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Wombling Free (1977)

Director: Lionel Jeffries

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From Time Out Film Guide

A bit late for TV's Womble-mania gravy train, this feature spin-off does itself no favours by leading its 4ft, fat, and furry heroes into close encounters with a (purportedly) human family to press home the simple ecological message, or by relegating Mike Batt's inventive lyrics and music to backing for a few variable set pieces. There's a certain perverse joy in watching the shaggy creatures in a pastiche of the Hollywood musical, but there's little more than sheer perversity involved in the casting of Bernard Spear as a Japanese car salesman whose genuinely Oriental wife never speaks a word of English. Frances de la Tour is great, and is given great lines, but they belong to a different movie; the rest of her family belong to Disneyland. Lionel Jeffries' previous kids' films promised much, but this unfortunately doesn't begin to deliver. Shame, 'cos Wombles definitely rule Muppets, OK?

Author: PT 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide

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Cast & crew

Director: Lionel Jeffries

Producer: Ian Shand

Cast: David Tomlinson, Frances de la Tour, Bonnie Langford, Bernard Spear, Yasuko Nagazumi, John Junkin, Reg Lye full cast

Genre(s): Children's

Duration: 96 mins


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