This article needs additional citations for verification .(September 2011) |
Cannon Movie Tales | |
---|---|
Produced by | |
Production company | |
Distributed by | The Cannon Group |
Release date | 1986–1989 |
Countries |
|
Language | English |
Budget | US$1.5 million (per film) [1] |
Cannon Movie Tales is the collective name for a series of live-action films created in the late 1980s by Cannon Group producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, associate producer Patricia Ruben, and executive producer Itzik Kol. Filmed principally on location in Israel, these stories are generally fairy tales based on material by either the Brothers Grimm or Charles Perrault, among others. Major stars, from both the United States and the United Kingdom, play the leading roles, in which they are joined by a mostly all-Israeli cast. The major Israeli-born member of the crew was the series' production designer, Marek Dobrowolski. Announced as early as May 1986 (at the Cannes Film Festival), [2] Cannon initiated the project as its answer to Disney's fairy-tale offerings, and invested US$50 million in the series. [3] Sixteen stories (originally planned to be twelve stories), each costing US$1.5 million, [1] were originally planned; [3] [4] [5] only nine were released.
Of the nine films, only eight have been released on DVD by MGM in the United States. The Frog Prince has only been officially released on VHS. [6] Although there is no "Complete Collection" DVD box set, the eight individual DVD releases have been collected (as five dual-sided discs) in the "MGM Movie Collection: 10 Kids Movies" DVD set [7] (one of several sets with this generic title), which also includes the unrelated fantasy films Jack the Giant Killer (1962) and The Magic Sword (1962).
Clive Barker is an English writer, filmmaker and visual artist. He came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories, the Books of Blood, which established him as a leading horror writer. He has since written many novels and other works. His fiction has been adapted into films, notably the Hellraiser series, the first installment of which he also wrote and directed, and the Candyman series.
The Cannon Group, Inc. was an American group of companies, including Cannon Films, which produced films from 1967 to 1994. The extensive group also owned, amongst others, a large international cinema chain and a video film company that invested heavily in the video market, buying the international video rights to several classic film libraries. Some of their best known films include Joe (1970), Runaway Train (1985) and Street Smart (1987), all of which were Oscar-nominated.
Clive Selsby Revill is a New Zealand actor, best known for his performances in musical theatre and the London stage. A veteran of the Royal Shakespeare Company, he has also starred in numerous films and television programmes, often in character parts. He is a two-time Tony Award nominee; Best Featured Actor in a Musical for Irma La Douce and Best Actor in a Musical for Oliver! He was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Billy Wilder's Avanti! (1972).
David Leland was a British film director, screenwriter and actor who came to international fame with his directorial debut Wish You Were Here in 1987.
Priscilla Marie Pointer is a retired American actress. She began her career in the theater in the late 1940s, including productions on Broadway. Later, Pointer moved to Hollywood and made appearances on television beginning in the early 1950s.
Faerie Tale Theatre is an American award-winning live-action fairytale fantasy drama anthology television series created and presented by actress Shelley Duvall. The series originally ran on Showtime from September 11, 1982, until November 14, 1987 before being sold internationally. Twenty-five of the series' 27 episodes are each a retelling of a classic fairy tale, particularly one written by The Brothers Grimm, Charles Perrault, or Hans Christian Andersen. Episode 18 is based on the poem "The Pied Piper of Hamelin". The 27th and final episode is a reunion special of cast and crew, titled "Grimm Party", in which, in fairy tale style, they attend a gala in fancy dress.
Lewis Michael Arquette was an American actor. He was best known for playing J. D. Pickett on the television series The Waltons, on which he worked from 1978 to 1981.
C.H.U.D. II: Bud the C.H.U.D. is a 1989 zombie comedy film, directed by David Irving, written by M. Kane Jeeves and stars Brian Robbins, Tricia Leigh Fisher, Bianca Jagger, and Gerrit Graham in the title role.
K. Gordon Murray (1922–1979) was an American producer, most notable for his redubbing and re-releasing of foreign fairy tale films for U.S. audiences. He is often cited as the "King of the Kiddie Matinee." Murray also marketed many of the Mexploitation luchador films, such as Santo films popular in Mexico, changing Santo's name to Samson and dubbing them in English.
Yoram Globus is an Israeli–American film producer, cinema owner, and distributor. He has been involved in over 300 full-length motion pictures and he is most known for his association with The Cannon Group, Inc., an American film production company, which he co-owned with his cousin Menahem Golan.
Luis Adalberto Puenzo is an Argentine film director, producer and screenplay writer. He works mainly in the cinema of Argentina, but has also worked in the United States.
Puss in Boots, sometimes also listed as Cannon Movie Tales: Puss in Boots, is a 1988 musical version of the story of Puss in Boots, starring Christopher Walken as "Puss" and Jason Connery as the youngest son who is assisted by Puss. Carmela Marner stars as the Princess. The film was directed by Eugene Marner, and the screenplay was by Carole Lucia Satrina. It is a part of a series of films known collectively as the Cannon Movie Tales.
Once Upon a Brothers Grimm is a 1977 American made-for-television musical fantasy film starring Dean Jones and Paul Sand, directed by Norman Campbell. It follows the Brothers Grimm as they make their way to a king's palace with their magical world of fairy tales. The music was written by Mitch Leigh with lyrics by Sammy Cahn. The two-hour film premiered on CBS on November 23, 1977.
Rumpelstiltskin is a 1995 American fantasy-horror-comedy film directed by Mark Jones and starring Max Grodénchik as the title character.
The Frog Prince, aka Cannon Movie Tales: The Frog Prince is a 1986 musical film, based on the Brothers Grimm's classic fairytale. It was filmed in Tel Aviv, Israel. The tagline was "Cannon Movie Tales: Lavish, Feature length new versions of the world's best loved storybook classics."
Beauty and the Beast is a 1987 American/Israeli musical film, part of the 1980s film series Cannon Movie Tales. It is a contemporary adaptation of the classic tale of Beauty and the Beast by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont, borrowing elements from Villeneuve's version, such as the dream sequences. The film was shot entirely in Israel, and the taglines were: "The monster they feared was the prince she loved" and "The classic fairy tale about seeing with your heart".
Sleeping Beauty is a 1987 American/Israeli fantasy film, part of the 1980 film series Cannon Movie Tales. It is directed by David Irving and stars Tahnee Welch, Morgan Fairchild, Nicholas Clay and Sylvia Miles. It is a contemporary version of the classic tale of Sleeping Beauty of the Brothers Grimm and Charles Perrault. Like the other Cannon Movie Tales, the film was filmed entirely in Israel.
Rumpelstiltskin is a 1987 musical fantasy film, based on the fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. In the United States, it was the first installment of Cannon Films' Movie Tales series.
Britannica's Tales Around the World is a direct-to-video animated educational series that was released in 1990.
Hansel and Gretel is a 1987 American Israeli fantasy musical film, part of the 1980s film series Cannon Movie Tales. It is directed by Len Talan and stars David Warner, Cloris Leachman, Hugh Pollard and Nicola Stapleton. It is a contemporary version of the classic tale of Hansel and Gretel of the Brothers Grimm. Like the other Cannon Movie Tales, the film was filmed entirely in Israel.