Stars: 4 out of 5
Pros: Fun. Great
second half
Cons: First half a
little slow
The Bottom Line:
Frosty the Snowman
Is great for kids. Make
it an
Annual event
A Magic Hat and a Living Snowman
Ever year growing up, I watched a handful of Christmas
specials. It just wasn't the same
without them. Over the years, I've
managed to buy all of them but one. For
some reason, I never got around to getting Frosty the Snowman. I was recently given a set with this special
in it, and it was nice to reconnect with an old friend.
This half hour animated show follows the adventures of
Frosty the Snowman (voiced by Jackie Vernon).
The story opens at a school on Christmas Eve. The kids are ready to go for Christmas,
especially since a new snow if falling, so they are hardly paying attention to
magician "Professor" Hinkle (Billy De Wolfe).
When they are finally free to go, they build a snowman. As a finishing touch, they put Hinkle's hat
on the snowman's head. And thus Frosty
comes to life. But his life is
immediately in jeopardy since Hinkle wants his hat back and the temperatures
are warming up. Will Frosty find a place
where he can stay alive peacefully?
Oh what great memories I get while watching this short. The story is actually rather simple, but I
always got caught up in it all over again as a kid. As an adult, I must admit I find the first
part rather slow going. They recreate
the song (sung by narrator Jimmy Durante).
It was fun as a kid watching him walk through town. Now, I just want him to get in danger. I also have to wonder about Karen, the kid in
the story, who just sets off to the North Pole with Frosty on a whim. But the kid in me screams that this is a
kid's cartoon - stop over analyzing things.
The animation works, but it isn't top notch. This was low budget work from the
1960's. There are more noticeable jerks
and pumps at times as the characters move.
And everyone is a caricature instead of trying for a real animated
human. Even as an adult, I don't mind
that at all. If the animation were
perfect, it wouldn't be Frosty.
Likewise, the voice acting is fine but nothing special. Then again, the story doesn't really call for
big acting range. It's just a simple
story with simple characters.
Once the story gets into the second half, things really heat
up. The magician makes a perfect
villain. He's menacing enough to be
taken seriously while still silly enough not to scare kids. I scared easily as a kid, and I never once
had a problem with this story.
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