BABES IN TOYLAND [1961 / 2012] [Blu-ray] [USA Release]
It’s Bright! It’s Wonderful! A Musical Holiday of Fun for Everyone!
Walt Disney's first all live-action musical production, inspired by Victor Herbert's classic operetta, arrives on Blu-ray for the first time, featuring an incredible all-new digital restoration with enhanced picture and sound! Disney legend and original “Mouseketeer” Annette Funicello is at her best in this joyful adventure for the whole family.
Experience a fantastic excursion into the world of Mother Goose where all roads lead to magical, merry Toyland. While Mary Contrary [Annette Funicello[ and Tom Piper [Tommy Sands] prepare for their wedding, the villainous Barnaby [Ray Bolger] schemes to steal Mary Contrary away, setting off a series of comic chases and double-crosses that climax in a march of living toys to rescue Mary, the Toymaker [Ed Wynn] and his workshop. Will there be a happily ever after for Tom Piper and Mary Contrary? Also starring Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran and Ann Jillian. You will enjoy this delightful fantasy like never before on Disney Blu-ray!
FILM FACT No.1: Awards and Nominations: 1962 Academy Awards®: Nomination: Best Costume Design in Color for Bill Thomas. Nomination: Best Music in a Scoring of a Musical Picture for George Bruns. 1962 Golden Globes: Nomination: Best Motion Picture in a Musical. 1962 Grammy Awards: Nomination: Best Soundtrack Album or Recording of Original Cast from Motion Picture or Television for Camarata (1913 – 2005). 1962 Laurel Awards: Win: Top Musical Score for George Bruns. Nomination: Top Musical. 1962 Writers Guild of America: Nomination: Best Written American Musical for Lowell S. Hawley and Ward Kimball.
FILM FACT No.2: The film is based upon Victor Herbert's popular 1903 operetta “Babes in Toyland.” There had been a 1934 film also titled ‘Babes in Toyland’ starring Laurel and Hardy, and three television adaptations prior to the Disney film, but Disney's was only the second film version of the operetta released to cinema theatres and the first in Technicolor. The toy soldiers later appeared in Christmas parades at the Disney theme parks around the world. In 1961 Walt Disney said he wanted to create a film of the standard of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ [1939]. "It's like a Disney cartoon only with live actors," said one Disney executive.
Cast: Ray Bolger, Tommy Sands, Annette Funicello, Ed Wynn, Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran, Henry Calvin, Gene Sheldon, Mary McCarty, Ann Jillian, Brian Corcoran, Don Anderson (uncredited), Marilee Arnold (uncredited), Melanie Arnold (uncredited), Robert Banas (uncredited), Candy Candido (Trees singing voice) (uncredited), Eileen Diamond (uncredited), Jack Donohue (uncredited), Ilana Dowding (uncredited), Bess Flowers (uncredited), Jerry Glenn (uncredited), James Gonzalez (uncredited), James Martin (uncredited), William Meader (uncredited), John Perri (uncredited), David Pinson (uncredited), Thurl Ravenscroft (Trees singing voice) (uncredited), Bryan Russell (uncredited) and Jeannie Russell (Singer voice) (uncredited)
Director: Jack Donohue
Producer: Walt Disney (uncredited)
Screenplay: Victor Herbert (operetta), Glen MacDonough (operetta), Joe Rinaldi (screenplay), Lowell S. Hawley (screenplay), Ward Kimball (screenplay) and Anna Alice Chapin (libretto)
Composer: George Bruns (Music Scoring)
Cinematography: Edward Colman, A.S.C. (Director of Photography)
Image Resolution: 1080p (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audio: English: English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Spanish: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish and Português
Running Time: 105 minutes
Region: All Regions
Number of discs: 1
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: ‘BABES IN TOYLAND’ [1961] Was Walt Disney's first all live-action musical production, inspired by Victor Herbert's classic operetta, arrives on Blu-ray for the first time, featuring an incredible all-new digital restoration with enhanced picture and sound! Disney legend and original Mouseketeer Annette Funicello is at her best in this joyful adventure for the whole family.
Experience a fantastic excursion into the world of Mother Goose where all roads lead to a magical merry Toyland. While Mary Contrary [Annette Funicello] and Tom Piper [Tommy Sands] prepare for their wedding, the villainous Barnaby [Ray Bolger] schemes to steal Mary away, setting off a series of comic chases and double-crosses that climax in a march of living toys to rescue Mary, with the help of Grumio the Toymaker [Ed Wynn] and his workshop. Will there be a happily ever after for Mary Contrary and Tom Piper. Also starring Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran, and Ann Jillian, you will enjoy this delightful fantasy like never before on a Disney’s Blu-ray disc!
Continuing on with the story, everybody in Mother Goose Village is happy for Tom Piper and Mary Contrary’s wedding except for the evil Mr. Barnaby. Mr. Barnaby, played by Ray Bolger of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ fame, is your typical over-the-top enjoyable baddie with an awesome smokestack-like hat and a villainous moustache. He wants to marry Mary Contrary for himself so that he can take her inheritance that she’s soon to…umm…inherit.
And like all stereotypical villains, he uses henchmen to get his evil deeds done rather than doing it himself. He hires two men named Gonzorgo and Roderigo, played by Henry Calvin and Gene Sheldon, respectively, to kidnap Tom Piper, and throw him into the sea, and steal Mary Contrary’s sheep. This way, with Mary Contrary’s lover AND source of income out of the way, Mary Contrary will be forced to marry Mr. Barnaby. But will the dastardly Mr. Barnaby succeed?
This Disney film offers many features appealing to young children especially, but equally I know that the Parents will enjoy the film as well. It has silly inventions, especially one that can shrink people; the lovable Ed Wynn as Toyland's Chief Toymaker; and the participation of some of the 1960s major pop music artists. However, for today's modern viewers, this film can seem rather stagy, with cartoon type characters and can also seem very formulaic and sadly does not quite have the vibrancy, innovation, or magic of the musical films for families that soon followed with the likes of ‘Mary Poppins’ and ‘Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang.’ Still despite this, the rosy-cheeked Mother Goose character, the terrific dance numbers, and the Victor Herbert songs will be enough to entertain most children and adults.
In closing, one can’t help but feel that ‘BABES IN TOYLAND’ is a passable effort on behalf of the Walt Disney studio, but sadly does not quite hold up well now viewed years later. In a positive light, one can look at it as a stepping stone towards the Walt Disney studio’s most famous live-action musical, ‘Mary Poppins,’ which debuted 3 years later. Though the highlight of the film’s craftsmanship comes during a sequence where Tom Piper rallies a number of toy soldiers against Mr. Barnaby. Near the last third of the film, we are introduced to The Toymaker and his assistant, Grumio [Tommy Kirk]. Ed Wynn’s portrayal of the Toymaker is one of the better moments in the film; with the actor giving a kooky twist to a man who isn’t quite as smart as he thinks. Tommy Kirk’s portrayal as the eager-to-please assistant has some decent moments as well and what saves this Disney film, is when all the toy soldiers come alive with some amazing Disney animation special effects, who are asked to help out to thwart the nasty evil Mr. Barnaby, who eventually gets his comeuppance and we all cheer when that happens.
The film also became one of the first to be publicized within the Disneyland theme park. After production, the Mother Goose Village sets were moved into the Main Street Opera House, where visitors could walk amongst them. An episode of the Disneyland TV show aired around the same time as the film’s release, with Walt Disney and Annette Funicello guiding their television audience around the film sets, and to the big wrap party. The special is another great little behind-the-scenes deal, showing everything from sets being disassembled, to the bank of makeup artists preparing dancers for the big gypsy dance number. Also adding to its theme park legacy, are the numerous toy soldiers one sees during the Holiday parades at the parks, which are based on those from the film. What a shame this could not of been added to the Blu-ray disc as a special feature.
BABES IN TOYLAND MUSIC TRACK LIST
MOTHER GOOSE VILLAGE AND LEMONADE (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (Lyrics by Mel Leven) (Lemonade adapted from the instrumental piece "Military Ball") [Sung by Chorus]
WE WON’T BE HAPPY UNTIL WE GET IT (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns from the song "He Won't Be Happy Till He Gets It") (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Ray Bolger and Henry Calvin] [Danced by Gene Sheldon]
JUST A WHISPER AWAY (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Tommy Sands and Annette Funicello]
SLOWLY HE SANK TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA (Music by George Bruns) (Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Henry Calvin] [Danced by Gene Sheldon]
CASTLE IN SPAIN (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung and Danced by Ray Bolger]
NEVER MIND, BO-PEEP (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Ann Jillian and chorus]
I CAN’T DO THE SUM (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Annette Funicello]
FLORETTA (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Tommy Sands and chorus]
FOREST OF NO RETURN (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by chorus of trees and children]
GO TO SLEEP (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Tommy Sands, Annette Funicello and children]
TOYLAND (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns from Victor Herbert music) (Lyrics by Mel Leven and Glen MacDonough) [Sung by Tommy Sands, Annette Funicello, the children and the singing trees]
WORKSHOP SONG (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Ed Wynn, Tommy Sands, Annette Funicello and Children]
JUST A TOY (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns) (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Tommy Sands and Annette Funicello]
MARCH OF THE TOYS (Music by Victor Herbert) [Performed by the orchestra]
WE WON’T BE HAPPY UNTIL WE GET IT (Reprise #1) (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns from the song "He Won't Be Happy Till He Gets It") (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Henry Calvin]
WE WON’T BE HAPPY UNTIL WE GET IT (Reprise #2) (Music by Victor Herbert) (Music adapted by George Bruns from the song "He Won't Be Happy Till He Gets It") (New Lyrics by Mel Leven) [Sung by Henry Calvin]
HERE COMES THE BRIDE (uncredited) (Written by Richard Wagner)
MARY, MARY, QUITE CONTRARY (uncredited) (Traditional)
BUILDING BUGLE CHARGE FANFARE (uncredited) (Traditional)
RETREAT FANFARE (uncredited) (Traditional)
Blu-ray Image Quality – Walt Disney Pictures presents ‘BABES IN TOYLAND’ with a very impressive 1080p Technicolor 1080p image and of course it is enhanced with a 1.66:1 aspect ratio, but on the back cover the information they have printed is 1.33:1 aspect ratio, which is totally incorrect. The Technicolor image is very vibrant with this new transfer. The blacks are deep and inky with the flesh tones natural and smooth. Although the Technicolor image in this bizarre world are very sharp and vivid and looks the best you will ever see, compared to when the film was released in the cinema. But sadly when the special effects kick in, there is a layer of grain present and the picture is not as sharp as it could have been, but despite this, overall this is a strong image presentation, and the film is the best image presentation of the film I have seen so far.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – Walt Disney Pictures brings you a 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio experience, which is quite bright and breezy, but what a shame they could not have upgraded it with a 5.1 audio mix. The dialogue sounds just right. The film music score and the sound effects have above audio ambient experience, which you would expect from a Stereo audio recording and again above average, still recording techniques in 1961 were not so sophisticate as it is with technical recording for modern films today, but despite some slight flaws, I still enjoyed viewing this Disney Technicolor film and at least you can hear all the dialogue and singing done very well.
Blu-ray Special Features and Extras: Once again the Disney organisation deemed to have no special features like behind-the-scene filming or interviews with the cast and crew.
Finally, the film ‘BABES IN TOYLAND’ was criticised by some people for being wildly overlong, but the ending does introduce an army of stop-motion animated toy soldiers marching into battle against Mr. Barnaby [Ray Bolger], and as a bonus there is the fun in seeing Grumio the Toymaker [Ed Wynn] toy-crafting inventions, which is a joyous explosion of colour. ‘BABES IN TOYLAND’ was a matinee performance mainly for children. On top of all that, it has numerous highlights along the way, and a feisty festival of Disney fantasy that will please die hard Disney fans of the big screen delights you get to view throughout the film. Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
