The Littlest Angel

Like newscat, I was so taken by this film as a small child, that I asked my Dad to make me a wooden box for my treasures.

I found it to be such a moving story;the angel's giving his most treasured possessions to Jesus made a deep impression.

I don't think he knew why I wanted it, but I'm 43 and still have it.

After many years, I'm hoping to find a copy so I can see it again. and to share it with my husband who would be seeing it for the first time.

Yes, I'm sure the production values aren't up to today's standards and that it may look really cheesy. But I'm looking forward to seeing it to relive happy childhood memories.

BEWARE OF FALSE REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE MOVIE. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 200 HOLIDAY FILMS. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM HONEST

This 1969 Hallmark Hall of Fame as an adaption of the beloved children's story. This stars Johnny Whitaker who was best known at the time for playing Jody in the television show "Family Affair". This was most likely shot when "Family Affair" was on hiatus.

In this film an 8 year boy finds out he is now an angel and he isn't too happy about it. He wants to go back home. He misses his mom and dad. He also misses being a shepherd and his little box of treasures he kept under his bed.

This adaption suffers because most of the musical numbers drag it down. The songs are not memorable. There is a minor highlight. We get to see the legendary Cab Calloway leading a heavenly choir.

This film however would have been much better had they just stuck to the story and not turned into a musical. If they wanted a musical then they should of cast a better singer in the lead role. I like JW but his singing is terrible in this film.

Johnny Whitaker however would go in to co-star with Jodie Foster in 2 films. "Napoleon and Samantha" & "Tom Sawyer" which also happens to be a musical and perhaps the film adaption of the classic American Novel.

If you look past the bad songs in this then you will enjoy this. It is however fun to watch to see all the familiar faces in this cast. This is family safe but, most people might get bored watch. Running 79 minutes the film seems to run much longer.

I saw this show in 1969 as a wide eyed little girl anxiously awaiting Christmas. I loved it then and never forgot it as I grew up. Last year I discovered it was available and spared no time or expense in ordering it. What a disappointment! It was painful to watch how cheesy it really is and how little money Hallmark spent on the production. I guess at the age of 8 you are watching through a different set of eyes. I am so sad. I wish I had never ordered it so that my memories of it would still be fond ones. Please, if you enjoyed this show as a child do not watch it now as a grown up. I guess it's true - you can't go back.

aloha

This film brings back a lot of great Christmas memories. Yes, the special effects are dated and the costumes a bit cheesy (it's from the 60's, for Pete's sake, give it a rest!). However, the music is actually good and is still worth listening to (anyone who thinks the music is sappy, perky, etc. probably didn't particularly like any of it in the first place).

I also think it would be great if this particular film could be redone with better special effects/costumes/etc. However, I wouldn't change the music (arrangements) as it really fits the overall mood and message.

I have to admit that looking at it again in later years (I've had a copy of the VHS tape for a long time) there are a few elements about the film that were rather morbid (like the child visiting his parents after his death to get his box and they had no idea that he had actually died).

I suppose everyone has their own take on the film. For me, the overall message and appeal is still there and has made it a Christmas staple for me; it's one of the elements that gets me "in the Christmas spirit". Time seems to go backward and, for a little while, I can remember what it was like to be a child.

For me, "The Littlest Angel" will always be a classic.

I saw it for the first time as a kid in the 1990's at Catholic school, with little knowledge of 1960's television or that it was from that far back, and found it kind of enjoyable, although I felt bad for the kid dying and missing his home. (And I blinked and missed that he fell off a cliff, and thought he had died of exhaustion from climbing the mountain trying to catch the bird). I rewatch it as an adult recently (knowing more about 60's television), and am like, this movie was that old? The angel boy was the kid from 'Family Affair'? The guardian angel was Herman Munster? Also, I'm re-seeing the trippy 60's effects, which went over my head as a kid, and while I didn't see their names anywhere in the credits, if someone told me Sid and Marty Krofft had a hand in production, I would believe them. Overall not a bad movie, with 60's stars.