again. i'm always surprised at how well Cannon MovieTales pulls this off. low budget and with little resource, but strangely lavish just the same. and a very complete musical. Cannon MovieTales achieves this by using the same sets and costumes over again for re-use, and they commission music from little recognized composer and musical arranger Stephen Lawrence. more than likely the budget for these films goes to paying the salaries of the numerous name celebrity actors they acquire for their productions.
very few young people, at the time this was produced, realized the notability of having a musical at that time that featured veteran talents like Sid Ceasar and Robert Morse singing. Ceasar was a comedy legend and Morse was in 'The Loved One' and originated the Broadway role in 'Suceed in Business' that Daniel Radcliffe is now winning acclaim for currently.
Stephen Lawrence's songs are not always the most memorable showtunes written or composed, but they are more ambitious than you would expect for these projects, and more than satisfactorily answer the call of duty.
these films also always seem rather lavish for their modest budgets, but anyone who becomes familiar with Cannon MovieTales, knows they compensate by re-using sets and costumes. it's very effective cost cutting. and even though you can see the Date and Palm trees of Israel in the landscapes (these movies are produced there), they effectively convey the European fairy stories they are made to depict.
this was a nice production and they provided Ceasar and Morse with a ample amount of song tunes to warble. it was also cute to see Jason Carter here from Jim Henson's 'Storyteller' and the 'Jackanory' children's series.
i really enjoy Cannon Movietale's fairy tale tellings. despite their limitations, they create a wonderful world that is faithful to the source, creates a theatrical "movie-like" feeling, and provides a musical version of the age old stories.
very few young people, at the time this was produced, realized the notability of having a musical at that time that featured veteran talents like Sid Ceasar and Robert Morse singing. Ceasar was a comedy legend and Morse was in 'The Loved One' and originated the Broadway role in 'Suceed in Business' that Daniel Radcliffe is now winning acclaim for currently.
Stephen Lawrence's songs are not always the most memorable showtunes written or composed, but they are more ambitious than you would expect for these projects, and more than satisfactorily answer the call of duty.
these films also always seem rather lavish for their modest budgets, but anyone who becomes familiar with Cannon MovieTales, knows they compensate by re-using sets and costumes. it's very effective cost cutting. and even though you can see the Date and Palm trees of Israel in the landscapes (these movies are produced there), they effectively convey the European fairy stories they are made to depict.
this was a nice production and they provided Ceasar and Morse with a ample amount of song tunes to warble. it was also cute to see Jason Carter here from Jim Henson's 'Storyteller' and the 'Jackanory' children's series.
i really enjoy Cannon Movietale's fairy tale tellings. despite their limitations, they create a wonderful world that is faithful to the source, creates a theatrical "movie-like" feeling, and provides a musical version of the age old stories.