Dot and the Kangaroo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dot and the Kangaroo
Directed by Yoram Gross
Produced by Yoram Gross Studios
Written by Ethel C. Pedley (novel)
Yoram Gross (screenplay)
John Palmer (screenplay)
Starring Lola Brooks
Joan Bruce
Barbara Frawley
Peter Gwynne
Ron Haddrick
Ross Higgins
Richard Meikle
Spike Milligan
June Salter
Music by Bob Young
John Palmer
Marion Von Alderstein
Distributed by Henstooth Video
Release date(s) 1977
Running time 70 min.
Language English
IMDb profile

Dot and the Kangaroo, written in 1899, is a children's book by Ethel C. Pedley about a little girl named Dot who gets lost in the Australian outback and is eventually befriended by a kangaroo and several other marsupials.

The book was turned into a movie in 1977 that featured a spectacular combination of animation and live-action. The main character, Dot, was voiced by Barbara Frawley. The movie features an original soundtrack including several lyrical melodies composed by Bob Young, John Palmer and Marion Von Alderstein.

The movie backdrop was filmed on location in and around the Jenolan Caves of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia.

Another eight movies in the series were made by the Yoram Gross studios by 1994. The theme behind many of the films in the Dot series is the negative impact of humanity on animal life in nature.

A DVD version of the film was released on October 30, 2001.

Contents

[edit] Soundtrack

Lyrics by John Palmer:

  • Dreamtime
  • Quark Ducks
  • The Bunyip (Bunyip Moon)
  • Platypus Duet
  • Click-ity Click
  • In The Kangaroo Pouch

Lyrics by Marion Von Alderstein

  • I'm a Frog


Additional lyrics by Bob Young.
Recorded by Maurie Wilmore.

[edit] Controversy

Surrounding the first of the movies, titled "Dot and the Kangaroo," is some controversy and alleged drug references. Regardless of the nature or implications of the movie's script, numerous cannabis plants are visible in both the foreground and background of the movie on several occasions. Furthermore, Kangaroo gives Dot a root to eat, called the "Root of Understanding," but warns, "You mustn't eat too much ... If you eat too much, you'll know too much." Others claim that such occurrences are a mere coincidence.

[edit] Movie titles

The titles of the movies are as following:

[edit] External links

Cinema of Australia

Film chronology: 1890s-1930s • 1940s-1970s • 1980s • 1990s • 2000s
Categories: Actors • Directors • Films A-Z • Cinematographers • Composers • Editors • Producers • Screenwriters

In other languages