Les petits hommes de la forêt

when this movie came out in 1967 i was only six. but when it was shown over the years on the disney channel and i got to see the movie for the first time i cried with laughter. the late but not forgotten walter brennan was as funny as funny could be. he was the perfect choice to do both roles. i take my hat off to walt disney for putting this movie together. this is a movie the whole family can enjoy. thank you...

The Gnome-Mobile is a Disney production and stars Walter Brennan, Tom Lowell, Matthew Garber, Karen Dotrice, Richard Deacon and sees Ed Wynn cameo. It's based on a 1936 book written by Upton Sinclair called The Gnomobile. The story concerns a timber tycoon called D.J. Mulrooney {Brennan} who along with his two grandchildren Rodney & Elizabeth {Garber & Dotrice}, get involved in the affairs of two Gnomes, Jasper & Knobby {Lowell & Brennan (again) respectively}. Jasper desperately wants a bride and Knobby is fading away as he fears the Gnome race is being wiped out by the constant felling of the forests. But in spite of Knobby's mistrust of humans, especially foresters, all five of them set off in Brennan's Rolls-Royce; now nicknamed The Gnome-Mobile by the children. Sure enough tho, problems arise as first a row breaks out when Knobby finds out about Mulrooney's trade, and worse still, when the two Gnomes are Gnomenapped by weird circus owner Horatio Quaxton {Sean McClory}. What will become of them all in Disney's fantastical family delight?

What more do you want really? Leonard Maltin praised the film as being one of Disney's most unsung comedy/fantasies, and Roger Ebert wryly observed that Disney makes these types of films for kids, not critics. Who am I to argue with those two wise assumptions? It's a jolly film that contains bright and likable characters {acted likewise}, a lovely title song {written by the Sherman Brothers} and lasting effects work that has a timeless charm about it. The story {adventure} zips along with no boorish filler to hinder it, and the finale delivers everything you hope it will. Go Disney, this deserves a bigger reputation for sure. 7/10

This is a bundle of joy, even at the ripe old age of 24. Maybe I took it all in as if it was meant for pure tongue-in-cheek purposes, but even as pure kids movie entertainment this is a blast (in cheesy ways as well as for-real ones). It's about the world of gnomes in the redwood west-coast forests coming to light for a couple of kids (the Mary Poppens tykes) and an old man who runs a lumber company.

It might make sense to give a little back-up: part of he reason I watched this movie- make that a big reason- was that Upton Sinclair wrote it. There Will Be Blood is now out in theaters, a big success, and I was intrigued by what else was adapted from his works. Seeing this on the credits list made me give a double-take. What? A Disney movie? Will there be socialist gnomes gathering in the streets to protest the ways of the 5 to 6 foot tall bunch? And what about the greedy capitalists cutting down their trees for their profit motives? Do they have no decency?

Those thoughts ran through my mind, thinking that The Gnome Mobile would be bust, some cheesy kids movie that was so bad it would be good. And, in some ways, it is. It breaks into songs in the weirdest of moments (always, it seems, even if infrequently, in the car), and Walter Brennan plays two roles without any real justification except, mayhap, to get a bigger paycheck. But aside from the goofy expectations, it's actually a lot of legitimate fun, too. Kids who aren't completely dulled down by current CGI might get a kick out of seeing how things went in the "old" days (i.e. lots of large back-drop sets, the 'old-school' of blue screen of sorts of forced perspective, matte paintings), and for acting and comedy that is of a completely light manner. There's danger with a villainous freak-show captain (the name Horatio Quaxton in and of itself is great), and members of grandpa's own company.

It's a big, big, big gas. Only in the 2nd climax (yes, there are two, I think, sort of), when the lady gnomes go after Jasper in a courtship ritual do things get a little TOO weird (if that's possible with the frigging Gnome Mobile), and almost a little out of steam.

The Gnome-Mobile wasn't a perfect movie, but it was a pleasant, lively and enjoyable one for the family. I do think it is a little too short though, consequently while Sean McClory is suitably shady and enjoyable enough as the villain of the piece his character especially doesn't build up to as much as it could've been. Also, I have never been that receptive to the title song, it just seems bland and forgettable and the lyrics for me are quite uninspired. However, The Gnome-Mobile does have a very entertaining story, and some funny scripting. And it too benefits from some nice photography, scenery and costumes. The direction is good, the film goes at a cracking pace and the special effects are surprisingly reasonable. The main merit though of The Gnome-Mobile is the cast. Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber are very appealing while Walter Brennan is simply wonderful in a dual role. Overall, an enjoyable film that doesn't quite make the grade but has a lot of things to make it watchable. 7/10 Bethany Cox

In all the 3 movies which Matthew Garber appeared, Karen Dotrice was his co-star. "The Gnome Mobile" is the third of them. The previous ones are "The Three Lives of Thomasina" and "Mary Poppins". This duo is also known as the «Mary Poppins kids». Matthew Garber and Karen Dotrice are two of my favorite kid stars, particularly Matthew.

This fantasy film is something I recommend for anyone who likes old live-action Disney films, Disney in general and especially for fans of Matthew Garber and Karen Dotrice, no matter their age. Yet, this film seems to be more for children because it's somewhat childish.

The film was directed by the famous Robert Stevenson, the same guy who directed movies such as the great "Old Yeller" and "Mary Poppins" and the okay films "The Love Bug", "Herbie Rides Again" and "Bedknobs and Broomsticks".

The movie is generally likable, colorful and has soul, but it doesn't manage to be a truly great movie. The movie is quite promising in the beginning and it goes rather well until more or less the middle, perhaps a bit later than that. However, after that it isn't that great and becomes a little goofy for my taste.

The sceneries are great, particularly the forest, which create an atmosphere that strongly resembles "The Wizard of Oz". Less good are some scenes with cars that inspired certain scenes for "The Love Bug", but at least those scenes are separate. The scenes with gnomes clearly resemble later movies such as "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory". At the end, there are some nice primitive special effects.

Walter Brennan is excellent in the role of the eccentric but disciplined D.J. Mulrooney and he is never annoying, unlike that gnome with big beird whose name I don't even know. The character D.J. Mulrooney owns a Rolls-Royce Phantom II, the gnome mobile of the title. A fine automobile indeed, but gigantic. If we consider its immense size and the time when the car was made, it's concerning the serious dangers they took with such an unsafe and huge car by doing some crazy stuff in curves and high speed.

As for the kids (Matthew Garber and Karen Dotrice), they are perfect in their acting. Very lively, cute, charming, smart and classy. It's possible to see Matthew Garber doing incredible things here, such as driving a car and climbing a building. In fact, the scene when Matthew tries to drive the huge car but can't reach the pedals because he's too small for it is funny and Karen gives him a help. After the funny sequence when he climbs a building and helps his grandfather to escape is when the movie begins to lose its initial greatness.

Matthew Garber portrays Rodney, while Karen Dotrice plays Elizabeth. They're brothers and their surname is Winthrop. I've gotta say, Rodney is a lovely and different name - very classy and British too. I love Matthew's lines «When I get a car, it's going to be a Maserati» and «1 horsepower??». The kid is fine, huh? I mean, a Maserati. That's thinking tall :)

The classic comedian Ed Wynn has a small role as one of the gnomes at the end, but this time he isn't as funny as usual.

Sad that Matthew Adam Garber is not with us anymore. Why didn't he and Karen keep in touch after this film? After all, they did 3 movies together and they were friends. Another funny line of Matthew is when he comments that nobody has a snoring like grandpa...

As for the soundtrack, "The Gnome Mobile Song" is great, very charming, jolly and timeless. The movie wasn't a success. Maybe Matthew lost his motivation because of this and gave up on his acting career. Probably Karen felt the same and maybe that's why she was such a long time without making movies.

In conclusion, a decent movie although not all that great. But it's worth for the lovely Matthew Garber and Karen Dotrice.