johnstonjames again. i'm always surprised at how well Cannon MovieTales pulls this off. low budget and with little resource, but strangely lavish just the same. and a very complete musical. Cannon MovieTales achieves this by using the same sets and costumes over again for re-use, and they commission music from little recognized composer and musical arranger Stephen Lawrence. more than likely the budget for these films goes to paying the salaries of the numerous name celebrity actors they acquire for their productions.very few young people, at the time this was produced, realized the notability of having a musical at that time that featured veteran talents like Sid Ceasar and Robert Morse singing. Ceasar was a comedy legend and Morse was in 'The Loved One' and originated the Broadway role in 'Suceed in Business' that Daniel Radcliffe is now winning acclaim for currently.Stephen Lawrence's songs are not always the most memorable showtunes written or composed, but they are more ambitious than you would expect for these projects, and more than satisfactorily answer the call of duty.these films also always seem rather lavish for their modest budgets, but anyone who becomes familiar with Cannon MovieTales, knows they compensate by re-using sets and costumes. it's very effective cost cutting. and even though you can see the Date and Palm trees of Israel in the landscapes (these movies are produced there), they effectively convey the European fairy stories they are made to depict.this was a nice production and they provided Ceasar and Morse with a ample amount of song tunes to warble. it was also cute to see Jason Carter here from Jim Henson's 'Storyteller' and the 'Jackanory' children's series.i really enjoy Cannon Movietale's fairy tale tellings. despite their limitations, they create a wonderful world that is faithful to the source, creates a theatrical "movie-like" feeling, and provides a musical version of the age old stories.

Azlan Lewis I give this a 3 because kids can watch this movie without having to worry about it being offensive.While agree it is tough to stretch a five to ten minute fairy tale into a 90 minute production the Cannon/Gollan-Globus group did it.They did so by adding all too forgettable musical numbers.Like all the "Cannon Fairy Tales"(CFT) this one is showing its age from many generations of video to video tape transfer. Colors are muddled if not blurry (this was watched on a Sony 1080p HD TV)and even old black and white shows like Mr. Ed look great)it reminds me getting a copy of a video from a friend after they copied a tape of a broadcast TV show they watched.This CFT is not scary at all unlike CTF's Princess and the Frog, the frog would easily scare a young child. The hair the nobility has is a laugh.Sid Ceasar is the Emperor, and unfortunately with a bad script even he could not save this show. It was common in CFT films to have one major or well known U.S. Actor in it. Like CFT's Hansel & Grettle the major actor was Cloris Leachman as the witch. While these major actors throw themselves into the part these films lacked a good script and other people that could actually perform or act.Many of these films share sets part of Cannon/Gollan-Globus cost saving plans. Many of them are shot in Isreal or other lower cost countries outside of the US.If this is on TV and you need something to occupy younger children, you couldn't go wrong with it but they may get board with it as well.

phillindholm This Cannon Movie Tale is the worst of the lot, and is positive proof that a five minute fable does not a full-length film make. Poor Sid Caesar as the vain emperor, is made to look so stupid, it's hard to watch him. As the sly tailor, Robert Morse hasn't an ounce of charm. Neither does his hapless nephew (Jason Carter) The "songs" are dreadful and only slow what there is of the plot down. The direction is practically nonexistent, and the supporting characters add very little. Lysette Anthony is pretty as the emperor's daughter, but her voice has obviously been dubbed for some reason, a fate shared by many of the minor players. And the film crawls at a snails pace. Hans Christian Andersen must have been turning somersaults in his grave when this appeared. It can honestly be said, at least of this movie tale, it's no surprise that it went straight to video oblivion.

the_shadow_guard Upon the first viewing, I found this tale to be at least less annoying than other Cannon Movie Tales. After many more, I think it's one of the best. Some of the songs are pretty bad, especially the love song, but two things stand out that make the movie, even the singing, worthwhile. One is the art direction. Like the other Cannon Movie Tales, this is a beautifully decorated period piece; every piece of cloth and jewel (both of which have major parts in this movie's plot) look fresh and new, and contrast with the plain clothes of the peasants. Even during the love song I find myself studying the dress and hair of the princess, wonderfully done. The other thing is the comic timing. A lot of the movie is cheesy, but the emperor's vanity (and his making fun of himself in the end), the suspicious guard, the guard chasing Nicholas, and the stupid prince, were all quite funny and seem to be ridiculous quite on purpose. And the sequence during the song Weave-O makes up for the songs that weren't so good.