Nel regno delle fiabe

I remember when I heard that Fairie Tale Theatre was coming out. I remember trying to find every way that I could to convince my parents to get Showtime on which they aired. When I finally did get to see them I was spell bound.

Each one of these stories is literally hand crafted by the directors (some of them famous directors like Francis Ford Coppella) and Shelley Duvall to reflect a certain style. An example being the Sleeping Beauty tale was set in Russia with the sets and costumes designed to look like scenes from classic Russian motifs, the music from the Russian ballet. Another being the direct rip off of the classic Jean Cocteau film "Beauty and the Beast".

All of these were designed with the intent of entertaining not only children but adults. Some of the best moments in these are only things that adults will understand. Christopher Reeve does a fantastic job in his multi-role part in "Sleeping Beauty" as does Malcolm McDowell as the Wolf in "Little Red Riding Hood". McDowell infuses the character with a subtle dark sensuality. His chemistry with his then wife Mary Steenburgen is strong.

Probably the best one of all is the "Three Little Pigs" with Jeff Goldblum (as the Big Bad Wolf), Valerie Perrine (as a ravishing piglette), and Billy Crystal(as one of the three little pigs). The writing in this one is completely off the wall.

The only episode I was disappointed with was Tony Bill's version of "The Princess and the Pea", featuring Tom Conti and Liza Minnelli. I saw no chemistry between Conti and Minnelli, and I think some of the stuff in it was a little too highbrow for kids.

The only overall problems that I noted with the series itself were that the pacing tended to be off in some of the shows, and some of actors tended to ham it up big time and be a little too over the top (like Vanessa Redgrave in "Snow White").

Faerie Tale Theatre is a gem, a jewel, of a series. They are wonderful for children, but make sure the adults in the family watch them also. My personal favorite is The Frog Prince with Robin Williams and Teri Garr. Teri Garr has best line in the show: "I didn't turn down all those princes to shack up with a frog". Although The Frog Prince is my favorite, others are wonderful to. Mick Jagger is remarkably good Emperor in The Nightingale. Lee Remick is unbelievably beautiful as The Snow Queen. The Three Pigs has Jeff Goldblum as the Big Bad Wolf with Billy Crystal as the responsible pig brother. The prize goes to Valerie Perrine as a lady pig (not in the original story) that would have Miss Piggy eating her heart out. Joan Collins is the wicked step-mother and the wicked witch in Hansel and Gretal and she was never more wicked. Shelley Duval has created a masterpiece in this series. If we could vote on a series I would give it a 10/10. Even if you don't have any children, please try at least one. It will be your first but not your last.

I grew up enraptured of FAERIE TALE THEATRE. My sister and I would watch them and then act them out later playing dress-up. We even went as far as re-enacting the publicity ad where Shelley Duvall (God bless her for coming up with the idea for this show!!!) would sit on the PRINCESS AND THE PEA set surrounded by hundreds of old antique books and introduce several different episodes of this timeless series. My favorites would have to be (1) LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD (2) THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA and (3) GOLDILOCKS AND THE THREE BEARS. Others are THE THREE LITTLE PIGS, SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS, Cinderella, RAPUNZEL, THE DANCING PRINCESSES and THE LITTLE MERMAID. Malcolm McDowell as the Wolf in RED RIDING HOOD, Vanessa Redgrave as the evil queen in SNOW WHITE, Eve Arden as the Stepmother, Karen Black as the Sea Witch and Gena Rowlands as the Witch in RAPUNZEL are by far the best portrayals. And, miracle of miracles, they are FINALLY AVAILABLE ON DVD!!!! Praise Jesus!!!! Check them out at unbelievably discounted prices of just $6.98 each @starmaker2.com and amazon.com at the same price! This is truly a series that all can enjoy no matter what your age is.

It is very easy to see why 'Faerie Tale Theatre' is so highly regarded by many people. It is not a perfect series, with some imperfections here and there in individual episodes, but there is a huge amount to like and it is difficult not to get any enjoyment out of them.

As seen in all my reviews of the individual episodes, which goes into a good amount of detail as what worked in the episode and what didn't quite. Many of their adaptations of various well-known and well-loved fairy tales are charming, clever and sometimes funny, a few even emotionally moving. 'Faerie Tale Theatre' puts its own magical spin (whether playing for laughs or straight) on the best of the episodes while still capturing the essence of the stories (much more faithful than anything by Disney, speaking as a fan), while also giving further enjoyment in seeing talented performers in early roles or in roles that are departures from their usual roles.

Favourite episodes of 'Faerie Tale Theatre' are-: "Hansel and Gretel", "The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers", "The Princess and the Pea", "The Three Little Pigs", "The Snow Queen", "Rumpelstiltskin", "The Pied Piper of Hamelin", "Little Red Riding Hood", "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", "The Dancing Princesses" and "Cinderella".

Least favourite episodes, while still not bad at all are "Rip Van Winkle" (the worst looking and scripted of the series) and "The Princess Who Had Never Laughed". Other lesser episodes, though there is not a misfire in the whole of 'Faerie Tale Theatre', are-: "Puss in Boots", "Pinocchio", "Beauty and the Beast", "The Nightingale" and "Jack and the Beanstalk".

Visually, mostly 'Faerie Tale Theatre' does well with its low budget. Episodes that actually look good are in particular "The Snow Queen", "Hansel and Gretel", "Little Red Riding Hood", "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" and "Cinderella". There are a few episodes that don't fare so well, particularly "Rip Van Winkle", the toads in "Thumbelina", the effects in "The Little Mermaid", the ghoulish make-up in "The Nightingale" and the cow and the giant in "Jack and the Beanstalk".

Throughout the whole series the music is great, apart from the random and misplaced mole's song in "Thumbelina". Shelley Duval does wonders with the introductions and proves that she wasn't that bad an actress, especially in "Rumpelstiltskin".

Really enjoyed the writing on the most part, with the few exceptions being "Rip Van Winkle" and some overdone innuendo in "Sleeping Beauty". Some episodes are very funny, especially "The Three Little Pigs", "The Frog Prince", "Goldilocks and the Three Bears", "The Emperor's New Clothes" and "Little Red Riding Hood", while there are darker toned ones like "The Snow Queen", "Snow White", "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" and "The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers" as well as some poignant ones like "The Snow Queen" and "The Little Mermaid".

Most of the acting is great. Highlights are Robin Williams, Herve Villechaize, Malcolm McDowell, Burgess Meredith, Klaus Kinski, Vanessa Redgrave, Vincent Price, Christopher Lee, James Earl Jones, Leonard Nimoy, Jean Stapleton, Joan Collins, Jeff Goldblum, Lesley Ann Warren and Lee Remick.

A few didn't work so well for me. They were Paul Reubens, Elliot Gould, Brock Peters, Matthew Broderick, Robert Carradine, Edward James Olmos and the waste of Anjelica Huston in "Beauty and the Beast".

Check out the greatest moments/reunion episode "Grimm Party". That is entertaining and has a nice invented story.

Overall, flawed but still timeless. 8/10 Bethany Cox

"Faerie Tale Theatre" is a series of fifty-minute adaptations of some of the most famous fairy-tales, starring established actors and celebrities in a variety of whimsical roles: Robin Williams as the Frog Prince, Mick Jagger as the Emperor in "The Nightingale", Vanessa Redgrave as the Queen in "Snow White" and Susan Sarandon as the beauty who fell for a beast. Made during the 80s, they have stood the test of time fairly well, even if their soft video appearance and somewhat cheesy electronic scores seem a bit hard to swallow for some nowadays. There are indeed a few things to raise a few eyebrows about ("Pinocchio" is a bit of a muddled affair, "Beauty and the Beast" essentially plagiarises Jean Cocteau's 1946 version of the story), but the episodes are more faithful to the original stories than many of their counterparts are, especially the ones that were adapted a few years later by Disney ("The Little Mermaid", "Aladdin").

The "theatre" of the title is quite accurate, as most episodes have quite a theatrical nature to them in terms of effects, costume and sets, yet this doesn't do much disservice to the series. The writing does not seem aimed at any specific audience, and the result is a series that doesn't talk down to anyone. While the series may lack overall the enchanting polish and majesty of the Disney animated films or other major film productions, it provides an interesting and relatively faithful group of fairy-tale films. Recommended for the young and young-at-heart.