Writers: Dr. Seuss, Allan Scott
Composers: Friedrich Hollaender, Heinz Roemheld, Hans J. Salter
Starring: Peter Lind Hayes, Mary Healy, Hans Conried, Tommy Rettig, Jack Heasley, Robert Heasley, Noel Cravat
More info: IMDb
Tagline: Bringing a new dimension of screen entertainment! The first musical Wonderama!
Plot: A young boy travels to an imaginary world where, assisted by his family's plumber, he must save other piano playing kids like himself from the dungeons of his dictatorial piano teacher who also mind-controls his mother.
My rating: 5.5/10
Will I watch it again? No.
It looks like this is the only feature Dr. Seuss wrote and I can see why. I read that after test screenings, lots of scenes and songs were scrapped and more were written and shot for the finished product. I haven't a clue as to what was cut but if this is what they were happy with then what the hell did they want in the first place? It doesn't take long at all after the opening credits before we're in Bart's vivid imagination, and there's no doubt from the look and feel of the picture that this is from the fertile, creative mind of Dr. Seuss. I'm guessing the target audience would've been children 8 and under, something the family could go to without the fear of seeing boobs or something scandalous. The sets are colorful, minimal and strange. The songs, and there are a lot of songs, aren't memorable enough to walk out of the theater humming. I can't think of a single tune. Maybe it's because there are so many. I can't think of any way to make this better. It feels low budget but it doesn't look it. Those sets don't build themselves. I was bored but the colorful visuals and constant sound kept me from nodding off.
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