Customer Reviews

Dr. Seuss: The Cat in the Hat

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Very well...I'm a punk!" Ah, the Cat in the Hat classic songs finally on durable DVD! Buyers out there beware! Remember that this 1971 version is the animated TV version that we all remember, while the 1972 version is essentially the book being read out loud with some pans and close ups of the original pages. I bought the 1972 version last Xmas and my mouth hung open watching the book in action. However, up, up, up with this version! All the songs are classics and take me back to the days when it was okay to leave the kids at home alone. A great, great story!

This is the version of "The Cat in the Hat" that I remember, from constant re-runs on HBO in the early 1980s. This is the version of "The Cat in the Hat" that I think of, in the same way that my nephew, now 3 1/2, will think of the Mike Myers' movie as "his" "Cat in the Hat". So, I had to buy this DVD... not just to show him, but also for myself, because I hadn't seen the whole thing in about 20 years, and recapturing my own childhood is almost as important as influencing his!

First, I watched it by myself. Hmm. 1971 was a lot less jarring in 1983. In 2003, the music seemed a lot... more corny, I guess. The "Fun" song, the one song on the soundtrack not performed by Allan Sherman, is pretty bad. However, the rest of it held up just as I remembered it. I appreciate the special feature sing-along version of "Calculatus Eliminatus", a song I had committed to memory 20 years ago, and then forgot (displaced, no doubt, by the useless Paula Abdul song lyrics that crowded up my brain in the intervening years).

Then, I screened it for the nephew. He sat through the whole thing, mesmerized, looking away only occasionally to play with the tiny Thing 2 toy he got from Burger King. He was upset when it was over and kept asking to watch the extra features (the "Calculatus" sing-along, and the two-minute promo for the Myers movie). We essentially watched the whole cartoon twice.

The final verdict is that the 1971 "Cat in the Hat" holds up very well today, as both a 30 year-old and a 3 1/2 year-old see it. Obviously the animation is flat and dated -- but it's faithful to the book, and, of course, this is Dr. Seuss's own version (Ted Geisel was producer and scriptwriter for the affair). The music is also dated (of course), but kids won't notice, and the Sherman songs are still delightful. The educational component is also funny -- the Cat sings his name out in seven or eight different languages, and several more made-up ones.

In other words, add this katze-in-a-hut to your collection today.

I don't recall ever seeing this version of the animated Cat in the Hat before, even though I was a kid who watched television faithfully in 1971, when this first aired on network television. My husband bought the video at a neighborhood garage sale last fall for $1 - what a bargain! The animation is very 1960's, combining both Dr. Seuss-ish artwork and a Chuck Jones/dePatie-Freleng style that seems at once very familiar, and yet, is now considered very oldtimey.
My 2-1/2 year old loves the songs. She asks for the video by demanding to watch "Chat Chapeau," the French names for cat and hat which the cat sings about in the wackiest song on the video, where he recites his name in about ninety gazillion languages. I personally love hearing Thing 1 and Thing 2 sing in those ridiculously deep voices about the "killjoy fish" who doesn't like fun and doesn't want to fly kites in the house. And since my parents used to play Allan Sherman records, I love hearing his authoritative voice, as the Cat, reciting the most nonsensical stuff.
Even though the video departs from the book in major ways, I don't mind because Dr. Seuss himself was involved in this production. I figure this made-for-TV version gave him a new opportunity to create additional riffs and plays on words to his own classic book.

Sure, it would have been great if the Chuck Jones and Dr. Seuss alliance would have continued for this outing (their "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Horton Hears A Who" are unquestionable classics) but this is a noble effort.. a VERY noble effort. "The Cat in the Hat" was always been my favorite Dr. Seuss book. Having said that, I felt the top notch vocal talent (Allan Sherman will forever be the Cat in the Hat, sorry Mike Meyers!) and whimsical screenplay really fleshed out the book playful theme ... and the Geisel penned songs were truly inspired! So the animation is a little off. This is going to be considered quite the classic when that stinker of a movie opens this winter!

This is the original CBS TV special from 1971. How old was I? 1 year old but thankfully there was always reruns and yes, this is the one from my childhood.

After spending $5 to see a horrible parody of the book (ie: the Movie) I decided I might as well spend $12 to have the real deal. Well here it is, on DVD.

The TV show is just as I remember it. The songs, the animation, everything is true to the book.

My biggest complaint is about the stupid trailers you have to watch before you can see the cat. You insert the DVD and you gotta see previews for Casper, Babe, and Sinbad. To make things worse, you can NOT press menu or even "stop". I'd give it 5 stars if it weren't for the previews.

There seems to be a good deal of confusion regarding this DVD. It seems Amazon is at it again and decided to combine product reviews. If you are interested in the TV show that aired in the early 70's make sure and look at what version the reviewer is referring to (it will say original Television episode). What I'm reviewing is from the Beginner Book Video series.

This isn't a cartoon in the traditional sense. It uses the actual Seuss artwork from the book and plays around with it digitally. Nothing terribly distracting. Basically an image is moving in the scene or there is panning about the artwork. It's not really meant to be a cartoon. It's more like the book being read to you with the pictures being a little more interactive. In this sense the DVD rocks.

This DVD was made for young children and is essentially a pinch hitter for story time. The narration and voice acting is clean and well paced. The voice of the Cat is the best one I have heard (and may have influenced Martin Short's rendition on PBS Kids). If you have a little toddler or pre-K kid this is a great and entertaining video. My son loves watching it in spite of the simplicity.

The other video from the book Maybe you Should Fly a Jet...is the same in the fact that it's artwork from the book moving along with a narrator. The art is not Seuss', but then again Seuss never did the art for the book either. All in all you get a 30 minutes of story time.

So for all of you out there confused about Amazon's mixing of the products make sure if you are looking for the Beginner Book Video version that it has the Beginner Book label on the top right (I can confirm seeing the right image on the product I clicked). I am pretty sure the old 70's cartoon DVD will look different in at least that area.

the movie was great. my grandaughter, age 3, watched it over and over. she has the book and a stuffed cat so the movie was great for her. I much perfer this version to the movie version which I believe is to "R" for children. I was very pleased with the condition of the DVD it was a great purchase. the cost was very reasonable, shipping and all. I had tried to find this version locally but was told again and again that they would have to order it for me at a much higher cost. so, Yes, this was a good buy.

I am a major Dr. Suess fan & this is one of his greatest characters. It's fun for all ages, with some great life lessons included.

Nothing beats the originals! I have purchased it for my grandchildren and this classic has been loved by our family for generations!

We really loved this DVD.
My 4 year old grandson, me and my husband, all of us enjoyed.
Especially we've been reading this book to him so many times, more interesting than just reading the book.
It became the one of his favorite DVD.