Thanks for the memories!

Good idea lost in the noise

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

I LOVED this film when I was little and hadn't seen it in years and made my husband watch it recently lol.Needless to say he lasted 10 minutes but for me it brought back so many happy memories as I watched this film over and over when i was younger. I remember it being a little scary and also I was desperate to be Lisa!! (Drew Barrymores character).Yes this had really bad acting etc but it is also very endearing and has some great moments in it. I was also surprised I remembered the words to all the songs (so bad they were good lol). Give this film a go especially if you have kids :-)

I'm reviewing this movie based on its own merits. I'm not comparing it to any older productions.The sets are hideous. Imagine the most boring and spartan buildings you can picture painted various shades of pink and purple, and you've got Toyland. Even the giant shoe the old woman used to live in manages to be boring.The characters (most of whom are flat and dull) seem to spend most of their time running around and getting nothing of value done. For example, Jack gets thrown into jail, gets broken out of jail, and promptly gets himself trapped by the villain. Ample screen time is spent showing the characters running around town in kiddie cars instead of advancing the plot.The movie hands out promises like it's Christmas and breaks every one of them. For example, George Porgie says that Barnaby occasionally rolls his bowling-ball-shaped house into town. You'd expect that to be foreshadowing for the film's climax, right? Nope, it never happens. Lisa attempts to play matchmaker between Barnaby and Mrs. Hubbard, something you'd expect to pay off SOMEHOW by the end of the film. It doesn't, unless you count a cheap joke to be a payoff. The Dark Forest is mentioned several times, leading you to think the characters might end up having to go into it, but in fact, they never leave town. The Toymaker hints that Barnaby could be redeemed... but in the end, he just gets banished to the forest.A particularly ridiculous aspect was how Lisa, who frequently complains that she's "not a child," must learn to use her imagination again and "believe." However, up until the end of the film there is no real indication that Lisa isn't imaginative; whenever she insists that she's no longer a child she is clearly doing so because she does not want to be perceived as incompetent or incapable based on the fact that she's 11. Bucking against ageism and refusing to use one's imagination are not the same thing, which this film unfortunately implies.As far as charming holiday specials go, this movie is not one of them.

I have always loved this movie however why did they decide to take a made for TV movie and edit it? The original had so many songs in it and I loved those. Most of the time you edit to make it into time frame on TV...not cut to put on video after been on TV...Does anyone else remember the original, the song between Jack and Mary or Lisa singing before going in to the Forrest?I think this needs to be re-released in its original form! We bought the VHS a while back and saw the edits, I decided to watch on Netflix online and there has been other times when it just seems that something is missing, a skip or something so you know there is stuff missing.

As someone who tends to analyze movies, I did find this to be silly. Jack being arrested for Grand Cookie Larceny just because his entire warehouse is suddenly empty and the evil Barnaby said Jack did it? For the former, didn't it occur to the Justice of the Peace that another person could have done it. If a police officer was informed about a warehouse being suddenly emptied out, he (or she) wouldn't just automatically arrest the manager. Secondly, why was Barnaby's testimony viewed as credible when everyone knows he is evil to the bone. It didn't occur to the justice of the peace that Barnaby could be lying? He has done everything else wicked.However, this film was also a delight to see. It's what a friend of mine called a "bubble gum" flick. It means nothing. There's no substance, but it's enjoyable. I laughed when Barrymore (Lisa Piper), Reeves (Jack Nimble), Scholen (Mary Contrary), and Gress (Georgie Porgy) acted like monsters to get out of Barnaby's jail.After seeing Keanu in Speed, Matrix, and A Walk in the Clouds, it was nice to see him do something different--singing. It was also nice to see him as a teenager again.However, I did see the Babes in Toyland with Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon and was disappointed that Keanu's character wasn't more heroic like Frankie's character.