Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Latest
    • Thank You
    • 4000. Scenes From A Marriage (1973)
    • 3999. The Pianist (2002)
    • 3998. Philadelphia (1993)
    • 3997. Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)
    • 3996. The Green Mile (1999)
    • 3995. Doctor Zhivago (1965)
    • 3994. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
    The Mad Movie Man
    • Home
    • Blog
      • All Posts
      • Best Of The Year
        • Best Of 2015
        • Best Of 2016
        • Best Of 2017
        • Best Of 2018
        • Best Of 2019
        • Best Of 2020
        • Best Of 2021
        • Best Of 2022
      • The Decade In Review
      • Box Office Analysis
      • James Bond
      • Oscars
      • RANKED
      • Star Wars
      • The Big Questions
      • Top 10
      • World Cinema
    • Ratings
      • Top 250
      • Top 100 Foreign Films
      • Bottom 50
      • 0 – 1.9
      • 2 – 3.9
      • 4 – 5.9
      • 6 – 7.9
      • 8 – 10
    • Genres
      • Action
      • Anthology
      • Animation
      • Christmas
      • Comedy
      • Crime
      • Documentary
      • Drama
      • Fantasy
      • Film-Noir
      • History
      • Horror
      • Kids’
      • Musical
      • Psychological
      • Romance
      • Sci-Fi
      • Short
      • Silent
      • Sport
      • Superhero
      • Survival
      • Thriller
      • Western
    • Release Year
      • 2020s
      • 2010s
      • 2000s
      • 1990s
      • 1980s
      • 1970s
      • 1960s
      • 1950s
      • 1940s
      • 1930s
      • 1920s
    • Country
      • Afghanistan
      • Argentina
      • Australia
      • Austria
      • Belgium
      • Brazil
      • Cambodia
      • Canada
      • Chile
      • China
      • Colombia
      • Costa Rica
      • Czechoslovakia
      • Czech Republic
      • Denmark
      • East Timor
      • Faroe Islands
      • Finland
      • France
      • Germany
      • Georgia
      • Greece
      • Hong Kong
      • Hungary
      • Iceland
      • India
      • Indonesia
      • Iran
      • Iraq
      • Ireland
      • Israel
      • Italy
      • Japan
      • Latvia
      • Lebanon
      • Laos
      • Malaysia
      • Mexico
      • New Zealand
      • Nigeria
      • North Korea
      • Norway
      • Paraguay
      • Peru
      • Philippines
      • Poland
      • Romania
      • Russia
      • Saudi Arabia
      • Singapore
      • South Korea
      • South Africa
      • Soviet Union
      • Spain
      • Sweden
      • Switzerland
      • Syria
      • Taiwan
      • Thailand
      • Turkey
      • Uganda
      • United Kingdom
      • United States
      • Uruguay
      • Vietnam
      • Zambia
    • About
    The Mad Movie Man
    You are at:Home»Review»3264. Bedknobs And Broomsticks (1971)

    3264. Bedknobs And Broomsticks (1971)

    0
    By The Mad Movie Man on February 22, 2021 110-119 mins, 1971, 6 - 7.9, Comedy, Fantasy, Feb 21, Kids', Movies Of 2021, Review, United States
    6.6 Underwhelming
    • Acting 7.0
    • Directing 6.5
    • Srtory 6.4
    • User Ratings (0 Votes) 0

    Starring: Angela Lansbury, David Tomlinson, Roddy McDowall

    Director: Robert Stevenson

    Running Time: 117 mins


    Bedknobs And Broomsticks is an American film about an apprentice witch and the three children she is looking after who team up with a magician conman on a journey through different worlds on a flying bed in order to help defend Britain during World War II.

    Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. Bedknobs And Broomsticks is exactly the same as Mary Poppins. Seriously, it feels like a carbon copy that’s just advanced a few decades from a Victorian setting to a wartime setting, with very little else in the way of genuinely lovable innovation.

    Of course, the truth is that Bedknobs And Broomsticks was developed by Disney when it was struggling to get the rights to make a film of Mary Poppins (see Saving Mr. Banks for that excellent story). When it was picked up later in the ’60s, however, it feels like Disney didn’t really do much to change it, even with Mary Poppins having been unleashed into the public eye.

    Now, I’ve never had an immense affection for Mary Poppins, and I can’t say that Bedknobs And Broomsticks was any different. Despite a couple of enjoyable musical ditties (‘Portobello Road’ in particular) and lovely performances from Angela Lansbury and David Tomlinson, there’s relatively little that makes the film the endearing family adventure that it should be.

    The animated sequence, while the bright spark of the film, still pales in comparison to that of Mary Poppins, and offers little to the movie’s story. Is it just a fun aside for no reason? Absolutely, but so it was in Mary Poppins, but that had an all-time classic song to make it really stand out.

    Bedknobs And Broomsticks also feels surprisingly thin on the ground in terms of its fantasy and imagination. The film follows an apprentice witch and the three children she’s looking after…and that’s about it. Apart from doing the same trick where she transforms somebody into a rabbit a few times, there’s not much about her being a witch that really adds to the movie.

    The film’s wartime setting also doesn’t do much to inspire viewers, with the arrival of Nazi soldiers in the latter stages of the film a rather jarring inclusion to what had been a fantasy adventure fully removed from reality, with very little real reference to the war or the Nazi threat.

    In short, Bedknobs And Broomsticks feels very much like what I expect it actually is. A rehash of Mary Poppins with little in the way of genuine wonderment, awe and imagination to make it really sing. It’s a perfectly pleasant movie, but it has none of the magic of Disney’s all-time classics, so that’s why I’m giving it a 6.6 overall.

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    The Mad Movie Man
    • Website
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    The Mad Movie Man, AKA Anthony Cullen, writes articles and reviews about movies and the world of cinema. From January 1st, 2013 to December 31st, 2022, he watched and reviewed a movie every day. This is the blog dedicated to the project: www.madmovieman.com

    Related Posts

    8.2

    4000. Scenes From A Marriage (1973)

    7.8

    3999. The Pianist (2002)

    8.2

    3998. Philadelphia (1993)

    Follow Me Online!
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Tumblr
    New Releases
    8.2
    December 25, 2022

    3994. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

    5.6
    December 10, 2022

    3969. Falling For Christmas (2022)

    6.9
    December 4, 2022

    3956. The People We Hate At The Wedding (2022)

    5.4
    December 3, 2022

    3954. Disenchanted (2022)

    7.4
    December 3, 2022

    3953. Meet Cute (2022)

    7.6
    November 23, 2022

    3934. Do Revenge (2022)

    7.0
    November 18, 2022

    3929. The Wonder (2022)

    6.7
    November 13, 2022

    3924. See How They Run (2022)

    Recommended Movies
    8.0
    Review
    November 14, 20190

    2750. Judy And Punch (2019)

    8.0
    Review
    August 22, 20180

    2255. The Heiresses (2018)

    8.1
    Review
    April 8, 20200

    2916. Overboard (1987)

    8.0
    Review
    December 17, 20210

    3586. Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

    8.5
    Review
    February 11, 20210

    3251. [REC] (2007)

    Popular Posts
    December 31, 2022

    Thank You

    8.2
    December 31, 2022

    4000. Scenes From A Marriage (1973)

    7.8
    December 30, 2022

    3999. The Pianist (2002)

    8.2
    December 29, 2022

    3998. Philadelphia (1993)

    7.5
    December 28, 2022

    3997. Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)

    9.1
    December 27, 2022

    3996. The Green Mile (1999)

    7.6
    December 26, 2022

    3995. Doctor Zhivago (1965)

    © 2023 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.