SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Sexylocher Masterful Movie

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Fulke Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Horst in Translation ([email protected]) Rankin/Bass created this 25-minute animated short-film for the holiday season 45 years ago. It features the voices from two former Academy-Award winners Greer Garson and José Ferrer. Unfortunately, as good as an actress Garson may be, I didn't think her voice is particularly suited for narration, which is even a bigger pity as female narrators were an even rarer than these days. Ferrer, on the other hand did a great job in voicing Ben Haramed, easily the best performance from the film. The main character was voiced by Ted Eccles, which I felt didn't really fit the bell at all. His loud and often over-the-top voice-acting was downright annoying at times. It did not so much show the anger of his character than it hurt the soothing effect of this motion picture coming mainly from the animation style and the music. Also, I personally felt, it didn't work at all with the gentle, even if disappointed, way his animated character looked physically.What i did like a lot, however, was the animation. critics may say there was more defined animation 25 years earlier during the days of World War II already, but I believe it was just different. The style fits the tone of the film very well and I can't deny the way they made the donkey and sheep, I wanted to gently touch their fur from start to finish. I've never been too interested in the story of the little drummer boy and this short film surely did not cause a 180°-turn, but I believe, despite its flaws, it can still make for a decent watch, especially during the holiday season, mainly for Ferrer's excellent work and the music. The Vienna Boys Choir delivers a wonderful performance of the popular drummer boy song.

Michael_Elliott Little Drummer Boy, The (1968) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Greer Garson narrates this Bass-Rankin stop-motion production telling the story of a troubled boy who follows three wise men to Bethlehem where his life is changed forever. Watching this film in 2011 it's quite obvious that something like this would never get made today, which is rather sad when you sit back and think about it. The one objectable thing is the way Arabs are shown but outside of this there's a terrific story being told here and there's no doubt that the message will shine loud and clear. With that said, thankfully the film never becomes too preachy to where you really don't care what the message is. The story itself is such a strong one and Bass and Rankin tell it in such a way that you'd have to be made of stone if you weren't touched at the end. The stop-motion effects are extremely effective here and especially the stuff towards the end when the little boy is asked to play the drums. The song is played throughout the film and it's so effective each time it comes up. Garson does a very good job reading the story and we get strong vocal work from Paul Frees, June Foray and Jose Ferrer.

mariannenagengast I am in my mid-twenties and was recently talking with two co-workers of around the same age about this song. I mentioned that it was only recently that I was able to appreciate it, as the Christmas special I watched every year as a child terrified me so much and rather traumatized me. My co-workers both emphatically agreed. It reignited my curiosity, as I haven't seen it since I was about ten or so, and I watched it this afternoon. As soon as I hit play, I ed exactly why it had scared me so much -- parents being killed, a little boy being kidnapped by an evil man, a lamb almost dying... I read on some boards here some people rather belittling the opinion that the special can be disturbing for kids, so I just wanted to counterbalance it and say, yes, it can be disturbing, enough so that 15 years later I'm still transported back to being a child and being terrified of it. This isn't to say it's not a wonderful story, and that it does show the meaning of Christmas and adds a story to a beautiful song...but I definitely don't think it's appropriate for all children.

lilpernel44 I have watched this movie since childhood. I would really like to know if it is airing on TV in 2006. I also love the story it tells regarding the birth of Christ. My son is 26 years old and should be having children soon, I would love for them to be able to enjoy some of the classic holiday specials I enjoyed as a young child. My son is also an musical artist and some of the music in this particular special he could probably appreciate for his type of music. He is an hip hop artist that writes his own lyrics and is currently working on a Christmas demo, The Little Drummer Boy is has a classics song and he could probably incorporate some of that music on to his demo. Anyway, if it is airing on network television this year, would someone please let me know?