like or not like. have certain expectations, or do not have certain expectations. beautiful ideas. check. sweet song in "Be a Happy Guy too." check. profundity in the Tree of Knowledge. check. sweetness all around. check. ingratitude for the skill and talent which produced this movie. no check. smug criticism by "sophisticated" reviewers. check. proof the movie is good and is truly a delight by the reviews of smug critics. check, and thank you. i guess i have to write more, because my review isn't able to be published without 10 lines. OK, here's some more. and more yet. OK, i'll keep writing.. is this enough? how about this? and is this enough? and what about this? am i in a college class? am i back in my film class in college? i don't feel that young anymore. maybe the sandman has brought me there.

Cmon, this film is a holiday favorite. A local TV station would show it every Thanksgiving. I even saw it in the theatre when it came out. It's a simplistic film for children. Perhaps you're not getting that fact.For it's time....it was done very well. This was before FINDING NEMO, RATATOUILLE, and TOY STORY. Remember, in 1966, there were no computer generated images to dazzle. It was all done one frame at a time. We're not talking Spielberg here. You have to give credit to the crew members. In the day...this was state of the art.OK, so it's not to everyone's taste, I understand. But to this child, it will always bring back wonderful memories of turkey, a lit fireplace, adults at the dining room table, and us kids glued to the TV screen watching Hans Christian Anderson come to life. When this was played we knew Christmas wasn't far behind.This movie is truly an ensemble piece. Most of the stars are dead. At least we have the DVD to see the great performances. They really were great. This is a true classic!

Delightful musical feature with thought-provoking lessons for both children and adults alike. A magical opening with Ritchard's "Sandman" sets the tone for an equally magical adventure through the mind of Hans Christhian Anderson. A memorable all-star cast accompanied by a whimsical score (who could resist "Isn't It Cozy Here!!"??). Not as good as Rankin/Bass' classic Christmas specials, but a winner, nonetheless.

Those among us who treasure Rankin/Bass' annual holiday specials like RUDOLPH THE REINDEER and SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN undoubtably have wondered at some point or another why the production company never tried any full-length feature efforts. Well, they did, with mixed results. The most ambitious effort of several was THE DAYDREAMER, Rankin/Bass' live action/stop-motion animation effort that was apparently supposed to be their masterwork but didn't quite deliver. Sure, it's a children's musical fantasy, and it's cast with a plethora of then-famous movie and television stars, but the whole thing just doesn't work. The story concerns an adolescent Hans Christian Andersen, learning life's lessons as he dreams himself into adventures(the animated sequences)that turn out to be several of the beloved Danish storyteller's famous stories, like Thumbelina, the Little Murmaid, etc. What really puts one's teeth on edge are the live-action sequences with Paul O'Keefe and Jack Gilford as Chris and Papa Andersen. Despite their distracting Brooklyn accents, what really spoils the mood is the degree of disfunction in this family. Papa Andersen is indecisive and easily put-upon by his harpie customers. Chris is selfish and is easily swayed into abandoning many of his new-found friends. Several of the animated sequences are atmospherically dark with less than happy resolutions. The songs are not on par with most of the television offerings, and the film drags intolerably so that, by the time it does end, you really don't care if Chris does get back home. As an adult, I found it hard to sit through, and I can't see a child today(or in 1966)watching this with any degree of sustained interest, with the exception of Tim Burton. And surely, the decision to have Robert Goulet sing the film's theme song was the kiss of death . . .