The following article originally appeared on ScreenInvasion.com:
Children’s entertainment is filled with stories
of kids stumbling in to magical and imaginary lands; one of my favorite
of those lands is the Kingdom of Wisdom from Norton Jester’s literary
masterpiece
The Phantom Tollbooth. While the novel is often essential elementary school reading, legendary Looney Tunes animator
Chuck Jones’s 1970
musical cinematic adaptation has largely existed on the fringe of
popular culture. Filled with clever puns, word play, and literal
interpretations of English language idioms, the experience of reading
The Phantom Tollbooth can
never fully be translated to the medium of film. However, Jones’s
mostly faithful adaptation is an enjoyable and enchanting interpretation
of the beloved material. While my own complete comprehension and
appreciation of the novel came later in life, my love of the tale of
Milo and his eccentric companions is one that began with frequent
rentals of
The Phantom Tollbooth from my local Video Vault.
Bookended by live action segments,
The Phantom Tollbooth was the last release from MGM to feature animation. The film tells the story of Milo (
The Munsters’s
Butch Patrick),
an ambitionless child bored by the world around him who one day comes
home from school to find a miniature tollbooth in his home. Having
nothing better to do, Milo gets in the provided toy car and drives
through the tollbooth into the animated Kingdom of Wisdom, currently in
turmoil due to the kidnapping of the Princesses Rhyme and
Reason. Reluctantly tasked with the duty of rescuing the princesses and
re-uniting the kingdom, Milo is assisted by several colorful characters
along the way including Tock the Watchdog, Humbug, Spelling Bee,
Whether Man, Faintly Macabre, King Azaz, and Awful Dynne. Creatively
evil monsters such as The Terrible Trivium, The Demon of Insincerity,
and Senses Taker attempt to thwart the boy and his companions. Thanks
to his newly-found self-empowerment and a series of gifts he is given
throughout the journey, Milo successfully returns Rhyme and Reason to
restore order in the Kingdom of Wisdom and learns an important life
lesson. Upon returning through the tollbooth, he realizes that the
world he lives in is every bit as magical, interesting, and worth being a
part of as the fantasy land he just left.
Being a Chuck Jones film, the animation and voice acting are first
rate. The original songs and score are exceptional as well. The
Kingdom of Wisdom translates well via the Chuck Jones style.
Mel Blanc (voice of the Looney Tunes),
June Foray (voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel, Cindy Lou Who, Granny), and
Daws Butler (voice
of Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Snagglepuss) lend their exceptional
talents to multiple characters. I think that the reason I connected
quickly to
The Phantom Tollbooth is because: 1) Unlike
Alice in Wonderland or The
Wizard of Oz it
featured a male protagonist. 2) It is a modern fantasy (Milo lives in a
San Francisco apartment) that addresses more modern evils. The
villains are sly, deceptive, and often attractive at first. A sequence
that has always stuck in my mind is when Milo accidentally drives into
the Doldrums where a group of goopy globlins known as Lethargians begin
to sing the life out of Milo, putting him to sleep while slime slowly
consumes him. The scariest part of the film is an encounter with the
faceless, bowler hat wearing, Terrible Trivium, “demon of petty tasks
and worthless jobs, ogre of wasted effort, and friend to lazy and
foolish people everywhere.” I am sure that my disdain for stupid and
pointless jobs, wasted time, and inefficiency stem from this cinematic
moment. Overall, it is an excellent merging of director and source
material.
The Phantom Tollbooth is an fantastic animated
feature definitely worth revisiting, however, the most important thing
about this film is that it paved the way for Jones’s fabulous television
specials of the 1970’s.
While the Looney Tunes will always be Chuck Jones’s legacy and 1966’s
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is
his most popular television special, it is his adaptations in the
1970’s that he himself has said were his favorite. Beautifully animated
and brimming with heart
The Cricket in Times Square (1973),
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi (1975),
The White Seal (1975), and
Mowgli’s Brothers (1976) have always been special to me. There is a timeless classic-ness and classiness about them.
The Cricket in Times Square is based on George Selden’s
Newbery Honor Award winning children’s book of the same name. It is the
story of, Chester, a musically talented cricket from Connecticut who
accidentally winds up in a picnic basket headed to New York, is adopted
by an Italian family who own a failing newsstand, and helps them turn
their business around by giving classical music concerts at the
newsstand. After deciding that he will not be happy unless he returns
to his home, Chester gives an epic final concert that stops all of Times
Square and several New York City blocks while everyone listens to his
music. It is a simple, yet elegant, tale of friendship, the power of
music, and the importance of stopping to appreciate beautiful things in
life. Jones magnificently animated New York cityscapes and
Les Tremayne’stouching voice work as Chester make this a perfect 24-minute family film. Jones wrote and directed two sequels
A Very Merry Cricket (1973) and
Yankee Doodle Cricket (1975). While certainly not bad, the sequels do not come anywhere close to capturing the magic of the original installment.
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi,
The White Seal, and
Mowgli’s Brothers are all adaptation of stories from Rudyard Kipling’s
The Jungle Book. They
are widely considered to be the most faithful screen adaptations of
Kipling’s writing. All three are superb and maintain that classic
literary feel to them. Narration by
Roddy McDowell and
Orson Welles certainly does not hurt. Roddy McDowell narrates
The White Seal, and
Mowgli’s Brothers, but
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi,
narrated by Orson Welles, is the true masterwork of the series. It is
the story of a courageous mongoose, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, who protects a 19
th-century
English family living in India from a pair of cobras planning on
killing the family to take over their garden and make a home for their
unhatched babies. It is a rather serious and frightening tale as Rikki
risks his life several times while graphically destroying the cobras and
their eggs. It is a product of a time when children’s entertainment
could still involve actual threats, danger, and violence. Jones’s
translation of the exotic and enthralling material is impeccable. The
notable score exceptionally highlights the action. It is impossible for
this short film not to make an impression on its viewers; the love for
this film by its fans of all ages is prominent across the
Internet. Unfortunately, it still does not have the cultural prominence
and appreciation that it deserves.
The Phantom Tollbooth and the 70’s TV specials showcase more
mature and artistic aspects of Jones’s talents. It also proves that he
is one of cinemas greatest translators. They are lovingly crafted
timeless family entertainments bursting with heart and essential
additions to any family’s movie collection. You should probably pick
them up from your local video store’s VHS bargain bin or you can find
them on DVD. I’m still waiting on Blu-Ray releases.
The Cricket in Times Square,
A Very Merry Cricket,
Yankee Doodle Cricket, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi,
The White Seal, and
Mowgli’s Brothers can
all be found on one DVD set called “The Chuck Jones Collection.” Maybe
check out these next time you are considering watching
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked. You likely won’t be disappointed.
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