The Daydreamer

1966 "Before the Little Mermaid, there was..."
6.1| 1h41m| G| en| More Info
Released: 01 June 1966 Released
Producted By: Rankin/Bass Productions
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

A young Hans Christian Andersen goes in search of knowledge in the Garden of Paradise in order to make his studies easier. Each time he falls asleep, he experiences in his dreams the different characters he would later write about in fairy tales including The Little Mermaid, Thumbelina, and The Emperor's New Clothes.

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Reviews

BlazeLime Strong and Moving!
SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped
Console best movie i've ever seen.
Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
Ripshin This Rankin/Bass production is quite a trip, and not the most lucid one, at that. Embarrassing cameos from a variety of stars, with "animation" well below par, considering their wonderful "Rudolph" specials. The story appears thrown together, connecting famous Anderson tales with an incoherent story line. How they managed to wrangle so many well-known voice-overs, I'll never understand. I grew up with Rankin/Bass, but did not see this film as a child. The DVD does make for a great conversation piece at parties, so I'd recommend the purchase. Perhaps, if they'd avoided the live-action segments, this film would have been a bit more enjoyable. The whole Ray-Bolger-running-around-with-pies is bizarre. Margaret Hamilton is wasted with about three lines. My 5 and 7 year-old nephews found it disturbing..."what about the 'cold tears from his hair'???"
whpratt1 Viewed this film many years ago and it always was a great film for children and adults. The cast of actors were all veterans of the screen, namely: Jack Gilford, Ray Bolger(The Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz) and Margaret Hamilton(The Wicked Witch from the Wizard of Oz) and the king of Horror, Boris Karloff (Frankenstein Monster). It also featured the voices of: Burl Ives, Tallulah Bankhead, Terry-Thomas, Victor Borge, Ed Wynn, Patty Duke and Robert Goulet. Karloff was the menacing voice of "THE RAT" in this internationally produced, live-action puppet fantasy. It is a MUST SEE to find out the complete story and ending.
ghosthost7 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.
thomandybish 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 . . .