The Wind in the Willows

If I could give this movie a twenty out of ten, it still wouldn't be enough. I've seen several versions of this movie, and except for this one, I didn't think they delivered. It may be that I'm biased because this is the first one I ever saw, but I really do love it. My mom taped it for me when I was three or four, and we've had the tape ever since. (I'm twenty one now.) It was always one of the items that we made sure we had all of the fifteen or so times we moved. Over the years, the quality has become slightly poor, but it is still the one thing guaranteed to make me smile. And things are looking up for my favorite tape, since a friend of mine just transferred it to DVD for me.

I know I'm redundant here, but I just can't say enough what a good movie this is. Everyone learns important lessons, that resonate with real life, and yet, it manages not to be preachy. The songs and dialogue are great, and when I'm not feeling so I hot, I often catch myself singing the title song. Add to that, that my mom calls me Badger, because I hate company, and the fact that we often say, when we're hungry that we'll eat anything but an anchovy, and you have a tiny part of the impact it's had on me for over fifteen years.

A must see if you are lucky enough to find it.

"Wind in the Willows," a 1987 tv movie was brilliantly made, brilliantly casted, and was a departure from more commercialistic cartoons of its day.

This film starred Roddy McDowell and Jose Ferrer in the roles of Ratty and Badger, respectively in this children's classic. Whereas other cartoons of the '80's promoted products like action games (Q-bert) or toys (GI Joe) this cartoon movie does none of the above and is as well done as a Disney film.

The great performances from the actors are given an assist from a memorable score with a classic "Wind in the Willows" theme song: "Soon, soon you will forget," it goes, "The wind in the willow turns frolic to fret." There's also a song on Mr.Toad that's pretty catchy.

But what's best about this film is that it stay pretty true to the book "Wind in the Willows." Often times, a movie made from a book, especially a cartoon eschews the book to a degree that renders the translation unrecognizable from its original form.

But this version, enjoyable for kids or adults does not. It shows off the characters of Badger, Mole, Ratty, and Toad as representative of certain virtues or failings, much to the author's original intent. Toad is rich but wasteful as well as boastful; Ratty is full of wanderlust; Badger is unsociable but brave and smart; Mole is industrious and friendly. And the Wildwood is forever scary, forboding, mysterious-- everything a forest of fiction is supposed to be.

But together, the characters find they are inseparable-- in some way or another each character needs the others-- and this cartoon movie brings that out. There is a sense of community there among them, to the point that we non-animated humans could learn a little something from these characters!

True, the quality of animation isn't exactly Disney's finest, and some of the human cartoon characters are annoying to watch--especially when up against the animals, but viewers will ignore that in a heartbeat.

I saw this first when I was ten years old, I watched it again when I was 14, and if I still had it on video I would watch it again today. One of the best-- including Disney-- cartoons I have ever seen.

I first saw this film as fourth grader. The songs and voices of the characters have never left my memories. I showed it to my son, currently a third grader, and he was equally enraptured throughout the entire presentation. Very few theatrical presentations can withstand that test of time. Children today are not as easy to entertain as my generation was. It is a tribute to this production that it still packs a punch. The production, as does the book, teaches children invaluable life lessons in the entertaining manner they need to be taught to hold their attention. My only complaint about this release is that it is not offered on DVD.

Some of the writers in this thread disparaging the animation quality of this 1987 made-for-TV television version of 'The Wind in the Willows' thought it was made by Disney Productions, but of course it was produced by Rankin-Bass, who brought us 'Frosty the Snowman' in the '60s, and so much more. I'd have to say their animation quality in '87 has come a long way since 'Frosty'! Especially in the lush background illustrations and depth of texture and color mixtures.

This is clearly the truest-to-the-book, the intent-of-the-themes, and the animals' characterizations production of this title to date. I can't believe I was 27 years old when this came out and I presumably first watched it that year or possibly a little later, but I might as well have been 10 years old, for this version has really stuck with me (I'm now 45)! A large part of it was the great songs which have stayed in my head over the years, and, yes, especially the (someone said) 'wistful' theme song. Very soothing in sound and lyrics! Roddy McDowall was perfect as the voice of Ratty and Charles Nelson Reilly as Toad was a masterstroke of casting. For me, it really doesn't get any better than this version because I found that the animation and background settings so often matched a lot of the imagery I already had in my head from reading the book when I was about 13.

I believe I saw it twice more in ensuing years, but unfortunately did not make a tape off of TV, so I am now hoping to find it again by chance in some flea market 'bargain bin'. But I would like nothing better than to be able to see it again!

This cartoon adaption of The Wind in the Willows is something rare: a perfect (or at least near-perfect) version of the novel it's based on. Forget the Disney version; this is the one to see. It leaves out only a few parts of the novel, and is very faithful to the tone of the story. Each character is perfectly realized as they were in the novel. The visual style is excellent too; it is what might be called "delightfully grotesque." If you love The Wind in the Willows, and want to see a version that does not ruin it, this is the version you want. Alas, it is unavailable on video or DVD (it was once available on video, but is no longer), and is only rarely (if ever) shown on T.V. I am fortunate that I have a copy taped from T.V. many years, a copy which is, sadly, slowly biting the dust. This movie is hard to find, but if you can find, watch it without delay.