Bedknobs and Broomsticks
First screened in December 2024
Director: Robert Stevenson, with animation direction by Ward Kimball. Cast: Angela Lansbury, David Tomlinson, Roy Snart, Ian Weighill, Cindy O'Callaghan, Tessie O'Shea, Roddy McDowall, Sam Jaffe, Bruce Forsyth, John Ericson, Reginald Owen, Rick Traeger, Manfred Lating. Screenplay: Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi (based on the novel by Mary Norton), with animation story by Ralph Wright and Ted Berman.

   
Photo © 1971
In Brief: Assiduous aping of the Mary Poppins template only exacerbates how tuneless and, well, unmagical this is.

VOR: ②  The effects team and the animators might disagree, but there's little fresh or original here. Another beached whale of most-Von Trapp musicals.

Grade: C–

Academy Award Nominations and Winners:
Best Art Direction–Set Decoration: John B. Mansbridge, Peter Ellenshaw, Emile Kuri, and Hal Gausman
Best Costume Design: Bill Thomas
Best Scoring Adaptation and Original Song Score: Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman, and Irwin Kostal
Best Original Song: "The Age of Not Believing"
★Best Visual Effects: Alan Maley, Eustace Lycett, and Danny Lee

Golden Globe Nominations:
Best Actress (Musical/Comedy): Angela Lansbury
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