Joe has a trained squirrel named Rupert but he can't find any work. Joe is kicked out of his apartment and he releases Rupert back into the park. Joe runs into Louie Amendola (Jimmy Durante) and his family. They take over his apartment. Rupert can't survive in the wild and he goes back to the apartment to live in the rafters. The landlord's son Pete Dingle (Tom Drake) falls immediately for Rosalinda Amendola (Terry Moore). Mr. Dingle starts getting payments from his investment and he stuffs the money in the wall. Rupert throws the money down to the apartment and the needy Amendolas think it's a gift from heaven.The squirrel is fun. The stop motion is rudimentary but very charming. There are a couple of songs from the energetic Durante. I wonder if the movie needs to bring Joe into this. It would be funnier to have the squirrel do all this stuff. The little puppy love romance is cute. The story gets a bit rambling. I'm not sure bringing the cops, IRS and the FBI into the movie is the best comedy. The story about the money probably needs to be simplified a little.

IF WE WERE to choose one word to describe today's honoree, THE GREAT RUPERT (George Pal/Eagle-Lion Films, 1950) it would have to be the above mentioned "Squirrely". Beyond that obvious pun and reference, the next one up in this lexicon would have to be offbeat.BEING WHAT WOULD today be classified as a "G" Rating, as approved fare for Family Viewing, the cast and story,nonetheless, do manage to keep even an adult clientèle interested. In much the same way that future family oriented cute-animal movies such as BENJI (Mulberry Square, 1974) and DIGBY: THE BIGGEST DOG IN THE WORLD Walter Stehnsen Film 1973), manage to simultaneously balance story line with equal portions of the madcap-comic, romance and mini-dramatic happenings*;in the final analysis, RUPERT accomplishes the same sort of results.EXAMINATION OF THE cast reveals an unusual, yet solidly balanced blend of veteran talent. We are presented with newcomer, Tom Drake, in the juvenile male lead and love interest for ingénue, Terry Moore.TOPPING THE VETERAN cast is Jimmy Durante. The "Old Schnozolla", himself turns in a performance that was at once funny, dramatic and believably entertaining. With all of his vast experience on stage, the radio and in the movies, it was truly a part that Jimmy could have "phoned in"; which he obviously did.IN SUPPORTING ROLES we have the always reliable characterizations from Frank Orth, Jimmy Conlin and Chic Chandler; whose character pulled the unlikely double-duty as both romantic rival and in saving the day by getting young Dingle's (Drake)song published (and even recorded, yet!).BEFORE WE GO ANY further, let's get back to Miss Moore. This part would mark the second straight year in which she would find herself playing in a cast which featured a stop-motion animated character. It was in the previous year's MIGHTY JOE YOUNG Argosy Pictures/RKO Radio Pictures, 1949) that her costar was a movable doll character of a relative few inches in length. With this two picture run, that Miss Moore would work with three of the biggest names in animation; namely Willis O'Brien & Ray Harryhausen (in MIGHTY JOE YOUNG) and finally with George Pal (in RUPERT THE GREAT).AS FOR THE ANIMATION that made up a truly small portion of RUPERT, it is outstanding. It was well blended and interspersed with footage of a real, live squirrel; in order to give the furry nut-eater the chance to dance and 'perform' what could be only described as cute comic relief.* OUT OF A CURIOSITY that has existed for some years, we forced ourselves to watch RUPERT THE GREAT, yesterday evening over the Cable Channel Turner Classic Movies; which described it as a Christmas Picture. Whereas Christmas did play a part in the beginning of the movie; it did cover a lot more of a time span.AS SILLY AS the whole premise seems to us today, with a much more cynical and jaded view of the World, the story does give us a sort of latter day fairy tale; what with all ending well in the end.WE ALL NEED this now and again, even you and I. Right Schultz? NOTE: * As far as the interplay between Miss Terry Moore and Rupert, there is none. Other than dropping the ca$h, while unseen to Durante's wife and being 'saved' from a burning building by a Fireman, 'Rupert' only had scenes with Jimmy Conlin.

We got this movie because we have a squirrel.Whoever came up with the original idea obviously had a squirrel as a pet,the character's actions(other than the obvious dancing in a kilt)are pretty close to what a squirrel keeper sees.More squirrel scenes would have been nice,but probably wouldn't have added anything to the plot.Ours didn't like one slightly scary scene(for a squirrel)near the end,but everything was okay in a few minutes.Of course,since the squirrels in the recent Willy Wonka movie attacked the little girl,he didn't like that one(ran out of the room and stayed until it was over),so I'd have to say it's HIS favorite squirrel movie,since the people and animals got along.It's a funny,simple movie that anyone who likes animals would probably enjoy.

When a slightly miserly landlord takes to hiding his savings he inadvertently intrudes into a squirrel's nest--which wastes no time in shoving the money out of his nest and into the hands of the down-on-their-luck Amendola family, who rent an apartment below. Originally released under the title of THE GREAT RUPERT, in 1950 the film was primarily admired for its then-artful blend of live action and puppet animation to create Rupert, the squirrel; today, however, it is best regarded as a very mild mannered and entirely inoffensive little movie that just happens to offer the legendary Jimmy Durante one of his final film roles.The script and story are as memorable as school cafeteria banana pudding, but the performances are reasonably engaging. As head of Amendola family, Durante is brash is only Durante could be, doing doubletakes and pounding out an occasional tune on the piano in his unique style. He is well supported by the likes of Terry Moore, Tom Drake, and such veteran character actors as Queenie Smith, Frank Orth, Sara Haden, and Jimmy Conlin. It's all in good fun.The 20th Century Fox DVD release consists of two versions of the film: the original black and white and a colorized version. There is nothing visually impressive about the film, so it is not hurt by colorization per se; as for the colorization, it is reasonably well done, at least so far as such effects go. Most astonishingly, the release includes a commentary track by Terry Moore and various people associated with the colorization and the DVD release.The commentary track is not tremendously informative; Moore freely admits that she had seen the film only once before, and that some fifteen years earlier. Even so, Moore proves good company, offers the occasional insight into the cast, and now and then proves unwittingly amusing--with her comments on actor Tom Drake, who was both gay and deeply closeted, a case in point. On the whole, I'd say the commentary is actually more engaging than the film itself, but whatever the case Durante fans, Moore fans, and those in search of truly innocent family fare should find it pleasing.GFT, Amazon Reviewer