Hans Christian Andersen

1952

1h 52m

IMDb RATING

6.3/10

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15 Images

Music

Family

Comedy

A small-town shoemaker with a knack for spinning yarns, Hans encounters happiness and heartbreak on his road to becoming a full-fledged writer.

Directors

Charles Vidor

Writers

Myles Connolly(story by)

Moss Hart(screenplay by)

Stars

Danny Kaye

Farley Granger

Zizi Jeanmaire

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Top cast

Danny Kaye

Hans Christian Andersen

Niels

Doro

Peter

Otto

Burgomaster

The Hussar - Danced by

Roland Petit

The Prince in 'The Little Mermaid' Ballet

Schoolmaster

Celine

Stage Doorman

Farmer

First Gendarme

Little Boy (uncredited)

Billy Bevan

Town Councilman (uncredited)

Barrie Chase

Ballerina (uncredited)

Sylvia Lewis

Danseuse …

Noreen Corcoran

Little Girl (uncredited)

Directors

Charles Vidor

Writers

Myles Connolly(story by)

Moss Hart(screenplay by)

All cast & crew

Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

It's quite easy to be harsh with this rather fanciful depiction of the life of the eponymous Danish writer. It doesn't bear much resemblance to the life of the real man, and it's rather episodic construction really doesn't help the film flow particularly well at all. That said, however, Danny Kaye and Charles Vidor have clearly had a powerful vision of what they were trying to achieve - and that isn't a biopic. It's a colourful and large scale series of fantasies that tug at the heart strings, make you smile, wince and tap your toes - just as the vivid imagination of the author would have had them do. Kaye plays the role in a characterful and engaging manner, depicting well the poverty, optimism and, yes, the chocolate box Denmark too, as the film takes us through synopses of some of the most politically subtle and potent "fairy tales" ever written. More than that, it's a visual feast with beautifully crafted costumes and scenery - though, the production looks at times, a little stage bound. Of course, to ice this cake, we have a beautiful soundtrack from Frank Loesser with a little help from Messrs. Schubert and Liszt delivering us timelsss standards that are maybe not the most lyrically challenging, but are songs of so many of our childhood's that show Kaye for the multi talented star that he was. I was not a massive fan of the choreography - I found it too precise and a little sterile at times, but the individual dancers are world class and when the story drifts into his fantasy world and leaves the fables to do the work, this is a thoroughly enjoyable 2 hours of escapism.

Geronimo196711 Sep, 2022