A down-on-his-luck inventor turns a broken-down Grand Prix car into a fancy vehicle for his children, and then they go off on a magical fantasy adventure to save their grandfather in a far-off land.
An apprentice witch, three kids and a cynical magician conman search for the missing component to a magic spell to be used in the defense of Britain in WWII.
Director:
Robert Stevenson
Stars:
Angela Lansbury,
David Tomlinson,
Roddy McDowall
Dorothy Gale is swept away from a farm in Kansas to a magical land of Oz in a tornado and embarks on a quest with her new friends to see the Wizard who can help her return home to Kansas and help her friends as well.
An eccentric professor invents wacky machinery but can't seem to make ends meet. When he invents a revolutionary car, a foreign government becomes interested in it and resorts to skulduggery to get their hands on it.Written by
Murray Chapman <muzzle@cs.uq.oz.au>
With a running time of about two hours and 20 minutes, it's one of the longest children's films in history, certainly for its time. It wouldn't be until the next millennium, with the Harry Potter films, that films for children of such length would be made again. See more »
Goofs
In the rocket scene, as Mr. Potts is being propelled across the yard, the wire used to drag him is clearly visible. See more »
I had mostly forgotten this movie after 30+ years, but my 2 year old received it as a gift, and is obsessed with it. It's fantastic, really. The locations are stunning, the musical numbers are (mostly) so lively, the physical humor is great! There is such a range of stuff in it, unlike current movies. I even like it for its flaws. It's really beautifully made. The thing I didn't remember, and that disappointed me at first, was that the whole story is a fantasy, a story within the story. I even like that the kids don't sing so well. They seem more real, less like little prodigies.
28 of 35 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful to you?
| Report this
I had mostly forgotten this movie after 30+ years, but my 2 year old received it as a gift, and is obsessed with it. It's fantastic, really. The locations are stunning, the musical numbers are (mostly) so lively, the physical humor is great! There is such a range of stuff in it, unlike current movies. I even like it for its flaws. It's really beautifully made. The thing I didn't remember, and that disappointed me at first, was that the whole story is a fantasy, a story within the story. I even like that the kids don't sing so well. They seem more real, less like little prodigies.