The Nutcracker Prince (1990)

This animated version of the Christmas classic is more about combat than dancing, which will make it appealing to boys leery of a female protagonist. When Clara (voiced by Megan Follows) is delighted with his gift of a nutcracker on Christmas Eve, toy maker Drosselmeier is inspired. He tells the tale of how his nephew rescued a princess and was promised her hand when the evil Mouse King turned him into the nutcracker, making him a prince only among dolls. That night, Clara has fitful dreams about the battles between the Nutcracker Prince (Kiefer Sutherland), backed by his legion of toy soldiers (including a commander voiced by Peter O'Toole), and the enormous mouse and his minions. When the prince is finally victorious, he invites her to come to his doll kingdom. A dream-conjured Drosselmeier obligingly shrinks her and she climbs through her dollhouse castle door into a world of flying swans, sugarplums, and ballerinas. This 68-minute movie based on E.T.A. Hoffman's book The Nutcracker and the Mouse King will interest ages 2 through about 10. --Kimberly Heinrichs Amaaon.com

So Happy To Find An Old Favorite!!!

I'm so happy I could rely on Amazon to have this movie available when it is impossible to find in stores. Now my children can enjoy it for years to come. Quick shipment and great pricing! Thanks! January 12, 2008

The scarey nutcracker and hideous friends

I purchased this to show to my three year old before we went to the ballet.She was terrified and all we managed to watch together was the first 15 mins. I do not recommend this to anyone wanting to tell the story to a young child-read them a book.She loved the ballet by-the-way, once I persuaded her to go after seeing the video! January 12, 2008

an amazing movie

I am a big fan of this play as well as this movie. I have worn my VHS tape down and now I have the DVD, I certainly can not stand a Christmas without seeing this movie! Its my favorite Christmas movie by far. December 11, 2007

Not at all what I was expecting!!

I purchased this DVD based on all the positive reviews, however after viewing it, I was extremely disappointed.

I watched this movie with my two-year old son and my four-year old daughter. The movie starts out simple enough w/Clara and Fritz heading home to the party. However, the storyline vears off from the original ballet version when Drosselmyer begins to explain to Clara how his nephew became the Nutcracker. It takes the viewer into a mini-subplot about a king (who is rather rude) and his Queen (whom I assume is supposed to resemble Mother Ginger?). I found this part of the storyline to be annoying and unnecessary. My daughter (who has seen the ballet version of the Nutcracker) kept looking at me confused wondering who these characters were (since they are not part of the ballet version).

Then my two-year old basically jumped into my lap when the Queen Rat's son (very ugly and mean looking) came back to life after it appeared to be dead. I am fully aware of the battle between the mice and the soldiers and expected a certain amount of violence. However, when the camera zooms in closely on what appears to be a dead rat and then the rat jumps up and roars w/it's ugly face, I don't find that appropriate for small children. Talk about causing nightmares!

My daughter was also very disappointed that there was no Land of Sweets (this movie has Land of Dolls) and that the "best part" was missing (performances by foreign countries -- China, Arabia, Russia, etc.).

This movie was a huge disappointment!!!! Not recommended if you're looking for the ballet storyline. December 22, 2006

My favorite Christmas movie

I had been looking for this movie for years. I used to watch this every year on HBO and couldn't remember the name of it. When I searched for the nutcracker I thought I would never find it but here it is. This is a great version of the nutcracker. I would recommend it as a family holiday tradition movie. December 7, 2006

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