There's more charm to this Disney musical than has been given credit for, even though a huge fan base obviously exists for it. The film was overshadowed by the memory of Disney's previous big movie musical where another British actress (Julie Andrews) shot to super-stardom playing a nanny with extraordinary powers. Here, Angela Lansbury is a wanna be witch who ends up in charge of three kids against her will and assists the British in fighting the Krauts of World War I with the help of her own magic powers.

The same song-writing team of Robert and Richard Stevenson have created an equally engaging score, and I think it even tops the one for "Mary Poppins". Lansbury wins your heart immediately when she berates her cranky charges for being past that "Age of Not Believing" then takes them onto a magical journey into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean and into a magical island with its own Lion King and a horde of eccentric soccer playing animals, all with the assistance of her witch professor phony David Tomlinson.

More eccentric than his disciplining father from "Mary Poppins", Tomlinson is more than welcomed back and a great co-star for Lansbury. He is hysterically funny in the partly animated soccer match where he is the referee and takes more than his share of abuse from this mythical animal kingdom. Fresh from her success as Broadway's "Mame" (with a few flops in between that have become cult classics thanks to her presence in them),Lansbury proves herself worthy of the movie musical, having been sadly dubbed most of the time when she was at MGM during their heyday.

There's a bit of a Harry Potter and "Wicked" feeling to this story with quite the influence of the late 60's/early 70's Broadway feel in the live-action musical numbers. The lyrics are cleverly difficult to sing along with and may have you laughing as you try, especially the final number where Lansbury gets her witchcraft right in aiding a museum filled with ancient war artifacts to take on the German army.

Another "Mary Poppins" veteran is back, Lansbury's old MGM co-star Reginald Owen, in one of his final appearances, and Roddy McDowall is amusingly effete as the British preacher who keeps popping in to check on the kiddies. Disney would obviously be influenced by this many years later when making their modern day musical classics such as "The Little Mermaid", "Beauty and the Beast" (by casting Lansbury in a key role) and "The Lion King".

"Bedknobs and Broomsticks" isn't a bad movie. However, it's certainly among the lesser animated movies Disney has made...mostly because the film seems like it's jam-packed with filler...and barely enough plot to merit 45 minutes...let alone 117 minutes.

The film is set in Britain in 1940....during WWII. Miss Price (Angela Lansbury) is a unique woman who spends her time taking correspondance classes on witchcraft. However, when some kids are thrust into her care because of the Blitz, they all have various adventures....leading to a climactic encounter with a raiding party of German soldiers.

So why am I so indifferent to the film? Much of it is focus...or the lack of it. Instead of sticking with the plot, the story goes off to Portobello Road...where all sorts of singing and dancing occurs (thus boring the kids for whom the film is intended). Then, instead of returning to the story, it goes off on an extended animated segment that is enjoyable BUT has pretty much nothing to do with the plot. Overall, a few nice moments and a good ending but otherwise forgettable songs and a plot that is beyond just meandering.

Mary Poppins is definitely much better, but this is a lovely film nonetheless. Angela Lansbury is splendidly dotty as Engletine Price, and David Tomlinson has great fun as Mr. Brown. Their chemistry was just brilliant as well. The children, however just lacked the same sparkle, though Paul is very funny and cute. The songs were actually not as bad as some people say, "Beautiful Briny Sea" is the best, in fact all the songs are outstanding. The special effects were wonderful, that had plenty of magic, and the story is original enough. The highlights, though, like Mary Poppins, were the animated sequences. The underwater sequence was beautiful, but my favourite was the football match, which was absolutely hilarious. The only other criticism was that I didn't quite get the ending when I first saw it. All in all, a lovely film, that is hardly ever on. 8/10 Bethany Cox