The Wind in the Willows

There have been several versions of The Wind in the Willows, and this is, without a doubt, the best of them. Everything about is wonderful. It has magnificent animation and looks beautiful, and is written and played excellently. This is as good as movies get.

together with jeremy brett's sherlock holmes and the burlesque of allô allô, this was a landmark for a very young admirer of brit-fashioned TV productions. i saw this for the very first time on the telly and i suppose this was but the movie of the series. today i know this movie is a fair piece of artwork that moulded my life: i teach English. the characters are so exquisite and the scenario is state-of-the-art tasteful paintings. the Gothic side of the movie is also an allurement to it. when mole leaves in search of badger, part of the tone of the movie is clear: there's true darkness in those woods. that darkness is also stressed through the gory mole's fingernails. there's much violence, too, for those who like a pinch of tavern-like brawl. it's a sweet translation into moving pictures of a great story for parents to read their kids when they misbehave and have problems with the increasing, and at times puzzling, importance of friendships in their lives. there's the hilarious water-dancing of the ducks in the river and the truly tiresome teenager frog. beautiful. beautiful.

There is only one word for this movie: legendary! The entire cast plays their parts to perfection, especially David Jason as Toad, but overall, the whole cast of talented actors who have ideally lent their voices to this production deserve praise. They've done themselves well.

As someone who loved Kenneth Grahame's book "The Wind In The Willows" - my father used to read it to me a lot when I was little - I have seen many TV/film/theatre adaptations of the story. But it was this 1983 feature length film by Rosemary Sisson (produced by the great animation team of Brian Cosgrove & Mark Hall) that, for me, ranks as perhaps the best of the lot. This was perhaps the most faithful adaptation to Grahame's book, and in my opinion, it was this adaptation that got it absolutely spot on!

Everything about this version is excellent - this was exactly the characters and scenes as I imagined them from when my father read me the story and from when I was old enough to read them myself. The Edwardian scenery was just perfect. The often poignant and sometimes hilarious incidental music was awe-inspiring. And the theme tune was so beautiful, so relaxing, and so heart-wrenching all at once!

As for the characters and voice actors... They simply couldn't have made a better choice for Mr. Toad than the fantastic David Jason, who takes to his part with passion and vigour. The great Ian Carmichael's warm, friendly and dry manner was totally perfect Ratty (what a pity they couldn't keep him for series that followed on from this film), and Sir Michael Hordern's gruff, husky and stern yet kind voice made a fabulous Badger. Richard Pearson as the shy and sensitive but lovable Moley was very good too, while Brian Trueman and Una Stubbs were great in their supporting roles. The Weasels are great villains, and some of the scenes, while rather dark and scary, evoke exactly the view and words of Kenneth Grahame.

And then there's the songs. David Jason's "The Open Road" still makes my head turn to the screen even now, and Ian Carmichael singing the Ducks' Dance followed by the amazing sequence of the clay puppet ducks performing a well-timed dance routine... Well, you have to see it to believe what an incredible experience it is.

Whether a child or an adult, this film is an experience to be treasured!

This is easily the gold standard adaptation of the novel even when they go beyond the novel's storyline. This deserves to be available on streaming services.

Great animation and voice acting - perfection.