Rating: 
Summary: Laurel & Hardy Timeless Christmas Classic (Colorized DVD)!
Review: Adapted from Victor Herbert's Opera "Babes in Toyland" this 1934 Laurel and Hardy Operetta presents us with a timeless Holiday Classic for the entire family to watch during the holidays. The DVD presentation has been meticulously Remastered and Colorized (for the next generation's enjoyment and for the Black & White traditionalists just turn off the color). Laurel & Hardy have never been better. The characters (Based on Mother Goose and popular Nursey Rhymes),the story line of Toyland(Santa's Toy making Headquarters preparing for the upcoming holiday's) & the Villian with his henchmen (Powerful Landlord and his Bogeyman Army) can't lose. The basis is an Operetta (loosely conducted) musical showcasing the infamous song, "Babes in Toyland". Laurel & Hardy play Stannie Dum and Ollie Dee respectively Santa's toymaker workers who are in constant trouble. Stannie accepts a Xmas toy order but mixes it up and he and Ollie are fired. (Mistakens the order of 600 soldiers at 1 foot tall for 100 soldiers at 6 foot tall, can you imagine?). Along with the Villian Landlord, Silas Barnaby trying to evict the "Old Woman in the Shoe" for non payment sets the story for this Family Christmas Classic, "MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLIERS"!!!!! You & the family will love and laugh continuously!! A great value. A must for the Holiday library!!!!
Rating:
Summary: LAUREL AND HARDY FOREVER
Review: On the far end of the musical movie spectrum is the colorized Laurel and Hardy "MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS" from Goodtimes Home Video at a great price. As adapted from Victor Herbert's operetta "Babes in Toyland," there's more of the Holiday Spirit in this 1934 classic than in most of the insipidly lame attempts of movies and TV to exploit the holiday season. Dum (Stan) and Dee (Ollie) are Santa's toymakers preparing for the big delivery on Christmas eve. Mother Goose and nursery rhyme characters are all over the place and Stan and Ollie are in constant trouble ("Is that 100 six-foot toy soldiers or 600 one-footers?") Silas Barnaby, (remember "the meanest man in town"?), Bo Peep (she's being forced into marriage by Silas or he will evict Bo's mom, who is in fact The Old Woman In The Shoe). And there's Tom Tom the Piper's Son (Ms Peep's true love) and the big finale with the creepy attack of the Bogeymen. This classic has been cleaned up, digitally remastered and colorized and looks about as perfect as the best of old style children's book illustrations and I bet Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy themselves would want this one in color. It's certainly no sacrilege. This is one beautiful, Fauvistic fever dream of a movie. A weirdly mesmerizing family treat. Laurel and Hardy forever! Let's all love each other, OK?
Rating:
Summary: THE ORIGINAL "BABES IN TOYLAND"
Review: Few films in history achieve the rank of a beloved family classic, enjoyed anew by each succeeding generation. "March of the Wooden Soldiers", based on Victor Herbert's famed 1903 operetta, "Babes In Toyland", is one such timeless masterpiece. Tghe greatest comedy team in films, Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy, star in this elaboarate musical fairytale of innocence and optimism. The boys are Stannie Dum and Ollie Dee, hapless employees of Toyland's toy factory, who room in Old Mother Peep's shoe. Faced with eviction by they evil Silas Barnaby (Henry Brandon. Credited as Harry Kleinbach), Mother Peep (Florence Roberts) needs to raise her mortgage. But the boys' plan to get the money from the Toymaker (William Burress) goes awry. It seems Santa Claus (Ferdinand Munier) ordered 600 wooden soldiers one foot tall. But, unfortunately (as fate would have it), Stannie took the order. And the result is 100 soldiers six feet tall. The boys are fired.
An attempt to steal the mortgage from Barnaby's house ends in the boys being found guilty of burglary. Sentenced to be dunked and exiled to Bogeyland forever, the charges are dropped by Barnaby when Bo-Peep (Charlotte Henry) consents to marry him, although she is in love with Tom-Tom the Piper's son (Felix Knight). Tricked into giving up the mortgage with a bogus wedding, Barnaby gains revenge by pignapping one of the Three Little Pigs, and planting the evidence in Tom-Tom's house. Stannie and Ollie discover the ruse.
Chasing Barnaby into Bogeyland, they rescue Tom-Tom and Bo-Peep. But Barnaby leads the Bogeymen to destroy all of Toyland. In the thrilling finale, Stannie and Ollie activate the wooden soldiers. And to the strains of the majestic "March of the Toys", rout the Bogeymen and save Toyland. A spectacular entertaining film, with familiar music, high production values, and charming performances by the much loved Laurel & Hardy, "March of the Wooden Soldiers" is a must for any video collection. One of the truly great movies of all time.
Rating: 
Summary: Beware of the two versions
Review: There are two versions offered for sale at Amazon. The Koch Vision Entertainment version, despite the description in the technical details, is NOT COLORIZED. The Goodtimes Home Video version version IS colorized. Which you prefer is entirely up to you, but don't order the Koch Vision version if you want the movie in color. The Koch Vision version has an extended silent film extra of the first time Laurel and Hardy appeared together (NOT as a team, however). The extra is interesting, but (by today's standards anyhow) a little slow. The Goodtimes Entertainment (Colorized) version, although a few cents cheaper than the other version, is, in my opinion, a much "cleaner" print. Even with the color level turned down so it appears as the original B&W, the Goodtimes version is sharper and more distinct. March of the Wooden Soldiers, holds up pretty well.
Rating:
Summary: "I Don't Love 'im!"
Review: What a pleasure to find March of the Wooden Soldiers in glorious black & white! This Passport Video release (listed by Amazon as Koch Entertainment for some unfathomable reason) presumably contains the full-length version (77+ minutes) and is of very high quality. Audio is nice clear mono, and the video is just fine--flicker occurs occasionally, but nothing major and the images are sharp with good contrast. One is easily able to navigate the chapters and can scan in either direction and pause, which sometimes isn't the case with budget DVD's. It would be nice if subtitles were available (I have foreign-born friends who like to "see" and hear English simultaneously), as well as a printed list of chapters, but these are minor quibbles. A bonus short of the boys' first screen appearance together is also included and is lots of fun.
As much as I detest colorization of black & white classics, both in principle and for aesthetic reasons, I've read so many favorable reviews of the colorized version of this film that I'd be willing to give it a shot, especially considering its price. One reviewer wrote that she remembers seeing a hand-tinted print of this film at the movies when she was a child in the 50's, so clearly there's precedent. It would be nice to get a choice of both on one disk--maybe something along this line will turn up eventually. In the meantime, my recommendation is that first-time viewers see it the way audiences in 1934 saw it and then move on to "color" if so inclined. Either way, this is a fabulous film--it's about time justice was done to it, but better late than never. Thank goodness I no longer have to depend on the whims of local TV stations with their edits and commercials to watch one of my holiday favorites.
Rating:
Summary: LAUREL AND HARDY FOREVER
Review: On the far end of the musical movie spectrum is the colorized Laurel and Hardy "MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS" from Goodtimes Home Video at a great price. As adapted from Victor Herbert's operetta "Babes in Toyland," there's more of the Holiday Spirit in this 1934 classic than in most of the insipidly lame attempts of movies and TV to exploit the holiday season. Dum (Stan) and Dee (Ollie) are Santa's toymakers preparing for the big delivery on Christmas eve. Mother Goose and nursery rhyme characters are all over the place and Stan and Ollie are in constant trouble ("Is that 100 six-foot toy soldiers or 600 one-footers?") Silas Barnaby, (remember "the meanest man in town"?), Bo Peep (she's being forced into marriage by Silas or he will evict Bo's mom, who is in fact The Old Woman In The Shoe). And there's Tom Tom the Piper's Son (Ms Peep's true love) and the big finale with the creepy attack of the Bogeymen. This classic has been cleaned up, digitally remastered and colorized and looks about as perfect as the best of old style children's book illustrations and I bet Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy themselves would want this one in color. It's certainly no sacrilege. This is one beautiful, Fauvistic fever dream of a movie. A weirdly mesmerizing family treat. Laurel and Hardy forever! Let's all love each other, OK?
Rating:
Summary: Laurel & Hardy Timeless Christmas Classic (Colorized DVD)!
Review: Adapted from Victor Herbert's Opera "Babes in Toyland" this 1934 Laurel and Hardy Operetta presents us with a timeless Holiday Classic for the entire family to watch during the holidays. The DVD presentation has been meticulously Remastered and Colorized (for the next generation's enjoyment and for the Black & White traditionalists just turn off the color). Laurel & Hardy have never been better. The characters (Based on Mother Goose and popular Nursey Rhymes),the story line of Toyland(Santa's Toy making Headquarters preparing for the upcoming holiday's) & the Villian with his henchmen (Powerful Landlord and his Bogeyman Army) can't lose. The basis is an Operetta (loosely conducted) musical showcasing the infamous song, "Babes in Toyland". Laurel & Hardy play Stannie Dum and Ollie Dee respectively Santa's toymaker workers who are in constant trouble. Stannie accepts a Xmas toy order but mixes it up and he and Ollie are fired. (Mistakens the order of 600 soldiers at 1 foot tall for 100 soldiers at 6 foot tall, can you imagine?). Along with the Villian Landlord, Silas Barnaby trying to evict the "Old Woman in the Shoe" for non payment sets the story for this Family Christmas Classic, "MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLIERS"!!!!! You & the family will love and laugh continuously!! A great value. A must for the Holiday library!!!!
Rating:
Summary: "I Don't Love 'im!"
Review: What a pleasure to find March of the Wooden Soldiers in glorious black & white! This Passport Video release (listed by Amazon as Koch Entertainment for some unfathomable reason) presumably contains the full-length version (77+ minutes) and is of very high quality. Audio is nice clear mono, and the video is just fine--flicker occurs occasionally, but nothing major and the images are sharp with good contrast. One is easily able to navigate the chapters and can scan in either direction and pause, which sometimes isn't the case with budget DVD's. It would be nice if subtitles were available (I have foreign-born friends who like to "see" and hear English simultaneously), as well as a printed list of chapters, but these are minor quibbles. A bonus short of the boys' first screen appearance together is also included and is lots of fun.
As much as I detest colorization of black & white classics, both in principle and for aesthetic reasons, I've read so many favorable reviews of the colorized version of this film that I'd be willing to give it a shot, especially considering its price. One reviewer wrote that she remembers seeing a hand-tinted print of this film at the movies when she was a child in the 50's, so clearly there's precedent. It would be nice to get a choice of both on one disk--maybe something along this line will turn up eventually. In the meantime, my recommendation is that first-time viewers see it the way audiences in 1934 saw it and then move on to "color" if so inclined. Either way, this is a fabulous film--it's about time justice was done to it, but better late than never. Thank goodness I no longer have to depend on the whims of local TV stations with their edits and commercials to watch one of my holiday favorites.
Rating:
Summary: Laurel & Hardy
Review: One of a few movies I would own, b&w version only!
Rating:
Summary: A Heartwarming Classic
Review: A shame that this has been colorised, which is a wholly unnecessary adornment to an otherwise very good film. However, if you can stand the tinkering, you will probably still enjoy this rather strange Laurel and Hardy extavaganza. To begin with it doesn't look like it's going to turn out well. It looks like it has been padded out by songs that may have been entertaining in 1934 but grate on modern audiences. However, once you get into the fairytale setting and its logic it all makes a certain amount of sense. It's certainly endearing, and has - as all great childrens movies should - some jokes just for the grown-ups and some moments that could genuinely terrify the kids - I bet the march of those titular wooden soldiers was a bit daunting if you were eight in 1934. This is probably the most sentimental and romantic of Laurel and Hardy's features, and also possibly the least "slap-sticky" but it's none the worse for that. It certainly leaves me with a big smile on my face by the end... Although I have to come clean with you: I've got the original black and white version. I can see why the temptation was there to colorise. It's a fantasy world, and they probably thought they'd make it a bit like the Wizard of Oz if they pepped it up. But it was a bit like the Wizard of Oz in any case and there's really no need to monkey about with it. A heartwarming minor classic with some great gags.
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