March of the Wooden Soldiers

Starring:Richard Alexander, Frank Austin, Billy Bletcher, Henry Brandon, Baldwin Cooke, Alice Dahl, Johnny Downs, Marianne Edwards, John George, Oliver Hardy, Charlotte Henry, Virginia Karns, Felix Knight, Stan Laurel, Sam Lufkin, Jack Raymond, Florence Roberts, Charley Rogers, Marie Wilson
Director: Charley Rogers, Gus Meins
Studio: Good Times Video
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

The most lavish feature built around Laurel and Hardy, 1934's March of the Wooden Soldiers is also the most bizarre. Opening unpromisingly with one of several mawkish numbers derived from Victor Herbert's musical Babes in Toyland, the antics of toyshop laborers Stannie Dum and Ollie Dee are worked into a scenario midway between Lewis Carroll and the Brothers Grimm. Nursery-rhyme characters come and go in a surreal fantasy, with the evil Mr. Barnaby threatening to evict Widow Peep from her shoe unless he receives her daughter Bo in marriage. The movie culminates in a full-scale invasion of Toyland by the yeti-ish Bogeymen and their defeat by the 100 six-foot wooden soldiers which Stan and Ollie have built by mistake. Henry Brandon gives a characterful performance, while 1930s child star Charlotte Henry is an appealing heroine. Directors Gus Meins and Charles R. Rogers milk the slapstick to an increasingly unnerving degree. Reputedly Hardy's favorite among the double act's features, March of the Wooden Soldiers emerges now as their most audacious screen appearance. --Richard Whitehouse

Average customer rating:

March of the Wooden Soldiers
This is a great holiday movie
Displaced from NY/NJ
Just as I didn't remember it!
Good Old Toy with New Paint

March of the Wooden Soldiers
Starring: Frank Austin , Billy Bletcher , Henry Brandon , William Burress , and Alice Dahl
Director: Gus Meins
Manufacturer: Legend
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B000HLDFKO
Release Date: 2006-11-07

Description

All of the Mother Goose characters join Santa Claus in Toyland. -Originally produced in 1934, it is now newly restored in color -Also includes restored B/W version -Includes bonus Rudolph short animated feature

Customer Reviews:

March of the Wooden Soldiers.......2007-06-20

Antique children's movie retains its magic, thanks to a charming, refreshingly simple rendering of Toyland and its citizens, some cute songs, and the irresistible antics of Laurel and Hardy as the movie's hapless heroes. Best for smaller kids and their parents (though more suggestible tykes might get a small scare out of Bogeyland's denizens). In sum, this is a sweet movie that harkens back to a more innocent, fanciful time, while showcasing an immortal comedy team.

This is a great holiday movie.......2007-05-26

Some like it colored and some don't. Ether way this based on a 1903 Victor Herbert operetta, film released in 1934 as "Babes in Toyland," and is still fun to watch.

Now the basic plot is to keep Mother Peep's (Florence Roberts) shoe from being foreclosed on by the evil landlord Silas Barnaby (Henry Brandon) when this fails Bo Peep has to marry Barnaby to keep the shoe. Now to keep Little Bo Peep from having to marry Barnaby, it involves Barnaby being tricked into marrying Stanley Dum dressed up as Bo in Bo Peep's place. Naturally Barnaby can not be fooled long and must have his revenge by letting lose the bogeymen from their caverns to destroy Toyland.

Does he succeed in his evil ways?
Who can stop him and how?

All in all it is a must to complete the holiday collection.

Displaced from NY/NJ .......2007-03-24

Growing up as a kid in the NY metro Area, March of the Wooden Soldiers was always on WPIX Channel 11 every Thanksgiving. It had become a tradition in the family to watch it every year. After being transferred to Maryland, I have been unable to find it on any station (all 385 on cable). This version has both the colorized and the ORIGNAL Black & White version on the disc. It is wonderful!! Worth every penny for the memories and to keep the tradition alive with my children.

Just as I didn't remember it!.......2007-01-19

March of the Wooden Soldiers/Babes in Toyland was one of those movies that brought pleasant memories to each and every Holiday season since my childhood. I purchased the "colorized" version so that I could share some of that Holiday magic with my grandchildren. My granddaughter watched it four times in one day, including the black and white version just so she could see what PaPa saw when he was a kid. I believe she will share this movie with her children and grandchildren in years to come.
Although there were a few fuzzy moments early on in the movie, the colorization was fantastic. Hard to believe it was originally a black and white movie. Having both the old Black & White and the new colorized version on the same disk was like getting two movies for the price of one. Also, the old b&w toy commercials were great. Amazing what we played with back then compared to XBOX or Playstation 3!
The movie itself was a bit corny, the characters were child like and the Bogey monsters looked like mom's old shag carpeting come to life. My granddaughter couldn't take her eyes off the TV. At first she laughed at the singing (after all I told her, it is a musical!) By the third viewing, she knew the words to the songs.
I loved every minute of the movie. The three little pigs were my granddaughter's favorite and we all enjoyed the mouse and the cat and the fiddle.

Good Old Toy with New Paint.......2007-01-07

Before purchasing this DVD, I owned only one other colorized movie: the Goodtimes DVD of "March of the Wooden Soldiers." That wasn't a bad colorization (and the disc has an Oliver Hardy interview and some home movie footage, so if you've got it, keep it), but this new version from Legend Films is better.

I've owned copies of this title on everything from super 8 film to DVD, and this is the best print I've ever seen, from opening titles (complete with the "Babes in Toyland" title card) to the end. Previous colorizations had telltale remnants of the black & white source material; for instance, the water in the ducking pond usually remained gray. And previous renditions of Bo-Peep made poor Charlotte Henry look like a misbegotten Easter egg. Legend's coloring leaves all this behind, but it doesn't make you run for your sunglasses. In fact, the black and white print is on the same disc. I can take it either way. This movie has always seemed like one that should have been made in color.

There are some interesting extras, including Max Fleischer's sugary "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, a clip of the Our Gang kids singing a New Year's greeting, yet another print of "The Tree in a Test Tube," and some toy commercials. A nice package, overall, but Stan and Ollie are the main event.

Average customer rating:

Very good, maybe neccessary
March of the Wooden Soldiers
Good Experience
A great Holiday Movie Classic
A perfect restoration and colorization

March of the Wooden Soldiers
Starring: Richard Alexander , Frank Austin , Billy Bletcher , Henry Brandon , and Baldwin Cooke
Director: Rogers, Charley , and Meins, Gus
Manufacturer: PASSPORT VIDEO
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0000DJYPN
Release Date: 2003-12-09

Amazon.com

Description

Also known as Babes In Toyland, this 1934 classic stars Laurel and Hardy as Stanley Dum and Ollie Dee, who do their bumbling best to help poor Little Bo Beep (Charlotte Henry who, a year earlier, played the title role in the all-star Alice in Wonderland) escape the evil clutches of Barnaby (a truly frightening Henry Brandon) and his band of Boogeymen.

Also included is a special bonus: The rare 1921 silent short A Lucky Dog, which marked the very first joint appearance of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

Customer Reviews:

Very good, maybe neccessary.......2007-06-08

Laurel and Hardy DON'T need to be in colour, they are perfect in B&W, however this is the one film that might be the exception. Even in B&W you can tell how glorious the film would be if the backgrounds and characters were in colour - and it works. It won't change your life but will make a brilliant film that bit better, and different.

March of the Wooden Soldiers.......2007-03-21

Just as I expected it would be. Great find!

Good Experience.......2007-03-09

The delivery of the merchandise was timely the picture clarity and product is excellent for a classic DVD. The overall experience was great!!!

A great Holiday Movie Classic.......2007-02-27

I remember this movie on TV every Thanksgiving when I was a kid. For some reason they stopped showing it in the mid 80's - to early 90's it has become a forgotten classic. Though I am not a fan of colorization for old B/W movies, I really like this version. It is very well done the colors do not look fake and bring out the details of the film which one could not always see in B and W. This movie color or Black and White is a true wonder to see. It is a gift from the not so distant past. The back drops and props bring in memories of the grand old amusement parks like Coney Island, or roadside America and The late Great Danbury Fair in CT. Full of fantasy and bewitching fun. Laurel and Hardy bring a magic to this film that should be seen by all. Buy it it is great for the kids and for the whole family

A perfect restoration and colorization.......2007-01-25

It wasn't until I saw this DVD that I finally had a chance to see the entire original opening title sequence. The restoration was done with great care and the "paint job" is properly cheerful considering the content and story. Of course, the movie is a holiday classic and a must for your kids. You need to teach them that there was a time when a set of wooden soldiers was a big deal!

Laurel & Hardy Triple Feature (Bogus Bandits / Movie Struck / March Of The Wooden Soldiers)

Average customer rating:

Laurel & Hardy Triple Feature (Bogus Bandits / Movie Struck / March Of The Wooden Soldiers)

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video
Product Features:

Language(s): English

ASIN: B000PYCJJ6

Product Description

~Bogus Bandits: OLLIE and STAN play Ollio and Stanlio, a pair of incompetent bandits who are hired as Menservants to Fra Diavolo (The Devils Brother), a real bandit played by Dennis King Who, in his other guise, is known as the Marquis de San Marco an aristocrat who uses his position to discover the whereabouts of the treasures worn by the ladies in high Society. ~Movie Struck: A gas station attendant tries to help his girlfriend achieve success in Hollywood when she wins a local beauty contest. Stan and Ollie have a few hysterical scenes in this comedic gem that also features Rosina Lawrence, Jack Haley, Patsy Kelly, Mischa Auer and Jimmy Finlayson. ~March Of The Wooden Soldiers: Stannie Dum (Stan Laurel) and Ollie Dee (Oliver Hardy) are well- meaning but brainless Toymakers in Toyland. They misinterpret an order from Santa Claus for 600 one foot high toy soldiers and come up instead with 100 six foot high soldiers. But their toy army comes in handy when the evil Barnaby (Henry Brandon) and his furry bogeymen invade Toyland, and the boys end up as heroes when they save the Widow Peeps daughter Bo (Charlotte Henry) from his clutches.

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