Babar: The Movie
Encyclopedia
Babar: The Movie is a 1989 drawn-animated film made by Canada's Nelvana
Limited and France's Ellipse Programme
, and distributed by New Line Cinema
. It is based on the characters of Jean de Brunhoff
's eponymous children's books
, and was a follow-up to the first season of the HBO TV series
. This is one of New Line Cinema
's only two animated feature films; the next being 1994's The Swan Princess
.
s. On his first day at Royal Court, the young ruler suggests that Elephantland hold an Annual Parade, but hears that a committee has to be set up before the idea can be approved. Soon after, a girl elephant, Celeste, runs over to tell Babar that her home has been attacked by Rataxes, the rhinoceros
, and his horde. Babar's assistants tell him that the affair cannot be rushed, so he orders an elephant army to defeat the rhinos.
After some days, the army fails to arrive, and Babar tells Arthur, Celeste's brother, to take care of his job as King while he ventures off into Celeste's village to help her mother, amid dangerous jungle
. Coming into the village, he encounters a raid brought forth by the rhinos, who are taking the elephants as slaves so that they can work on Rataxes' empire.
When the enemies have gone, Babar and Celeste set off to rescue the latter's mom, and the other pachyderms, from Rataxes' wrath. Along the way, they meet a monkey
named Zephir, who gives them the location of the rhinos' empire. The two come face to face with Rataxes himself, who plans to invade Babar's kingdom by twilight, and are sent in jail; but they both escape successfully along with Zephir, and begin going back to Elepantland to save it.
Heading into the rhinos' tents, they disguise themselves as one of the warriors, asking for "special detail" of their plans for attack, but to no avail. They get away from Rataxes quickly, launching from a catapult and landing into a fountain, much to the surprise of Babar's advisors.
The evil rhino proclaims Elephantland will be destroyed in an hour, unless its residents know of some way to protect it. With this in mind, the Royal Court members discuss their "committee" procedure, the elephant army takes some action into their hands, and a giant elephant float, built by Babar and company, scares off Rataxes and his soldiers.
At sunrise, the young King's friends congratulate him on saving the day and his town, but are surprised to learn that their very first Victory Parade will be held during the afternoon. It has gone by that name ever since, the old Babar recalls, because the committee could not find any other name for it.
As Babar finishes his tale, he finds that his children have all gone to sleep. Right after he closes the door, they re-enact scenes from the story, until their father tells them to get back to bed.
announced that Babar: The Movie would debut in over 800 U.S. theatres by July 28 of that year. The film, however, opened at only 510 North American venues and grossed US$1,305,187; the Chicago Tribune
deemed it a box-office flop, although the film did regain its losses though the home video release. It was the last animated feature production by Nelvana until 1997's Pippi Longstocking
, and another Babar movie in 1999, King of the Elephants
(which is ironically a remake of the Babar TV series). The long version of the 1985 Nelvana logo at the end of the film is also restored on the DVD release. The film in also referred to in the Babar and the Adventures of Badou
episode Heropotamus, with a past photo of Babar showing him in the same 'adventurer' outfit he wears in the majority of the movie.
A book adaptation of the movie, written by Cathy East Dubowski and illustrated by Renzo Barto, was published by Random House
in November 1989.
, Judy Tate, The Nylons
and by cast members Stephen Ouimette
, Chris Wiggins
and John Stocker
. Although there has never been a official soundtrack released, certain songs can be found online on youtube and other streaming websites.
The songs are (In order of appearance):
1- Elephantland March - Written by Maribeth Solomon; Performed by The Nylons, Judy Tate, Debbie Fleming (as Debbie Flemming), John Rutledge, & Neil Donell
2- The Committee Song - Written by Philip Balsam (creditied as Phil Balsam); Performed by Stephen Ouimette, Chris Wiggins, & The Nylons
3- The Best We Both Can Be - Written by Maribeth Solomon; Performed by Molly Johnson
4- Monkey Business - Written by Maribeth Solomon; Performed by John Stocker, Judy Tate, Debbie Fleming (as Debbie Flemming), John Rutledge, Neil Donell, & The Nylons
5- Rataxes - Song Written by Kevan Staples, Marvin Dolgay, & Carol Pope for Tambre Productions; Performed by Charles Kerr
Nelvana
Nelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
Limited and France's Ellipse Programme
Ellipse Programmé
EllipsAnimé is a French animation studio that produces television programs. It was founded in 1987....
, and distributed by New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema, often simply referred to as New Line, is an American film studio. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne as a film distributor, later becoming an independent film studio. It became a subsidiary of Time Warner in 1996 and was merged with larger sister studio Warner...
. It is based on the characters of Jean de Brunhoff
Jean de Brunhoff
Jean de Brunhoff was a French writer and illustrator known for creating the Babar books, the first of which appeared in 1931. He was the fourth and youngest child of Maurice de Brunhoff, a publisher, and his wife Marguerite. He attended Protestant schools, including the prestigious Ecole Alsacienne...
's eponymous children's books
Babar the Elephant
Babar the Elephant is a French children's fictional character who first appeared in Histoire de Babar by Jean de Brunhoff in 1931 and enjoyed immediate success. An English language version, entitled The Story of Babar, appeared in 1933 in Britain and also in the United States. The book is based on...
, and was a follow-up to the first season of the HBO TV series
Babar (TV series)
Babar is an animated television series produced in Canada by Nelvana Limited and The Clifford Ross Company. It premiered in 1989 on CBC and HBO, subsequently was rerun on HBO Family and Qubo. The series is based on Jean de Brunhoff's original Babar books, and was Nelvana's first international...
. This is one of New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema, often simply referred to as New Line, is an American film studio. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye and Michael Lynne as a film distributor, later becoming an independent film studio. It became a subsidiary of Time Warner in 1996 and was merged with larger sister studio Warner...
's only two animated feature films; the next being 1994's The Swan Princess
The Swan Princess
The Swan Princess is a 1994 American animated film based on the ballet "Swan Lake". Starring the voice talents of Jack Palance, John Cleese, Steven Wright, and Sandy Duncan, the film is directed by a former Disney animation director, Richard Rich, with a music score by Lex de Azevedo...
.
Plot
On the night of Elephantland's Victory Parade, the king Babar tells to his children the story of his first days as King of the ElephantElephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
s. On his first day at Royal Court, the young ruler suggests that Elephantland hold an Annual Parade, but hears that a committee has to be set up before the idea can be approved. Soon after, a girl elephant, Celeste, runs over to tell Babar that her home has been attacked by Rataxes, the rhinoceros
Rhinoceros
Rhinoceros , also known as rhino, is a group of five extant species of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. Two of these species are native to Africa and three to southern Asia....
, and his horde. Babar's assistants tell him that the affair cannot be rushed, so he orders an elephant army to defeat the rhinos.
After some days, the army fails to arrive, and Babar tells Arthur, Celeste's brother, to take care of his job as King while he ventures off into Celeste's village to help her mother, amid dangerous jungle
Jungle
A Jungle is an area of land in the tropics overgrown with dense vegetation.The word jungle originates from the Sanskrit word jangala which referred to uncultivated land. Although the Sanskrit word refers to "dry land", it has been suggested that an Anglo-Indian interpretation led to its...
. Coming into the village, he encounters a raid brought forth by the rhinos, who are taking the elephants as slaves so that they can work on Rataxes' empire.
When the enemies have gone, Babar and Celeste set off to rescue the latter's mom, and the other pachyderms, from Rataxes' wrath. Along the way, they meet a monkey
Monkey
A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...
named Zephir, who gives them the location of the rhinos' empire. The two come face to face with Rataxes himself, who plans to invade Babar's kingdom by twilight, and are sent in jail; but they both escape successfully along with Zephir, and begin going back to Elepantland to save it.
Heading into the rhinos' tents, they disguise themselves as one of the warriors, asking for "special detail" of their plans for attack, but to no avail. They get away from Rataxes quickly, launching from a catapult and landing into a fountain, much to the surprise of Babar's advisors.
The evil rhino proclaims Elephantland will be destroyed in an hour, unless its residents know of some way to protect it. With this in mind, the Royal Court members discuss their "committee" procedure, the elephant army takes some action into their hands, and a giant elephant float, built by Babar and company, scares off Rataxes and his soldiers.
At sunrise, the young King's friends congratulate him on saving the day and his town, but are surprised to learn that their very first Victory Parade will be held during the afternoon. It has gone by that name ever since, the old Babar recalls, because the committee could not find any other name for it.
As Babar finishes his tale, he finds that his children have all gone to sleep. Right after he closes the door, they re-enact scenes from the story, until their father tells them to get back to bed.
Cast
- Gordon PinsentGordon PinsentGordon Edward Pinsent, CC, FRSC is a Canadian television, theatre and film actor.-Early life:Pinsent, the youngest of six children, was born in Grand Falls, Newfoundland, the son of Flossie ; originally from Clifton, Newfoundland, and Stephen Arthur Pinsent, a papermill worker and cobbler;...
as King Babar - Elizabeth HannaElizabeth HannaElizabeth Hanna is a Canadian film and television actress, most notable for her voice acting work in animated films. She later complemented her voice acting skills by becoming a Speech-Language Pathologist.-Early history:...
as Queen Celeste, The Old Lady - Lisa Yamanaka as Isabelle
- Marsha Moreau as Flora
- Bobby BeckenBobby BeckenBobby Becken is a Canadian voice actor.-Filmography:-External links:...
as Pom - Amos Crawley as Alexander
- Gavin Magrath as Prince Babar
- Sarah PolleySarah PolleySarah Polley is a Canadian actress, singer, film director, and screenwriter. Polley first attained notice in her role as Sara Stanley in the Canadian television series, Road to Avonlea...
as Princess Celeste - Stephen OuimetteStephen OuimetteStephen Ouimette is a Canadian actor and director, born and raised in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, and a graduate of the University of Windsor...
as Pompadour - Chris WigginsChris WigginsChris Wiggins is an English actor.He started out as a banker in his home country before he began his acting career in Canada, where he moved in 1952....
as Cornelius - John Stocker as Zephir
- Charles Kerr as Rataxes, Guard Rhinos
- Stuart Stone as Arthur
- Carl BanasCarl BanasCarl Banas is a Toronto born radio personality and actor. As a TV actor he appeared in the series Wojeck as police detective Byron James, and provided voices for numerous TV series and features. He was also known as a radio personality on Toronto radio station CKFM-FM, later and more famouly known...
as Old Tusk - Ray Landry as Croc
- Angela FuscoAngela Fusco-Career:She has appeared primarily in television series since 1957.Fusco has also been a narrator of several programs including Read All About It!.-External links:...
as Celeste's Mom - Wayne RobsonWayne RobsonWayne Robson was a Canadian television, film and stage actor best known for playing the part of Mike Hamar, an ex-convict and sometime thief, on the Canadian sitcom The Red Green Show from 1993 to 2006, as well as in the 2002 film Duct Tape Forever.Robson was born in Vancouver, British Columbia...
as Narrator - Christopher Andrande as Additional Voices
- Christopher BrittonChristopher BrittonChristopher Britton may refer to:*Chris Britton *Christopher Britton , Canadian actor and voice actor*Chris Britton of the The Troggs...
as Additional Voices - Scott Brunt as Additional Voices
- Jason BurkeJason BurkeJason Burke is a British journalist and the author of several non-fiction books. A correspondent covering South Asia for The Observer and The Guardian, he is based in New Delhi as of 2010. In his years of journalism, Burke has addressed a wide range of topics including politics, social affairs and...
as Additional Voices - Katie Coristine as Additional Voices
- Barbara Mantini as Additional Voices
- Frank PerryFrank PerryFrank J. Perry, Jr. was an American stage and film director, producer and screenwriter. His directorial debut, the 1962 film David and Lisa, earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director....
as Additional Voices - Chris RobsonChris RobsonChris Robson is an English stage, television and film actor. He was born in Newcastle upon Tyne in the United Kingdom.His work has spanned genres from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction....
as Additional Voices - Norm SpencerNorm SpencerNorman "Norm" Spencer is a Canadian voice actor, most notable for being the English voice of the X-Men character Cyclops throughout many incarnations of the character in the 1990s, including the X-Men cartoon show, several X-Men video games, and as the character in crossover episodes for other...
as Additional Voices - Lea-Helen Weir as Additional Voices
Release
In May 1989, the Toronto-based animation studio NelvanaNelvana
Nelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
announced that Babar: The Movie would debut in over 800 U.S. theatres by July 28 of that year. The film, however, opened at only 510 North American venues and grossed US$1,305,187; the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
deemed it a box-office flop, although the film did regain its losses though the home video release. It was the last animated feature production by Nelvana until 1997's Pippi Longstocking
Pippi Longstocking (1997 film)
Pippi Longstocking is a 1997 animated musical film from AB Svensk Filmindustri and Nelvana, based on the eponymous children's books by Astrid Lindgren. It was distributed theatrically by Legacy Releasing and on DVD by Warner Bros., and was served as a pilot of a spin-off television series on HBO in...
, and another Babar movie in 1999, King of the Elephants
Babar: King of the Elephants
Babar: King of the Elephants is a 1998 animated film made by Nelvana Limited and released in theaters in Canada by Alliance Communications and in the U.S. straight to video by New Line Home Video. Based on Jean de Brunhoff's book series, it is the second Babar movie, following 1989's Babar: The...
(which is ironically a remake of the Babar TV series). The long version of the 1985 Nelvana logo at the end of the film is also restored on the DVD release. The film in also referred to in the Babar and the Adventures of Badou
Babar and the Adventures of Badou
Babar and the Adventures of Badou is a 3D animated TV series that premiered in 2010 based on the characters created by Jean and Laurent de Brunhoff. The series has created new characters to the Babar universe, including Badou, who is Babar's 8-year-old grandson and the central character of the series...
episode Heropotamus, with a past photo of Babar showing him in the same 'adventurer' outfit he wears in the majority of the movie.
A book adaptation of the movie, written by Cathy East Dubowski and illustrated by Renzo Barto, was published by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
in November 1989.
Soundtrack
The film features 5 main songs, performed by the likes of Molly JohnsonMolly Johnson
Molly Johnson, OC is a Canadian Juno Award-winning singer-songwriter of pop and jazz.-Biography:Johnson began as a child performer, receiving formal training from the National Ballet School and the Banff School of Fine Arts...
, Judy Tate, The Nylons
The Nylons
The Nylons are an a cappella group founded in 1978 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Best known for their covers of The Turtles' "Happy Together", Steam's "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye", and The Tokens' version of the traditional "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"....
and by cast members Stephen Ouimette
Stephen Ouimette
Stephen Ouimette is a Canadian actor and director, born and raised in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, and a graduate of the University of Windsor...
, Chris Wiggins
Chris Wiggins
Chris Wiggins is an English actor.He started out as a banker in his home country before he began his acting career in Canada, where he moved in 1952....
and John Stocker
John Stocker
John Stocker is a Canadian animated voice actor. His career began in the 1970s, when he started voice acting.-Life and career:...
. Although there has never been a official soundtrack released, certain songs can be found online on youtube and other streaming websites.
The songs are (In order of appearance):
1- Elephantland March - Written by Maribeth Solomon; Performed by The Nylons, Judy Tate, Debbie Fleming (as Debbie Flemming), John Rutledge, & Neil Donell
2- The Committee Song - Written by Philip Balsam (creditied as Phil Balsam); Performed by Stephen Ouimette, Chris Wiggins, & The Nylons
3- The Best We Both Can Be - Written by Maribeth Solomon; Performed by Molly Johnson
4- Monkey Business - Written by Maribeth Solomon; Performed by John Stocker, Judy Tate, Debbie Fleming (as Debbie Flemming), John Rutledge, Neil Donell, & The Nylons
5- Rataxes - Song Written by Kevan Staples, Marvin Dolgay, & Carol Pope for Tambre Productions; Performed by Charles Kerr
External links
- Babar: The Movie at Keyframe: The Animation Resource