Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Review

My Rating: 7/10

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is pretty much one of those classic family films. It has enjoyable characters, very fun music and a family friendly story. It wasn't as enjoyable as I thought it would be but it's still one great family adventure as they fly in the classic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang car. With the help of famous children's books writer Roald Dahl, no wonder the film seems so inventive. The film has a child catcher, a flying car and even Bulgaria not allowing children. I thought those ideas where creative and 'barbaric' if you could say so. It sort of gives that Dahl kind of feeling, for those who have seen films like Willy Wonka (or better yet, read the book). I know the book was written by Ian Flemming but just saying.

Plot:

The story takes us on a magical journey with Caractacus Potts (Dick Van Dyke), a loving father to his two delightful children Jeremy and Jemima. The film takes place during the early 1900's. They have a nice strong relationship and the father is an inventor (however most of his inventions don't work.) But that's not all the family. Least we not forget about Grandpa Potts (Lionel Jeffries), the eccentric war veteran who usually hangs out in his little shed, no bigger than a closet. Along our journey of following these characters we bump into Truly Scrumptious, played by Sally Ann Howes. Later in the film we have encounters of inventions, sweet factories and flying cars. Half way through the film, the adventure takes us to Bulgaria. This is where we meet even more strange things like Baron Bomburst and The child catcher. A lot happens throughout the film so I’ll leave it to you to see the rest.

Mr Potts disguised as a toy.

The Characters:

The first character I’m dying to talk about is the Child catcher. This long nosed ballerina moving character is evil, manipulative and most of all, comedic to see. He’s almost like some sort of paedophile in some scenes with the way he lures the children. I think the child catcher is one of my favourite characters in this film despite that he only really appears in 2-3 scenes.

Baron Bomburst is another fine character. He wines like a child, and is spoilt like one. Les not forget his hatred against his wife as we see his attempts to murder her. Dick Van Dyke did an excellent job as Caractacus Potts. Potts is the loving father of his children, a brave man and an inventor. We see his strange inventions in the film, and he invents one called ‘Toot Sweets’. Basically they are sweets with holes in them. Truly Scrumptious (Sally Ann Howes) is another great character. In the beginning of the film the children are running home and 

Truly almost hits them in her classic early 1900’s automobile. So she takes them back to their father in her car and she discovers how strange a man Mr Potts is.  There are several small characters in this film that where pretty interesting but I shall not bore you.

A flying and floating vehicle!

I thought the way the car transformed into the aeroplane and boat was pretty inventive, but I have to admit that when it first transforms into a boat it’s really stupid. We see Mr Potts telling the children a story as it fades into the fantasy story. Then we return and can clearly see the and around the vehicle and Mr Potts says “As I have been telling you the story. The tides come in”. All of a sudden there’s water around them. But that’s just a minor silly thing in the film. The car is very interesting to see as it floats on the water, and flies in the air.

The sudden tide change.

Bulgaria

I would love to know why Dahl and the other writers decided to set it in Bulgaria. When we arrive to Bulgaria we discover that CHILDREN are not allowed. We also see the reactions of Baron Bomburst’s wife with children in the scene with her fainting. We also meet the Toy maker in Bulgaria. He makes toys exclusively for the toy maker, and as I said he is just a big child. We also meet the child catcher as I’ve said and later in the film we meet all the children who live under Bulgaria. It’s such a strange law, banning children. It is very logic defying and I don’t even need to tell you why because it’s easy to see.

A Great Soundtrack:

The Toot-Sweets song sequence.

I don’t mind a good musical number as long as it’s nice to see and listen too. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang had some very enjoyable songs, and my favourite being “The old Bamboo. Not only was it a great song, but the dancing performance was very impressive and very entertaining. I also liked the Toot sweets musical number that takes place in the Sweets Factory. It was a fairly enjoyable soundtrack throughout the film. And of course we can’t forget about the classic ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ theme. It’s a classic.

Overview:

I expected this to have a higher rating on Rotten Tomatoes because I always thought it was seen as one of those family classics like Willy Wonka and the chocolate Factory and The Wizard Of Oz (of course it’s nothing compared to these). A great cast of characters and a great journey in a magical flying car. The film is a family friendly, logic-defying caper well worth checking out!

Ratings:

Story: 83%

Characters: 82%

Emotion: 73%

Visuals & Editing: 70%

Direction & Cinematography: 78%
Music: 79%

Overall: 78%