O Flautista Mágico

it remains, after more than a half of century, surprising. and charming. and seductive. and nice. a family film from 1957. with the traces of the period sensibility, songs and love story. an old legend in decent adaptation. as vehicle for an useful state of soul. this is it . nothing less. good performances, seductive, dramatic and poetic. and real special.

I just wanted to correct the last reviewer. There were indeed color Televisions in 1957. In fact RCA introduced color TVs for the home in 1954. This TV movie was filmed in Technicolor and shown originally on NBC, a network that pioneered color (remember the Peacock?). It was made with every intent of its being seen in COLOR. Though I'm sure the producers wanted it to look good in b&w as well, it was a color film. And the colors in The Pied Piper '57 are no more garish than many other lesser-known Technicolor "extravaganzas." If producers back in those days were gonna pay for color, we by gum they was gonna use the hell out of it! Anyway, this is one weird ass film! Catch this and the Wizard of Oz double feature from Something Weird, and you've got some goooood Kid movie watchin'!

I saw this movie on TV when it first came on (I was about 5) and it ranked right up there with Cole Porter's ALADDIN as an immediate favorite. I remember having the record album (which had expanded versions of some of the Grieg songs, including the WEDDING DAY AT TROLDHAUGEN, a wonderful piano piece adapted for the mounting of the gold chimes that the corrupt mayor - Claude Rains - had fashioned by melting down the guilders in the town treasury!) When I was in high school I saw this film again and tracked down the Grieg selections which are not just from the Peer Gynt Suites as another commenter wrote but spanned the Piano Concerto - which became one of my favorites as a result - the above mentioned "WEDDING DAY", and many of the sections of the Peer Gynt Suites as well.

While today I see the tremendous limitations of this film and would not expect today's children to suspend their belief and enter this world like I did when I first saw it, it had a real effect on me and I'm glad to be able to see it again from time to time. I don't see Kay Starr's lament to the tune of Ase's Death as a "torch song" as suggested by an earlier commenter...I remember seeing this again, as a young teenager in the mid-60's and being very moved by that song, sung after the piper lured the children into the mountain. (I also remember how MAD I was once when it was shown on New York local TV and the song - and ONLY that song - was CUT).

Now, I see the complete lack of credibility of the ending - not only did the children come home, but the corrupt mayor was deposed in favor of the forthright school master, played in a double role by Van Johnson who also was the Piper - and then joined in the resultant gaiety by playing a tune from the Piper's flute instead of being hauled off in CHAINS like one would expect...oh well.

Perhaps there is one five, six or seven-year-old who will see and hear this and it will spark his curiosity and interest as it did mine. Given the jaded nature of today's youth, mixed with the decidedly dated nature of this as a movie and a musical, I'm not holding my breath. Still, it joins "THE MUSIC MAN" (the ORIGINAL with Robert Preston) and the Alastair Sim "CHRISTMAS CAROL" as one of my three childhood favorite movies.

You can't judge a 1957 TV special by 21st century standards. I saw and loved this when it was first shown, and still love it today, as does my son. Yes, there are slow points, but you've got to remember that this is family fare, so there was a love story to interest the parents along with the magical story to entertain the kiddies. Yes, some of the lyrics could be better, but do we really know what time constraints may have been dogging the creators? I have no problem with Kay Starr's song lamenting the disappearance of her son; it's set to 'Asa's Death' from 'Peer Gynt', so the melody is most appropriate. Maybe the colors are garish; as has been pointed out, that was to make the grey-scale diverse enough to have distinct shades.

Like so many dramatic actors, Claude Rains surprised audiences who never realized he had such a good singing voice. In addition, Doodles Weaver (of Spike Jones fame) and Stanley Adams (Cyrano Jones in 'The Trouble with Tribbles') play off each other beautifully. Van Johnson does a lovely job in his dual roles as Truson and the Piper. My favorite moments are the opening, with the Piper slithering down the tree like a snake, and the song 'Prestige' - 'Prestige is the dinner they give you for fun, which they wouldn't have done when you really needed one.' Very clever lyric, that.

Yes, the screenwriters added a happy ending. This was, after all, a family show. Besides, it nicely pointed up the moral and showed that people can repent of poor behavior and become better people.

Do not believe bad reviews of this movie! I have loved it for as long as I remember. The symphonic music that the last review stupidly criticized is lovely pieces by genius composer Edvard Grieg. I still get chills when Van Johnson sings a song boasting of his accomplishments, with the Grieg piece Anitra's dance as the melody. Plus Claude Rains sings! This movie has great songs, great sets, great costumes, and is fun for everybody. I would recommend this movie to anyone who likes the story of the pied piper, or those who like musicals. It is a gorgeous movie. It has a perfect cast. I rate this a 10.

Geoffrey K.