Between 1960 and 1987, animation studio Rankin/Bass cranked out a ton of holiday-themed specials both in stop-motion and traditional cel animation.
While these productions ranged from the brilliant (How the Grinch Stole Christmas) to the brain-dead (The First Easter Rabbit), they rarely lacked heart and a certain oh-so-innocent charm.
This is the case with Frosty's Winter Wonderland, a half-hour special that previously appeared on Warner Home Video's 2009 release Classic Christmas Favorites. As you might have guessed from the title, the cartoon's a shotgun marriage of two classic songs: Frosty the Snowman (which Rankin/Bass turned into a holiday special in 1969) and Winter Wonderland.
Restored and remastered, Frosty's Winter Wonderland is fine for small children, or those who want to feel like one for a little while.
Warner Home Video Presents Frosty's Winter Wonderland, Starring Andy Griffith, Jackie Vernon
Winter has once again come to the town, and the kids miss their good pal Frosty (voiced by Jackie Vernon). But, as narrator Andy Griffith tells us, our favourite snowman is on his way back to dance and play. But, as soon as he arrives, Frosty tells his human pals that he feels lonely. The kids decide that Frosty needs a wife so they make him one, which he names Crystal (Shelley Winters).
But Jack Frost (Paul Frees) has become jealous of Frosty's popularity with the kids. As he bends his considerable powers to destroying Frosty and Crystal's happiness, can our snow couple find their winter wonderland?
In the past, I've believed that Rankin/Bass' stop-motion work was worth checking out but you should be careful with their cel animated specials. Frosty's Winter Wonderland is a happy exception to that rule: it exudes a lot of innocent charm that pre-schoolers and their parents will appreciate. The jokes are beyond G-rated, and the dialogue clangs at times but you forgive it because the whole package is sweet without being saccharine. Enemies become pals at the end and everyone lives happily ever after . . . or until a sequel's called for.
The animation is typical for TV cartoons of the period and the characters move stiffly at times. The cartoon Andy Griffith has a bit of a wooden face, which contrasts with the Matlock star's warm delivery.
Frosty's Winter Wonderland DVD Extras
The only extra of note is the featurette 'Frosty and the Story of the Snowman' which deals with the history of the snowman as folk art and how the original song and cartoon fit into that tradition.
Frosty's Winter Wonderland No Classic But Has a Lot of Charm
If one could describe Frosty's Winter Wonderland in one word, it would be "sweet." It's no great shakes plot-wise, and older kids will shudder, but the wee ones and their parents will enjoy this old-school Christmas special. Frosty's Winter Wonderland Deluxe Remastered Edition DVD gets a 3/5.
Dominic von Riedemann - Dominic is the Animated Film Feature Writer, and winner of 11 Suite 101 Editors' Choice Awards.
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