Based on the beloved children's novel by E. B. White, this is the story of a little pig named Wilbur who was born a runt. Mr. Arable decides to kill him for dinner food, but his daughter Fern begs him to let him live. On greater maturity, Wilbur is sold to Fern's uncle, Homer. Zuckerman, in whose barnyard he's left yearning for friendship, but is snubbed by other barn animals. Wilbur is scared of the end of the season, because he knows that come that time, he will end up on the dinner table. He hatches a plan with Charlotte, a gentle and wise spider that lives in his pen, to ensure that this will never happen.
Many say that the book is better and in the case they're right, but this movie is easy to like, and if you were a kid growing up perhaps in the last decade of the last century, you were easily able to find this in your local video store, like I did. This movie had a moderate success at the box office but it was kind of overlooked until the early 1990's when the film had been re-released on home video and sales grew that apparently the film even would get a sequel and a live-action remake in the early 2000's.
Though it is a fair adaptation of the book, it does however become much like a Disney film with the characters able to sing and have likable personalities, as well as celebrities voicing the characters as well. Debbie Reynolds is perfect as Charlotte, a warm and loving spider that saves Wilbur, voiced by Henry Gibson who has several on-screen and voice-acting roles, including the Nazi from Blues Brothers, and the evil doctor from the Tom and Jerry movie, but I think this is his best work. Templeton the rat is voiced by always hilarious Paul Lynde best known for his Uncle Arthur from Bewitched. You also have the goose, the ram and the gosling Geoffrey that are the supporting farm animals, and you have the human characters including Fern, Mr. And Mrs. Arable, Fern's brother Avery and her boyfriend Henry Fussy, plus Homer Zuckerman and Lurvy who are pretty likable.
The songs in this were from the good old Sherman Brothers who gave us some of the best Disney songs from the 1960's and early 1970's and like I said they make this almost a Disney musical through the animation is from Hanna-Barbera, and you know that Hanna-Barbera don't have the best animation out there, but it still looks good for what they had to work with. Not the best animation or songs but they are very serviceable. The story is pretty much a straight-forward one but it does capture that will to live and be very thankful you have friends that will protect you when you are a animal that is known for becoming part of everyday meals.
But on the whole, Charlotte's Web is a great example of how you can adopt a kid's book and get the same exact message right. A few liberties are taken like the catchy songs by the Sherman Brothers, some okay animation from Hanna-Barbera and plenty of memorable characters. This is the first film adaptation of the book and the only one made when E. B. White was alive. He basically didn't like the adaptation, and not another adaptation of his work was released until 1999 when the live-action Stuart Little was released. I highly encourage you to check out Charlotte's Web if you haven't seen it already, but also read the book if you haven't done so.
7.5/10.
Many say that the book is better and in the case they're right, but this movie is easy to like, and if you were a kid growing up perhaps in the last decade of the last century, you were easily able to find this in your local video store, like I did. This movie had a moderate success at the box office but it was kind of overlooked until the early 1990's when the film had been re-released on home video and sales grew that apparently the film even would get a sequel and a live-action remake in the early 2000's.
Though it is a fair adaptation of the book, it does however become much like a Disney film with the characters able to sing and have likable personalities, as well as celebrities voicing the characters as well. Debbie Reynolds is perfect as Charlotte, a warm and loving spider that saves Wilbur, voiced by Henry Gibson who has several on-screen and voice-acting roles, including the Nazi from Blues Brothers, and the evil doctor from the Tom and Jerry movie, but I think this is his best work. Templeton the rat is voiced by always hilarious Paul Lynde best known for his Uncle Arthur from Bewitched. You also have the goose, the ram and the gosling Geoffrey that are the supporting farm animals, and you have the human characters including Fern, Mr. And Mrs. Arable, Fern's brother Avery and her boyfriend Henry Fussy, plus Homer Zuckerman and Lurvy who are pretty likable.
The songs in this were from the good old Sherman Brothers who gave us some of the best Disney songs from the 1960's and early 1970's and like I said they make this almost a Disney musical through the animation is from Hanna-Barbera, and you know that Hanna-Barbera don't have the best animation out there, but it still looks good for what they had to work with. Not the best animation or songs but they are very serviceable. The story is pretty much a straight-forward one but it does capture that will to live and be very thankful you have friends that will protect you when you are a animal that is known for becoming part of everyday meals.
But on the whole, Charlotte's Web is a great example of how you can adopt a kid's book and get the same exact message right. A few liberties are taken like the catchy songs by the Sherman Brothers, some okay animation from Hanna-Barbera and plenty of memorable characters. This is the first film adaptation of the book and the only one made when E. B. White was alive. He basically didn't like the adaptation, and not another adaptation of his work was released until 1999 when the live-action Stuart Little was released. I highly encourage you to check out Charlotte's Web if you haven't seen it already, but also read the book if you haven't done so.
7.5/10.