Talk:The Snowman
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[edit] The Day Appears to be Christmas Eve
I initially thought that this was when the events depicted take place. But repeated viewings through the years the years have brought up a few other ideas.
- There are no presents under the tree and the boy is showing off his new toys to the Snowman at one point. This would seem to put it after the traditional unwrapping of presents in the U.K.
- During their flight over the ocean they pass a ship where a party is in progress. One of the revelers is drinking champagne and does a double take as he sees them fly by. It seems more like a New Year's Eve party.
- The snowmen/women party at the North Pole finds Santa and his reindeer happily ensconced in their home. They don't seem to be rushing off, or returning from their round the world flight.
I know that there are valid arguments to be made against this, especially the events of the sequel "Father Christmas" (but this didn't come along until 1987), and it is not important in the grand scheme of things. I just wanted to note them here to justify my addition to this article.MarnetteD | Talk 03:59, 16 May 2005 (UTC)
- I always thought it was Christmas Eve, but all your points make sense. Maybe it is New Year's Eve. JP Godfrey 17:01, 15 December 2005 (UTC)
[edit] "James"
According to the synopsis on the official website, the boy's name is James. I didn't want to mess up anyone's work in case they didn't agree so I'll just leave it for someone else to update.--Thetriangleguy 21:00, 28 November 2005 (UTC)
- His present's wrapping reads "James, Brighton". --130.214.17.20 18:06, 11 December 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Year?
This page says the book was released in 1980. The article on Raymond Briggs says 1978. Which is correct? BillyH 18:36, 26 December 2005 (UTC)
- Just Googled Raymond Briggs and three different sites listed 1978 as year of publication so I adjusted this article accordingly.User:MarnetteD | Talk 14:19, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
[edit] alternate intros
The feature itself might be just 23 minutes, plus one of three intros. The intro situation is very confusing -- it may be hard to determine which intro is included with various versions. And a particular version may not really include the intro it says it does! 69.87.193.151 02:23, 13 December 2006 (UTC)
"...the blame lies with Sony Home Video, not Amazon. The DVD box has "with a special introduction by David Bowie" clearly marked on the back, even though the intro is nowhere to be found... it's Sony that has screwed up this time around."
"... over the years, three introductions to The Snowman have been made - the original with Raymond Briggs himself walking through a field that morphs into the animation, the David Bowie introduction that was made for American audiences who were believed to need a celebrity (and which many people find fake and dislike), and a 20th anniversary animated intro using the 'Father Christmas' character from another Raymond Briggs book/movie. Many people... feel the original Raymond Briggs introduction to be the best and most genuine. It has never been released on DVD in the UK. ... It's personal taste - everyone seems to prefer the intro they saw on first watching The Snowman."
The 1982/1993 Columbia TriStar NTSC VHS has a very short live-action intro with voice-over narration -- these may be Briggs, but there don't seem to be any credits telling us for sure. The tape is labelled 26 min; the sleeve is labelled 29 min. ISBN 0-7912-0007-8 UPC 1157501413 69.87.194.91 16:41, 30 December 2006 (UTC)
- 1998 DVD NTSC fullscreen ISBN 0-7678-2670-1 UPC 4339603227 combines:
- The Snowman 1993 29 min; and
- Father Christmas 1997 25 min (including material from Father Christmas Goes on Holiday)
This DVD has no "extras". The version of The Snowman seems to be entirely the original VHS - same RB in the field intro, same child voice singing the main song, exact same credits with no credit to narrator or singer. I am starting to doubt that there really is any version of the video that uses an alternate Aled Jones singing, in place of Peter Auty. The video of Father Christmas seems to mostly be from the Holiday book, a little from the Father Christmas book, and overlaps with The Snowman by repeating scenes of partying at the North Pole, including the boy (James). 69.87.203.130 20:54, 7 January 2007 (UTC)
[edit] alternate singer
The original soundtrack singer was Peter Auty. Aled Jones was more popular on the radio, soon after the original release. Later re-releases of the film appear to substitute Aled Jones. Is this really true? Is Peter Auty being credited, but not actually included? 69.87.193.97 20:25, 13 December 2006 (UTC)
The 1982/1993 NTSC VHS has no credits on the tape or the sleeve for the singer! Does any version explicitly credit the singer, anywhere? 69.87.194.91 16:34, 30 December 2006 (UTC)
I'm pretty sure it's a myth that Aled Jones' version was ever used. Why would they bother changing it? Especially as the myth seems to pertain to late 80s/early 90s releases, by which time there would have been no cachet in having Aled Jones on the soundtrack anyway. In 1985 as a cash-in, there may have been some point to it, but later? Nah. -88.110.217.242 14:01, 28 February 2007 (UTC)
[edit] The plot
The book has a simpler plot than the movie. In the book, there is no motorcycle ride, and they only fly to the coast; there is no cruise ship, and no trip to the North Pole, no Father Christmas etc. The plot description in the article is for the film version. In the book, the boy has no name, but in the film the tag on the present lets us know he is James. The book is a cartoon-style series of wordless drawings, in colored pencil or crayon. The film is a similar style, but with a very short live-action intro with voice-over narration. The song that accompanies the flying has words.
[edit] Completely instrumental version
Does anybody know anything about a release of the film that has an instrumental version of "Walking in the Air" in place of the Peter Auty vocals? I came across a discussion about it on the IMDB board for the film and on a couple of sites, including a few comments on the reviews section for the film on Amazon.com. Apparently it's on the "Children's Circle" vhs release of the film and some broadcast versions but I've never come across it myself. Is it worth mentioning here? --Thetriangleguy 12:31, 24 October 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Fair use rationale for Image:Snowman Outtakes 001.jpg
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BetacommandBot (talk) 05:26, 24 January 2008 (UTC)
[edit] Fair use rationale for Image:Snowman Outtakes 002 quality.jpg
Image:Snowman Outtakes 002 quality.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.
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[edit] Fair use rationale for Image:Snowman Outtakes 005 quality.jpg
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BetacommandBot (talk) 05:27, 24 January 2008 (UTC)
[edit] Fair use rationale for Image:Snowman Outtakes 006 quality.jpg
Image:Snowman Outtakes 006 quality.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.
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[edit] Fair use rationale for Image:Snowman Outtakes 012 quality.jpg
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