Gumby 1

As a kid, I always enjoyed how creative Gumby had his adventures on the TV show. So much of it was just for pure fun. When I finally heard that there had been a movie released, I was super excited. And none to my surprise, Gumby: The Movie rocked my world. For any Gumby fan, this movie will be a great hit. Everything in this movie is kept the same and even includes some cultural references.

Director Art Clokey, who directs his final Gumby film, has done a magnificent job. Dal McKennon is back as good old Gumby and several other characters. Even Art Clokey is Prickle and some other roles. All the animation is done by clay; how else would a Gumby film be done?! Most of the comedic parts are watching the silent Blockheads fight with each other. They're always doing something foolish.

The effects are great in this movie. Since stop motion cinematography allows you to make a special effect over time, much of the creations that are made are really quite stunning. This movie BARELY uses CGI for any part of the film. It's things like these that bring the viewer back to the time where CGI wasn't used very often and was only used if it was available. Now almost if not every movie studio uses CGI for anything they want and its gets tiresome to see the same effects used over and over again. Claymation is a sorely missed special effect that is now extinct in the movie making business at least from what I see now.

The music, which was composed by Jerry Gerber, is great listening to. Because this movie uses dated effects, it's great to hear music that belongs from the same era. Unfortunately, the soundtrack to this film is inaccessible. I get flustered over that but it's still good that it used in the movie thank heaven. What's also great to see are the cultural references in this film. The Blockheads make robot duplicates of the main characters; sounds a little like The Terminator (1984). Another scene where Gumby fights his robotic clone with a light saber. Need to say more?

As the last film made by Art Clokey, Gumby: The Movie will please its fans and may gain interest in others who are not familiar with Gumby. For anyone who has never seen claymation at its best, this is it.

When I was around ten years old, I watched some episodes of "The Gumby Show" on video. Since I liked what I saw, I then watched this full-length feature, which came nearly four decades after the birth of the stop-motion character's original TV show. "Gumby: The Movie" was not a disappointment for me, and the first time I watched it during my childhood wasn't my last. I have watched it again three times, I think all within the past year, and thought it was pretty good the first couple times, but it went slightly downhill for me with my latest viewing. While I watched "Gumby: The Movie" last night, I wasn't quite as impressed.

In this movie, Gumby is a member of a rock band called the Clayboys. The band has a studio on a farm, where they rehearse. As the band are on their way to their studio, along with Gumby's friends (Pokey, Goo, and Prickle), they learn that farmers are about to lose their homes, due to the fact that they cannot pay their debts. The Clayboys decide to hold a benefit concert for these troubled farmers. Unfortunately, the evil Blockheads, the ones who delivered the letters to the farmers, informing them of the bad news, are at the concert. When these two notice Gumby's dog, Lowbelly, crying pearls, they begin to record the music. After the show, the Blockheads kidnap Lowbelly, so they can play the recording they have of the Clayboys' music, and have him cry more pearls so they can get rich! However, they discover that Lowbelly will only cry pearls when he hears the music live, so the two villains now intend to kidnap the band members as well!

"Gumby: The Movie" may have more for kids than for adults, but it's not strictly for kids. During previous recent viewings, I certainly wasn't blown away, but thought it reasonably entertaining, with some mild excitement, an occasional funny scene (such as the clumsy robot waiter in the café), and some interesting places the characters find themselves in when they enter books. When I last watched the film, I was entertained by these things for a while, but eventually, I found that it got tiring. I also found that some of the voice-overs are poor, although most of them are alright. I don't know, maybe I have now seen it too many times. However, since I liked the film more during previous viewings, and enjoyed a bit of it this time, I have to give it credit, and do recommend it for stop-motion fans of all ages. You just might not want to expect a masterpiece.

Gumby: The Movie

Claymation is typically a family run business on account it takes generations to film 8 minutes.

In fact, it took animators 36 years to make this 90-minute stop-motion feature film.

Lead singer and guitarist Gumby, his equine friend Pokey, and they rest of their rock band The Clayboys hold a benefit concert for their farmer friends who are being evicted by Blockhead E-Z Loan for missed mortgage payments.

During the showcase, the Blockheads kidnap Gumby's dog and then replace Gumby and his band mates with robotic replicas that wreck havoc around town.

Released in 1995, forty-years after the clay character debuted on Howdy Doody, this anniversary feature film has the low budget, retro feel of the original shorts. While the mortgage crisis plotline is advanced for younger viewers, the madcap supporting cast keeps everything loosey goosey.

And remember: always put Gumby back in his container or he'll harden and fragment. Yellow Light

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The characters are timeless, But this movie is way too long. It should be more executed and simple to for kids. The acting needs work.

This movie is the most genious thing I've ever seen. My majors are philiosphy and english, and this is the most intelligent piece of film I've ever had the pleasure of watching. First, it has many layers. Layers upon layer upon layer. It starts as a comment on the American Dream, and slowly creeps into the downfall of Western Civilization as we know it. I was glued to my 52" Plasma tv, I wanted to see up a contraption like in "A Clockwork Orange" so I wouldn't have to blink, in fear of I'd miss a second. When this movie was over, I watched it again the next afternoon. This took the next 3 days of classes off just to let it sink in. I was truly amazed. It made me question the Government, my life, my family, my religion, and everything I held dear and belived it. It was a life changing experience.

If you don't watch "Gumby : The Movie" you'll be chating yourself. See it ... see it now