The Wind in the Willows

This stop-motion animation was the first adaptation of a British children's novel to make me realise why Britain produces all of the world's best children's novellists. Its ethereal, sunlit world was the product of a mature and dark yet utterly English imagination inspired by a 2000-year legacy of faeries-in-the-fields mythology.

There have been several versions of The Wind in the Willows, and this is, without a doubt, the best of them. Everything about is wonderful. It has magnificent animation and looks beautiful, and is written and played excellently. This is as good as movies get.

together with jeremy brett's sherlock holmes and the burlesque of allô allô, this was a landmark for a very young admirer of brit-fashioned TV productions. i saw this for the very first time on the telly and i suppose this was but the movie of the series. today i know this movie is a fair piece of artwork that moulded my life: i teach English. the characters are so exquisite and the scenario is state-of-the-art tasteful paintings. the Gothic side of the movie is also an allurement to it. when mole leaves in search of badger, part of the tone of the movie is clear: there's true darkness in those woods. that darkness is also stressed through the gory mole's fingernails. there's much violence, too, for those who like a pinch of tavern-like brawl. it's a sweet translation into moving pictures of a great story for parents to read their kids when they misbehave and have problems with the increasing, and at times puzzling, importance of friendships in their lives. there's the hilarious water-dancing of the ducks in the river and the truly tiresome teenager frog. beautiful. beautiful.

There is only one word for this movie: legendary! The entire cast plays their parts to perfection, especially David Jason as Toad, but overall, the whole cast of talented actors who have ideally lent their voices to this production deserve praise. They've done themselves well.

The stop motion animation is simply wonderful, the characters exquisitely rendered, the actors delightful, the script true to the spirit of the original. This will be enjoyed on different levels by both children and adults. It is decidedly NOT merely for children, anymore than "The Nightmare Before Christmas." This is a beautiful and timeless production that deserves to live forever.