The Tales of Beatrix Potter

1971

Comedy / Family / Fantasy / Musical

5
IMDb Rating 6.7/10 10 678 678

ballet

Plot summary

The Royal Ballet Company brings Squirrel Nutkin, Tom Thumb, Hunca Munca, Jemima Puddle-Duck, Jeremy Fisher, Pigling Bland, and Pigwig to the screen doing pirouettes and pas de deux in this filmed ballet production directed by Reginald Mills. The film more properly belongs, however, to choreographer Frederick Ashmore, composer John Lanchbery, and costume designer Rostislav Douboujinsky. This literal adaptation concerns the shy Beatrix Potter and how, when all of the toy animals in her room come to life, she emerges from her shell and begins to enjoy life. Sequences include a rowdy dance with Tom Thumb and Hunca Munca destroying a collection of plaster food, a midnight pas de deux between Pigling Bland and Pigwig, and a corps de ballet of dancing mice.

Director

Reginald Mills Photo
Reginald Mills

Top cast

Brenda Last Photo
Brenda Last as Black Berkshire Pig
Avril Bergen Photo
Avril Bergen as Pig / Town Mouse
Carol Ainsworth Photo
Carol Ainsworth as Squirrel / Country Mouse
Jill Cooke Photo
Jill Cooke as Squirrel / Country Mouse
720p.BLU 1080p.BLU
824.01 MB
1194*720
English 2.0
NR
24 fps
1 hr 29 min
Seeds 6
1.49 GB
1792*1080
English 2.0
NR
24 fps
1 hr 29 min
Seeds 10

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by Leofwine_draca 8 / 10

Heartwarming

Reviewed by lucyrfisher 8 / 10

Stunning

The costumes are amazing recreations of Beatrix Potter's characters. High points are Jeremy Fisher and the mice destroying the dolls' house. Squirrel Nutkin is pretty good too. The dancing is fantastic. And there's no CGI, Jemima is flying on a wire. And the dancers are neither slowed down nor speeded up. Their flying leaps are real! (I've always felt Jeremy Fisher was a distant cousin.)There are hints of danger with the cat looking down the mousehole, the silent, blinking owl, and the strings of sausages that give the game away. The stories are much, MUCH darker! I'm glad no rats featured, and the pike that nearly gets Jeremy is a mere shadow.Only flaw - it goes on just a bit too long, and the pastiche music gets a bit samey.
Reviewed by TheLittleSongbird 10 / 10

This promised to be a charming ballet film, and it definitely IS!

This was an absolute delight from start to finish. The choreography was fantastic, as always with the great Frederick Ashton, who himself appears as Mrs Tiggy Winkle. The music was just outstanding, with some elements of Tchaikovsky, some elements of french opera buffe, and some elements of pure English lyricalism, all of which are needed to make a charming ballet production work. I was amazed by the production values, the costumes and scenery were so beautifully designed by Christine Edzard, the whole thing was exquisite to look at. The dancers like Wayne Sleep, Lesley Collier and Alexander Grant brought their charming characters to life through their faultless dancing. My personal favourite was Jemima Puddle Duck flying through the air to the very Swan Lake finale-like music. The mice dance was really charming, in possibly the best known segment of the whole production. I grew up treasuring the stories from Beatrix Potter, and I thought this gave them justice. Another thing that impressed me was the contrast of reality and the imagination, people complained of the Beatrix Potter as a girl bits slowing it down, but as she is only there for about three scenes, I thought it was very effective. All in all, if you love ballet, like I do, and I am 17, and you haven't seen this already, give yourself a treat for an hour and a half. 10/10 Bethany Cox.
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