This version seems low on Disney magic... Too much of the movie revolves around Ray Bolger's burlesque villain and his henchmen. (One's skinny and one's fat - but they're a poor substitute for the real Laurel and Hardy, who'd done their own version of Babes in Toyland in 1934.)
The second half is better - when the characters arrive in Toyland, with Ed Wynn as a bumbling Toymaker and Tommy Kirk his helper. The super-lightweight plot is a weakness and a strength, with twists that are unpredictable and occasionally odd. The movie culminates with a bizarre battle where the villain is attacked by animated toys...
Some of the dialog rhymes, but no one seems enthusiastic about it. Annette isn't particularly winning in this one, and even the dancing is hard to see, because the dancers' legs are covered by long storybook dresses. (And bad lighting, casting a few extra shadows.) On the plus side: Tommy Sands has a great voice, and the Disney chorus sings lush harmonies. And young Ann Jillian, as Bo-Peep, sings her few lines wonderfully...
The second half is better - when the characters arrive in Toyland, with Ed Wynn as a bumbling Toymaker and Tommy Kirk his helper. The super-lightweight plot is a weakness and a strength, with twists that are unpredictable and occasionally odd. The movie culminates with a bizarre battle where the villain is attacked by animated toys...
Some of the dialog rhymes, but no one seems enthusiastic about it. Annette isn't particularly winning in this one, and even the dancing is hard to see, because the dancers' legs are covered by long storybook dresses. (And bad lighting, casting a few extra shadows.) On the plus side: Tommy Sands has a great voice, and the Disney chorus sings lush harmonies. And young Ann Jillian, as Bo-Peep, sings her few lines wonderfully...