Product Description

Dot and the Kangaroo is an award-winning family classic based on the beloved children's book by Ethel Pedley. Using a unique combination of animation and live-action backgrounds, Dot and the Kangaroo has delighted audiences for 25 years. It follows the adventures of Dot, a settler's young daughter who loses her way in the bush. Terrified by the dark shadows and unfamiliar sounds, she is befriended by a kangaroo. Safely tucked in the kangaroo's pouch, Dot has an adventure-packed and song-filled journey. She meets many indigenous Australian creatures (including a koala, platypus and kookaburra) along the way. With the help of her new friends, Dot finally finds her way home.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #17592 in DVD
• Brand: DOT
• Released on: 2001-10-30
• Rating: G (General Audience)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Animated, Color, DVD, Live, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 71 minutes

Amazon.com
An Australian settler girl gets lost in the outback, but she is befriended by a kangaroo who gives her a ride in her pouch as they search for the girl's home. Aiding the pair are musically gifted koalas, platypuses, and kookaburras in this 72-minute film based on Ethel Pedley's 1899 children's book, with animated humans and animals superimposed upon a live background. Children will be touched by the relationship between the child and her marsupial protector, who has lost her own joey. But they may also be frightened by the mythical bunyip (a threatening animal-bird hybrid) or the heroines' violent confrontation with snarling dingoes. Finally, children who are used to happy endings will be mystified that the kangaroo never finds her own baby, and Dot, although returned home, sobs when separated from her beloved kangaroo. The film movingly dissolves from a weeping Dot to footage of real kangaroos bounding through the Australian bush. Ages 3 to 8. --Kimberly Heinrichs

Customer Reviews

The Return of Dot!
After several years of looking for Dot, I've found her again in the DVD edition. As a child, the Bunyip from the movie always terrified me, and I had nightmares about the thing as recently as five years ago! But I hadn't seen the movie in 20 years, and just had to satisfy my curiosity... was it really that scary?

To be honest, this is a creepy film. The soft music intended as a lullabye comes across as a bit disturbing. The Bunyip scene is, indeed, scary. The film even shows how the Bunyip can appear in anything... a fire, a cave. It's basically a quick lesson on how children can make anything look like a monster in his/her head! "The Bunyip's going to get you!"

Most disturbing, though, would have to be the end. I won't kill the conclusion for you, but a read through the actual book by Ethel Pedley would give you a more satisfying, less mystifying end. (It's available for free online at Project Gutenberg)

I'm torn about the film. Overall, I enjoyed it for its nostalgia, and *some* of the music is cute and catchy. I like it for what it is! I couldn't recommend it for a young child, though... it's good old-fashioned nightmare fuel.

Looking for a childhood favorite...
On Christmas day, I was very excited to get this DVD from my mother. I saw a movie about a girl getting lost in the Australian outback when I was a little child on the Disney Channel. It was called "Dot", but it was not this movie (I was very disappointed when I found that I recieved the wrong one). The Dot I grew to love was a mixture of animation and real footage, like this one, and it involved a kangaroo, as this one does. It also involved a mmosquito named Skeeto, and I remember a scene where Dot was captured by ants and forced to work along with them. Dot was a real-life human figure at first, the turned into a cartoon by eating a strange carrot, or root. If anyone knows anything about this film, please e-mail me and let me know. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Dot and the Kangaroo
Was my daughter's all time favorite cartoon 25 years ago. Aired on HBO way back then. Anyway, just bought it for my grand-daughter and she loves it too. A timeless classic I'd say!