List Price: $19.99 Our Price: $15.99YOU SAVE $4!
Buy it
DVD Darby O'Gill and the Little People
Purportedly one of Walt Disney's most personal pet projects, Darby O'Gill shows the effort and care put into it. Even now the special effects hold up shockingly well. Darby O'Gill is an estate caretaker, but in his advanced years he's more fond of telling tall tales in the local pub about the wee folk than keeping the grounds. A new man (a very youthful Sean Connery) is sent in to take his place, and O'Gill doesn't know what will become of himself and his daughter. He snags three spectacular opportunities, however, when he catches the king of the leprechauns. This film is whimsical without being silly, supernatural without being outlandish, and all and all a treat for the whole family. --Keith Simanton
Disney created a series of excellent movies in the 1950s and the early 1960s, many of them in filmed in Great Britain. One of the best of these movies was this one, starring a very young Sean Connery as Michael McBride, Albert Sharpe in the title role, and Janet Munro as Darby's daughter Katie O'Gill. The movie is somewhat family friendly, though there are a few moments that might be unsuitable for the youngest members of the family.
Darby O'Gill has reached retirement, and Lord Fitzpatrick (Walter Fitzgerald) has decided it is time that Darby be replaced by a younger man, and Michael McBride is his choice. As tends to be Darby's habit of recent years, when Lord Fitzpatrick arrives to give Darby the news Darby is down at the pub telling stories about the king of the Leprechauns.
Darby receives the bad news soon after returning to Lord Fitzpatrick's land. Darby delays telling Katie the bad news; this turns out to be a mistake. The pace of the story picks up rapidly. We learn that Sheelah Segrue (Estelle Winwood), who looks much like a witch, wants to have her bully son Pony Sugrue (Kieran Moore) replace Darby and marry Katie. Sheelah does her best to manipulate events both directly and by pushing her son to discredit Michael.
The highlight of this movie is Darby O'Gill and his encounters with King Brian (Jimmy O'Dea), King of the Leprechauns, and the little people. Darby falls into the underground world of the Leprechauns, and the special effects there are marvelous. In one of the best special effects scenes in the movie we see Darby O'Gill with the little people dancing and later riding horses around him, and yet the scene appears natural without any of the telltale signs that you often see with various project effects.
The story ups the ante when Darby deliberately captures King Brian in order to make his life and that of Katie more secure. In this part of the movie I had to wonder whether the story we heard Darby tell at the beginning of the movie about his encounter with King Brian was true, because Darby is careful and thoughtful with his wishes.
Eventually the movie arrives at a point where the truth must be told, and Katie literally faces death. Darby must make difficult choices if he is to have a chance to save Katie and to have everything come out in the end.
This movie is a rarity, a Disney movie with substantial special effects that has aged well. The use of native Irish actors was a big plus because the accents were real. Albert Sharpe is the centerpiece of this movie, playing Darby O'Gill as though he was Darby. This movie was the next to last movie in which Albert appeared, which is ironic and fitting given that Sean Connery and Janet Munro were both just beginning careers.
What of Mr. Connery, the future James Bond and now one of the best actors in the world? He shows a lot of promise in this movie with his understated performance. I consider both Connery and Munro's performances to be among the best in this movie. Connery also sings a song, and he does fine.
Disney produced a number of good films during Walt Disney's last years. This particular movie was supposedly a personal project of Walt's. I think that this movie is a credit to Walt Disney's creativity and his insistence on quality. I think this DVD release would make Walt Disney proud, particularly the making of feature. Disney liked to charm and delight his audiences, but he also enjoyed revealing secrets, and showing how this charming movie was made would have made him happy. Walt Disney lives on through movies such as these.
A touch O'Blarney and a heap O'Magic
In a small Irish village, Darby O'Gill tells tall tales of leprechauns and banshees in the local pub. Many of the whipper-snappers think his stories are pure blarney, but the elders listen beyond his rough brogue and take it as truth, and in the end, they are right. Throughout Darby's life, he has had several run-ins with "Brian Connors" (King of the Leprachauns), but has always lost out on the promised treasures through lapses in wit. But now, with Darby threatened in losing his job, and the home he shares with his daughter, it is more important than ever that Darby get that pot of gold.
Walt Disney was always enamored with the Darby O'Gill stories and this was definitely one of his pet projects. He began to talk up the film almost ten years before it was completed. When it was done, it paid valiant homage to the Irish culture and gave special effects that are still mesmerizing.
Albert Sharpe is brilliant as Darby. His characterization is so real, it feels autobiographical. Janet Munro plays his spunky beautiful daughter Katie. But it is the appearance of a young, singing Sean Connery that gets the film its most notoriety.
Released in 1959, the forced perspective special effects would pass muster even today: the scenes with Darby frolicking with the leprechauns is a work of art. Other optical effects, like the banshee and the death coach are much more dated, but remain quaint and enjoyable. Add a simple musical score by Oliver Wallace and sturdy direction by Disney veteran Robert Stevenson and you've struck gold.
Now, this film does have a drawback in its linguistics. The production avoids "Americanizing" the Irish accents and at times, it is difficult for the ear to process everything. Fortunately this DVD has subtitles. And what a DVD it is! Although it looks like one of the `bare bones' Disney releases, it's not so. Cropped slightly from 1.75:1 to 1.33:1, the image fills the screen with no black bars on a standard television. But it is a short on Sean Connery and a study of the films optical effects that are worthy of more expensive releases. So don't avoid it any longer!
In typical Walt Disney fashion, he promoted the film as if they had actual leprechauns in the film, giving no on-screen credit to any of the little people performances. The film instead opens with:
"My thanks to King Brian of Knocknasheega and his Leprechauns, whose gracious co-operation made this picture possible. - Walt Disney"
Darby O'Gill
A very enjoyable movie I had not seen in a long time. Great family entertainment. There had been some discussion about the dialogue being original and difficult to understand so they overdubbed later versions. I am glad it was kept original as it added charm to this movie and it was not difficult at all to understand, in fact I had no problems with it. Do not worry about the "mono" soundtract as I have a surround system and I did not mind it, sounded fine to me, again I was glad it was kept original. For the Sean Connery fan this is a must, just a fun movie that will keep you entertained. *****
The Gnome Mobile is a cute movie and stars Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber the children who played Jane and Michael Banks in Mary Poppins. They are again playing a sister and brother but this time they are named Elizabeth and Rodney who go to California to visit their wealthy grandfather D.B. Mulrooney who is played by Walter Brennen who also plays one of the gnomes who Elizabeth and Rodney discover in a forest. The Great cast also includes Ed Wynn, Richard Deacon, Ellen Corby and Tom Lowell and I highly recommend this movie! This is a 5 star movie but I'm very disappointed that it's a pan and scan DVD and not widescreen! More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Walter Brennan - Matthew Garber - Karen Dotrice Director(s): Robert Stevenson DVD Release Date: Released the 02 March 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.99 Your Price: $15.99YOU SAVE $4!
Buy it
A beloved tabby cat becomes the catalyst for healing and hope between a young girl and her widowed father in Disney's 1964 classic, based on the enchanting fable by Paul Gallico. Set in the Scottish highlands in 1912, the story focuses on Andrew MacDhui (Patrick McGoohan) a veterinarian who, after the death of his wife, has closed his heart to goodness and empathy-- toward his animal patients and his only child. Left essentially an orphan, Mary (Karen Dotrice) finds love from her cat, Thomasina, until a tragedy injures the cat and her father orders it to be killed. A tenderhearted maiden (Susan Hampshire) finds Thomasina, detects a heartbeat, and nurses the feline back to health. Her healing powers eventually move beyond the animal kingdom into the lives of MacDhui and Mary. The stellar... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Don Chaffey DVD Release Date: Released the 06 July 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.99 Your Price: $15.99YOU SAVE $4!
Buy it
In Search of the Castaways was Hayley Mills's third feature for Disney, an agreeable adventure--loosely based on a Jules Verne story--with enough derring-do to make kids happy and with the right touch of self-conscious silliness to keep adults smiling. Mills plays Mary Grant, a missing freighter captain's daughter convinced her father is still alive somewhere in Earth's southern hemisphere. With the help of her brother (Keith Hamshire) and a veteran seaman (an extremely unlikely if charming Maurice Chevalier), Mary convinces a shipping magnate, Lord Glenarvan (Wilfrid Hyde-White), to set sail and find the missing Captain Grant. The team survives freezing weather, avalanches, a menacing condor, an active volcano, Maori captors, and a plot by a slick George Sanders to steal a ship.... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Maurice Chevalier - Hayley Mills - George Sanders Director(s): Robert Stevenson DVD Release Date: Released the 03 May 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.99 Your Price: $17.99YOU SAVE $2!
Buy it
When a Great Dane puppy is raised with a litter of Dachshunds, it naturally thinks it's a Dachshund too--even when it grows to 10 times the size. Dean Jones and Suzanne Pleshette star as the hapless couple who took in the galumphing dog, which wreaks havoc on their house and home. The Ugly Dachshund is mostly a series of spectacular disasters (the doggy demolition of Jones's art studio will delight kids and reduce adults to nervous wrecks), but it's held together by the convincing domestic banter of Jones and Pleshette (who was quite a dish in 1965); the pair went on to star in a couple of other Disney live-action flicks, Bluebeard's Ghost and The Shaggy D.A.. Despite some racial and gender stereotypes, it's a good-natured and amusing movie in the Disney... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Dean Jones - Suzanne Pleshette Director(s): Norman Tokar DVD Release Date: Released the 06 July 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.99 Your Price: $15.99YOU SAVE $4!
Buy it
This classic 1963 Disney film features child icon Hayley Mills as Nancy Carey, a teenage girl whose family moves from Boston to the New England countryside as a result of their father's untimely passing. Nancy writes to the kindly Mr. Poppem (Burl Ives) and single-handedly convinces him to rent the family a charming, if run-down, house for a mere $60 a year. Ever the optimist, Nancy brims with excitement at the family's new life, but this "perfect world" has its problems--notably an absentee landlord who knows nothing about the Carey family's rental agreement. Through hard work and Mr. Poppem's continuing generosity, the Careys fix up the house and find life in the rural Maine town quite satisfactory. Things become tense when their cousin Julia arrives for an... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Hayley Mills - Dorothy McGuire Director(s): James Neilson DVD Release Date: Released the 03 May 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
List Price: $19.99 Your Price: $15.99YOU SAVE $4!
Buy it
