Let's be realistic.

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

I also saw this movie on the Family Film Festival around 1980 and fell in love with it. I've been searching for a copy for years. It is now available on DVD through Amazon.com. My copy arrived today and I just finished watching it. It's everything I remember!!! I'm so glad to know there are other people besides me who remember it. The music is what has stayed with me more than almost anything, especially the prince singing "Maria, Maria" and the babies' song too! I'd forgotten about the shoemaker; he's so funny! It's a marvelous cartoon. I'm so glad it's now available for all of us who remember it so fondly, and for a whole new generation who, I hope, will love it too!

Like many a poster to these boards, I also remember seeing this film sometime in the late '70s-early '80s on a lazy Sunday afternoon on KTLA's Family Film Festival, hosted by the legendary Tom Hatten. The movie can be had at deepdiscountdvd.com for about 12 bucks.Certain images and elements of the film have always stuck in my head (possible spoilers here, but really more remembrances than anything else): the evil stepsister Mary Lou demanding the garnet stone from Maria by clapping her hands twice and holding out an outstretched hand, the totally surreal scene with all the babies being fed by Maria and Mary Lou, when they break out into song in praise of Maria (something like, "MARIA, MARIA, YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH!!!!), the equally bizarre loaves of bread begging to be taken out of the oven before they burn (still gives me chills), and Maria's drunk dad, always looking for his bottle. There were also some apple trees, as I recall, that needed Maria and Mary Lou to pick their apples, and then there was something or other about dancing milk jugs going to someone called Mrs. Holly or something like that. I'm going to order it for my daughters.

Hi. I am absolutely in love with this movie. It was a huge part of my childhood, and I spent most of my time growing up watching it. I probably still have it all memorized! We'll make it snow! We'll make it snow! I have been desperately seeking a copy for over 5 years. Until recently I haven't been able to find anything on it. Unfortunately I don't understand enough German even to go through the Amazon German site to purchase the copy that they have. I was hoping that someone could make a copy of theirs and let me purchase it. I am planning to have a child soon, and I would love for this movie to be a part of his childhood too.

I first saw this movie on KTLA's Family Film Festival around 1980. I loved it! I managed to see it a few more times up until the mid-80's and continued to enjoy it each time. Basically, it's Cinderella meets Alice in Wonderland. In order to marry her one true love, Maria must journey down a well into a magic country to retrieve a magical amethyst necklace, which is how the prince will recognize her. In the meantime, her wicked stepsister is also after the necklace and causes all sorts of trouble for Maria. The characters they meet in the well are quirky and fun. The fairy tale element is strong but not sappy. I also like the songs and music. But, Maria's dog Blue (who actually is blue!) is the character I truly miss the most. He's just so darn cute! I only hope the video comes out of moratorium someday. Overall, I give this movie five stars, but at least one of those is for pure sentimental value.