Jump to content

Gumby: The Movie

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Espngeek (talk | contribs) at 12:06, 1 June 2021 (→Home media). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Gumby: The Movie
Theatrical release poster
Directed byArt Clokey
Written byArt Clokey
Gloria Clokey
Produced byArt Clokey
Gloria Clokey
Kevin Reher
Starring
CinematographyArt Clokey
Edited byMarilyn McCoppen
Lynn Stevenson
Music byJerry Gerber
Marco D'Ambrosio
Songs:
Ozzie Ahlers
Gloria Clokey
Production
companies
Distributed byArrow Releasing Inc.
Release date
  • October 4, 1995 (1995-10-04)
Running time
90 minutes
76 minutes (director's cut)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$2.8 million[1]
Box office$57,100[2]

Gumby: The Movie (also referred to as its on-screen title Gumby 1) is a 1995 American stop-motion surrealist claymation adventure film featuring the character Gumby.[3][4]

The film was released on October 4, 1995, and the fim was panned by critics, and was a box-office flop, earning only $57,100 against its $2.8 million budget at the US box office, although much of its financial failure can be attributed to its very limited theatrical rollout. The film did, however, achieve a cult status among its fan base, especially on home media and to the point of a 2007 remastered showing at the Tribeca Film Festival.[5]

Plot

When the Blockheads' E-Z Loan company threatens to take away the farms belonging to the small farmers due to being unable to make their loan payments, Gumby and his band, the Clayboys, decide to have a benefit concert to save the farms. But when the evil Blockheads find out that Gumby's dog, Lowbelly, cries pearls when he sees the Clayboys perform, they decide to kidnap Lowbelly and force him to cry pearls (initially unaware that Lowbelly was only crying whenever Gumby changed his shape). Lowbelly doesn't respond to the Blockheads' initial attempt, but the Blockheads subsequently are informed by computer analysis that they need Gumby to extract the pearls, so they kidnap Gumby and the Clayboys in order to create robotic clones of them.

With the help of Pokey, Prickle, Goo, fans Tara and Ginger, and talent agent Lucky Claybert, Gumby takes on his robot clone and is still in time for his videotaping session in agreement with Claybert. At a picnic, Gumby announces that he's opening his own farm-centered loan company that will give reasonable loans for its customers. The Blockheads are forced to weed Gumby's garden as punishment, and the eponymous duo Gumby and Pokey decide that things are looking up for them as they head back to outer space.[6]

Cast

  • Dallas McKennon (as Charles Farrington) voices Gumby: a young green boy made of clay
    • McKennon also voices Professor Kapp: an exuberant scientist with a voice like Ed Wynn; Fatbuckle: a red man with a big belt (his name is a play on "Fatty" Arbuckle);[7] Lucky Claybert: a Groucho-like talent agent who makes a music video called "Gumbymania" (although it's officially known as "Take Me Away" in the credits); and Nobuckle: a yellow man with a New Jersey accent
  • Art Clokey voices Pokey: a talking red horse and Gumby's best friend
    • Clokey also voices Prickle: a yellow dinosaur with Mel Blanc–like voice and Gumbo: Gumby's dad
  • Gloria Clokey voices Goo: a blue flying teenage mermaid
  • Manny La Carruba voices Thinbuckle: a blue teenager with a thin belt. A teenager much like Gumby and Goo.
  • Patti Morse (speaking voice)/Melisa Kary (singing voice) voices Tara: a light blue female and Gumby's love interest
  • Alice Young voices Ginger: Tara's best friend
  • Janet MacDuff voices Gumba: Gumby's mom
  • Bonnie Rudolph voices Lowbelly: the dog who cries pearls every time he sees Gumby change shapes
    • Rudolph also voices Farm Lady
  • Ozzie Ahlers voices Radio Announcer
  • Kirby Coleman voices the "This Way 'N That" singer
  • Anthony McNulty voices "Burnzy"
  • David Archer
  • Lillian Nicol
  • Rick Warren
  • Stan Freberg (uncredited)

Production

Production on Gumby: The Movie was completed in 1992.[8] Despite this, Premavision was unable to find a distributor for the film until 1995, when they found a small company called Arrow Releasing (not to be confused with Arrow Films). John R. Dilworth, who would later be known for creating Cartoon Network's Courage the Cowardly Dog, served as the film's animation consultant.

The musical score was composed by Jerry Gerber, who previously worked on the television series, and Marco D'Ambrosio. Additionally, Ozzie Ahlers wrote and produced the featured songs "Take Me Away", "Ark Park" and "This Way'n That". Ahlers was also responsible for hiring frequent collaborator and Starship guitarist Craig Chaquico to play the electric guitar parts.[9]

Release

Box office

Gumby: The Movie was released on October 4, 1995, by Arrow Releasing, but received only a limited release in 21 theaters. The film grossed $57,100 at the box office.[2]

Critical reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 20% based on reviews from 5 critics.[10]

David Kronke of The Los Angeles Times described the screenplay as "tired and listless", and criticized the dialogue as unsophisticated and hastily assembled.[11]

Common Sense Media rated the movie a two out of five stars, stating, "The animation in this feature film edition might feel old-fashioned and clumsy; the story bland and simplistic. It's slow going, not terribly funny, and it's repetitive. Still it has a quirky charm that kids respond to, especially the grown-up "kids" who are long-time fans and enjoy the memories that repeat viewings provide."[12]

Several critics focused on the animation, particularly how it incorporated less advanced technology than films like Toy Story (1995), Pocahontas (1995), and stop-motion features like The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993).[13][14]

Home media

The film was released on home video on VHS by KidVision[15] and Astral Home Video on December 26, 1995; it would be the former company's final release before becoming defunct. The next year, Warner Home Video released the film on VHS which became a top-10 seller.[16] It was released on DVD by Classic Media on April 22, 2008.[17] NCircle Entertainment released the film on Blu-ray September 5, 2017.[18]

RiffTrax released their own commentary of the film on May 28, 2021.[19][20]

References

  1. ^ Harary, Keith (October 1994). "The World According to Gumby". Omni.
  2. ^ a b "Gumby: The Movie (1995)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
  3. ^ Quintanilla, Michael (1993-11-27). "For Feat of Clay, He's Left a Lasting Impression". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
  4. ^ "Gumby Gets A Shot At The Movies". Chicago Tribune. 1995-09-14. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
  5. ^ Gumby: The Movie|2007 Tribeca Festival|Tribeca
  6. ^ Turner Classic Movies
  7. ^ Clokey, Joan Rock; Clokey, Joe (2017-11-15). Gumby Imagined: The Story of Art Clokey and his Creations. Dynamite Entertainment. ISBN 978-1-5241-0437-5.
  8. ^ Priebe, Ken (4 February 2011). "'The Advanced Art of Stop-Motion Animation': History of Stop-Motion Feature Films: Part 3". Animation World Network. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  9. ^ Chaquico, Craig (Spring 2004). "Gathering of the Tribes Newsletter" (PDF). Official Craig Chaquico Fan Club. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  10. ^ "Gumby: The Movie (1995)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2021-01-01.
  11. ^ DAVID KRONKE (December 4, 1995). "MOVIE REVIEW; 'The Gumby Movie': Toys, No Story". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2021-01-11.
  12. ^ Renee Schonfeld (12 December 2011). "Gumby, The Movie - Movie Review". Common Sense Media.
  13. ^ "Gumby seems a little green in his first big-screen role". The Philadelphia Inquirer. September 29, 1995. p. 158. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  14. ^ Harvey, Dennis (December 4, 1995). "Gumby: The Movie". Variety. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  15. ^ WorldCat.org
  16. ^ Licensing Diary-Gumby at 40
  17. ^ Amazon.com
  18. ^ NCircle Entertainment.com
  19. ^ Rifftrax
  20. ^ Preview on Rifftrax's official YouTube channel
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gumby:_The_Movie&oldid=1026288496"