: Summary: Childhood joy, adult appreciation! Review: When I was 11 years old, I wanted to marry Danny Kaye when I grew up; my parents kindly explained to me that he was dead. I still don't really believe it, though -- Danny Kaye will always live on in the imaginations of his fans.No comedian was ever so tender; no romantic actor was ever so silly. Danny Kaye is still my hero, and he always will be!
Rating: Summary: Childhood joy, adult appreciation! Review: When I was 11 years old, I wanted to marry Danny Kaye when I grew up; my parents kindly explained to me that he was dead. I still don't really believe it, though -- Danny Kaye will always live on in the imaginations of his fans. No comedian was ever so tender; no romantic actor was ever so silly. Danny Kaye is still my hero, and he always will be!
Rating: Summary: Memorable and magical -- a must to share with your kids Review: With all due respect, Leonard Maltin just doesn't get it with regard to this movie, and I hate to think his negative comments might prevent someone from seeing it. This was one of the most memorable movies from my childhood -- and I can only have seen it twice at the most, because there were no videos in those days. We had the soundtrack album and those glorious and, yes, melodic, songs burned themselves into my consciousness. I could not wait until my daughter was old enough to share this movie with, and now that we are watching it together (she is three), it is a joy to see her, too, respond to the magic and music of Danny Kaye's charming performance. For the past three months it has been her most requested video, and when we aren't watching it, she wants me to sing the songs, and when I can't do that, she sings them herself! And now that she is familiar with the musical versions of the fairy tales, she wants them read to her, and is thereby learning to listen to much longer and more complex stories than before. This really is a special movie. No, it's not an accurate portrayal of Anderson's life, and it doesn't pretend to be. In fact it says right there in the opening frame, "This is not the story of his life, but rather a fairy tale about this spinner of fairy tales." And yes, the plot is a little limp. So as a movie it only gets four stars, not five. But it doesn't matter. There is so much charm and magic and wonderful music here, that the experience of watching it, even over and over again, is a five-star experience that makes for lifelong memories.
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