Product Description

Oscar® winner* Cloris Leachman (Herbie Goes Bananas) stars as the evil, wart-plagued witch Griselda in this enchanting live-action version of the beloved Brothers Grimm fairy tale about two siblings who wander into the forest against their parents' orders. Featuring singing, dancing and a larger-than-life house built entirely of cookies and candy, this delightful film is a sweet treat for the entire family! When Hansel (Hugh Pollard) and Gretel (Nicola Stapleton) get lost in the forbidden forest after their trail of bread crumbs disappears, they come upon an enticing gingerbread cottage. The problem is, it's inhabited by a witch! As Griselda plots to keep them there forever through hocus-pocus magic, the quick-witted siblings must figure out how to avoid becoming her next dessert!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18609 in DVD
• Brand: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX HOME ENT
• Released on: 2005-08-09
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 86 minutes

Amazon.com
In this live-action, Cannon group rendition of the classic Brothers Grimm fairytale Hansel and Gretel, music, drama, and suspense interweave in a captivating tale of two young children lost in the woods. Sent to pick berries by their exasperated mother (Emily Richard), Hansel (Hugh Pollard) and Gretel (Nicola Stapleton) stray from the well-worn path into the dangerous Northern Woods with nary a care; singing, dancing, and leaving a trail of cookie crumbs so they can find their way back home. Happiness soon becomes despair when the two children discover that the birds have eaten their crumbs and they're hopelessly lost in the woods. Scared and hungry, Hansel and Gretel stumble upon a gingerbread house inhabited by a seemingly kind old woman Griselda (Oscar-winner Cloris Leachman) and gorge themselves on an abundance of sweets and pastries. Pure fright replaces the children's initial glee when they discover that Griselda is really an evil witch who wants to imprison them and eat them for supper. Somehow, the children must escape from the wicked witch and reunite with their father (David Warner) and mother. Cloris Leachman is absolutely convincing as the wicked Griselda in this production and Hugh Pollard and Nicola Stapleton adeptly portray the innocence, fears, and resourcefulness of young children. (Ages 6 and older) --Tami Horiuchi

Customer Reviews

A Little Lost Gem of a Film
The odds of anyone running across this review for such a small, forgotten film are very slim, but I am compelled to write it anyway just to prove to myself that this charming and faithful re-telling of the old fairytale does in fact exist.
Hansel and Gretel (the two very attractive child stars Hugh Pollard and Nicola Stapleton) are the children of the poor wood-dwelling couple Stefan (David Warner) and Maria (Emily Richard) who make ends meet by scouring the woods for food due to the merciless employment of the baker that Stefan works under. While on a trip to the village with their father Gretel is given a pouch of - you guessed it - breadcrumbs from the baker, and the two children are enchanted by the Punch and Judy show, quickly learning the words and steps to the dance that makes them neglectful in their duties later that day. Whilst they dance madly in the next room, the donkey enters the house and eats the pie that Maria has just made. When she returns she sends the children out in a temper to pick berries, but is instantly regretful (no evil stepmothers here!) when she realises her children must have ventured into the forbidden North Woods, where demons and witches are said to dwell.
The children are indeed lost in the woods thanks to the watching crows destroying their trail of breadcrumbs, and after much wandering, the two come to a gingerbread house, where the seemingly kindly old lady Grizelda (played with great zest by Cloris Leachman) lives. Of course, this is not the case, and the two are captured - Hansel to be fattened up till the witch deems him big enough to eat, and Gretel to perform menial chores around the house.
A happy ending is undoubtably in store, but on the way the good-guys must struggle through the witch's unending oppression, the knowledge that the gingerbread boys and girls that line the path outside were once real children and their parents desparate search for them - one particularly striking scene involves Stefan searching the forest and hearing his children's voices... before the cries for help change into deep, menacing growls. There are other scary moments too, such as when Grizelda positions a knife over the sleeping Gretel, so although most kids could sit through this and get the 'good goosebumps', more sensitive ones may need a helping hand.
The main protaginists of this movie are outstanding - Hansel and Gretel are sweet without being too sugary, and create a touching brother/sister bond - Hansel tells Gretel: "Don't be a baby," but also: "Don't worry, I'll protect you."
There are a few short songs scattered throughout the movie that are used to good effect, and the set of the gingerbread house is great fun - it really does look good enough to eat! It also continues to amaze me how such a simple story can be lengthened to movie-length thanks to some background information on the characters and interesting plot devices (such as the transformed duck, the witch's magical staff and the initial disguise of the witch).
So there you have it - a great little movie that no one knows anything about - are you going to track it down?

A GREAT FILM FOR ALL FANS OF FANTASY
I saw this movie last year for the first time and I was really excited to see this particular production. I knew it was in the Cannon Movie tales series so I knew that it was going to be great. Most of the music in the film is adapted from the Humperdinck opera of the story which accents the story nicely. This isn't the happy, jumpy version of the story that everyone is used to seeing. There are moments of suspense, afterall it is about a cannibalistic witch. Especially frightening are the moments when hansel and gretel are lost in the woods at night and you hear all different kinds of strange, eerie demonic voices. The sets are amazing. When I saw the gingerbread house I was stunned and when Hansel and Gretel start to eat from the house out pops Cloris Leachman as a somewhat whimsical old woman. Leachman gives hints throughout these earlier sequences that she enjoys, well, human flesh. I liked the touch when she is reading the story of the Sleeping Beauty to the two siblings saying that everything came to life after the princess awoke, the fire rose and cooked the children, instead of saying cooked the chicken, giving the viewer an insight of things to come. Eventually, we find out that the old lady is really a witch. This sequence is really frightening when the witch, in true witch form, is casting a spell over a cauldron. Overall, this movie is one of the best in the collection and defintely deserves a place on the video shelf and is a film that every fan of the brother's grimm tale should see. AAAA+++++

Hansel and Gretel 1988 directed by Len Talan
For years I have ADORED this film, I saw it first when I was eight years old and was mezmerized! It was such a scary tale and the witch was just fantastic. I'm now 20 years old and her ugly face still burns in my memory! I also loved the actors who played Hansel and Gretel, they both featured in the T.V series of 'Simon and the Witch' which was great. I wish more fairy tales would be turned into real films, it makes brilliant viewing. I think it should be aired on T.V because it is just such a shame that its a forgotten film, everyone would love it as much as we did! and then I'm sure they would release it on DVD and VHS; I live in hope! If anyone knows where I can buy a copy of the film please reveal it on this sight, I've literally been trawling video shops for years looking for it. Its the best film ever!