| Hansel and Gretel (1982 film) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | TV special |
| Directed by | Tim Burton |
| Produced by | Julie Hickson Rick Heinrichs |
| Written by | The Brothers Grimm |
| Original channel | The Disney Channel |
| Original airing | October 31, 1983 |
Hansel and Gretel is a TV special made in 1982 for Disney directed by Tim Burton. It only aired once on October 31, 1983 at 10:30pm. The only other time it was shown again was as part of the Tim Burton retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
The story features an all-Japanese cast as the eponymous characters. A wicked, greedy stepmother leads the children of a poor toymaker out into the woods. She distracts them with one of their father's toys and runs off. The children sleep in the woods, and in the morning, the toy transforms into a robot and leads them to a giant house made of gingerbread and candy. The hook-nosed witch lures them inside with the promise of sweets. The Witch brings out an enormous cake which turns out to be only a decoration. The furniture and even the walls of the house are the real candy, which the children happily enjoy. When Hansel and Gretel lie in the two beds prepared for them, they are immediately kidnapped. Hansel is forced to eat a creepy gingerbread man who insists he eat him. Before the Witch can shove Hansel into the oven, a kung-fu style battle ensues between her and the children. The Witch is defeated and the children escape the house, which completely melts. The toy reappears and leads them back home to their happy father. It also begins to spout gold coins, providing them with the wealth they needed.
Filmed for $116,000 on 16mm, this live-action short film featured a cast of amateur Japanese actors, kung fu fights and Japanese toys, as Burton was obsessed with Japanese culture at the time of production. The film’s design style and color schemes paid homage to the Godzilla movies and is said to be heavy on special effects, making use of front projection, forced perspective and even some stop-motion animation. Most reputable sources claim the film runs a full 45 minutes, but other fan reviews have a listed runtime anywhere from a 15-30 minutes.
NY Times article states that this will be screened at Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) as part of a Tim Burton special exhibition running from Nov 22, 2009 to April 26, 2010.