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Hans Christian Andersen (film)

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Hans Christian Andersen
Theatrical release poster
Directed byCharles Vidor
Written byMoss Hart
Story byMyles Connolly
Produced bySamuel Goldwyn
StarringDanny Kaye
Farley Granger
Zizi Jeanmaire
CinematographyHarry Stradling
Edited byDaniel Mandell
Music byWalter Scharf
Frank Loesser
Production
company
Distributed byRKO Radio Pictures
Release date
  • November 25, 1952 (1952-11-25) (New York)[1]
Running time
112 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$4 million
Box office$6 million (U.S. rentals)[2]

Hans Christian Andersen is a 1952 Hollywood musical film directed by Charles Vidor, produced by Samuel Goldwyn and starring Danny Kaye, Farley Granger and Zizi Jeanmaire. The screenplay was written by Moss Hart and Ben Hecht based on a story by Myles Connolly.

Although the film is nominally about Hans Christian Andersen, the 19th-century Danish author of many world-famous fairy tales, the film is a romantic fiction and does not follow his actual life. Andersen is portrayed as a small-town cobbler with a childlike heart and a vivid imagination.

A large part of the narrative is told through ballet and song, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser. Many of Andersen's most famous stories, such as The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina, The Emperor's New Clothes and The Little Mermaid are referenced. The film was an international success at the box office. It was Danny Kaye's final film to be produced by Samuel Goldwyn.[3]

Plot

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In the 1830s in the small Danish town of Odense, cobbler Hans Christian Andersen spends his day spinning fairy tales for the village children. One day, the stern schoolmaster implores the burgomaster and councilmen to curtail Hans' habit of distracting the students with his storytelling. Hans finally returns to his shop, where his teenage assistant, the orphan Peter, begs him to stop causing trouble.

When the children do not arrive at school the next day, the schoolmaster deduces that Hans is again distracting them and Hans is banished from the town. Peter tries to save Hans by suggesting that they travel to Copenhagen.

After a sea voyage, Hans and Peter arrive in Copenhagen. When Hans stands on a statue of the king, police arrest him for defaming the image of their leader. Peter, who has sought refuge from the police by hiding by the back entrance of the Royal Theatre, overhears choreographer Niels demand that a company producer summon a cobbler and asks them to free Hans from jail.

Hans sees a lonely young girl outside his jail cell window and offers to introduce her to his companion. By drawing on his thumb, Hans creates a puppet called Thumbelina and delights the girl. Hans is freed from jail when the theater company posts his bail and he is taken to the theater, where he becomes entranced by the beauty and talent of a Royal Danish Ballet rehearsal. Lead ballerina Doro, whose slippers need adjustment, gives them to Hans, who is immediately smitten with her. Peter learns that Niels and Doro are happily married despite their theatrical quarrels. Hans writes a love letter to Doro in the form of a fable called The Little Mermaid, telling her that she has chosen the wrong man. That night, while Peter surreptitiously reads the letter, a gust of wind whisks it from his hands and carries it into the theater, where a stage doorman delivers it to Doro.

The next day, the entire ballet company embarks on their annual tour, leaving Hans bereft, but he soon finds comfort entertaining a new group of children with his stories. Lars, a sad boy with a shaved head, remains behind after the other children tease him. Hans tells him the story of an ugly duckling who is ostracized by his peers until he becomes a handsome swan. Hans counts the days by making numerous pairs of brightly colored satin slippers for Doro.

Lars' father, a newspaper publisher, thanks Hans for helping his son and offers to publish The Ugly Duckling in the newspaper. Hans is overjoyed and asks to be credited as Hans Christian Andersen, running in the street singing his full name with pride.

When the ballet company returns, Doro tells Hans that they have created a ballet based on his story The Little Mermaid, which Hans believes is a sign of her love for him. Peter warns Hans that Doro will humiliate him.

At the opening of the new ballet, Hans tries to deliver Doro's slippers backstage, but Niels locks him in a closet to prevent him from disrupting the performers. While Hans listens to the music and dreams of his story, the performance opens on the stage.

The next morning, Doro summons Hans and discovers that he is in love with her and has misunderstood her relationship with Niels. When Niels interrupts their conversation and insults Hans by offering to pay him for The Little Mermaid, Hans refuses the offer and claims that his writing was a fluke. Doro accepts the slippers and allows Hans to leave, upset that she has unwittingly broken the heart of such a kind and gifted man. On the road to Odense, Hans meets Peter and renews their friendship. Upon reaching town, Hans is greeted as a celebrity and regales the citizens, including the schoolmaster, with his moral tales.

Cast

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Production

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Producer Samuel Goldwyn conceived the idea for the film in 1936 and employed numerous writers to work on early drafts of the screenplay over the years. In 1941, he was reportedly in discussions with Walt Disney Studios to produce the film, but the deal did not materialize.[4]

The film was eventually produced in the spring of 1952.[4] As Danish authorities were not consulted on the film, there were complaints from Denmark that the film was a fairy tale rather than the true story of Andersen's life,[5] and the Danish Foreign Office considered issuing a formal protest against the film.[4]

Soundtrack

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The soundtrack features eight songs, all with words and music by Frank Loesser.

A studio cast recording of was released by Decca Records and includes two Sylvia Fine originals written specifically for the album, "Uncle Pockets" and "There's a Hole at the Bottom of the Sea", as well as Danny Kaye's narration of two "Tubby the Tuba" stories by Paul Tripp. The songs were originally released as a series of four 78-rpm singles, with two songs per disc, a 45-rpm album and a 10" LP.

The music for The Little Mermaid ballet incorporates passages from various pieces by Franz Liszt, including "Gnomenreigen" and the Mephisto Waltzes.[citation needed]

Release

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The film premiered in New York on November 25, 1952 at the Paris Theatre and Criterion Theatre, and received a general release in both the United States and United Kingdom on December 19.[4] The film opened in Copenhagen on September 6, 1953.[6]

Reception

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In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Bosley Crowther called the film "as pretty and graceful a picture as has come down the rocky pike this year" and wrote: "Mr. Hart has not created a character for Mr. Kaye to play, let alone a credible reflection of the famous Danish teller of tales. His Hans Christian Andersen is lumpish, humorless and wan. No wonder Mr. Kaye is unable to stoke up magnetism in the role. However, he does bravely manage to make merry with Mr. Loesser's songs and convey something of the jovial spirit of a musical fairy tale. ... Withal, the staging is handsome, in a story-book cut-out style, and even though the motif isn't Danish, exactly, it has a cheerful air."[1]

In its first six days at two theaters in Copenhagen, the film grossed $80,000.[6] It ultimately grossed $6 million in North America, making it one of the top-ten grossing films of the year.[2]

Awards

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Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
Academy Awards Best Art Direction – Color Art direction: Richard Day and Antoni Clavé;
Set decoration: Howard Bristol		 Nominated [7][8][4]
Best Cinematography – Color Harry Stradling Nominated
Best Costume Design – Color Antoni Clavé, Mary Wills and Barbara Karinska Nominated
Best Scoring of a Musical Picture Walter Scharf Nominated
Best Song "Thumbelina"
Music and lyrics by Frank Loesser		 Nominated
Best Sound Recording Gordon E. Sawyer Nominated
Directors Guild of America Awards Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures Charles Vidor Nominated [9]
Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Nominated [10]
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Danny Kaye Nominated
Writers Guild of America Awards Best Written American Musical Moss Hart and Myles Connolly Nominated [11]

In 2004, "Thumbelina" was nominated for inclusion in the American Film Institute's AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs list.[12] In 2006, the film was nominated for inclusion in the AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals list.[13]

Legacy

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The film was first telecast by ABC in 1966. Because the film is too long for a two-hour time slot, ABC presented it as a family special with Dane Victor Borge as host, padding the telecast to 150 minutes.[citation needed]

"Inchworm" was featured in a Season 3 episode of The Muppet Show in which Danny Kaye appeared as the guest star.[citation needed]

References

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  1. 1 2 Crowther, Bosley (November 26, 1952). "The Screen in Review". The New York Times. p. 20.
  2. 1 2 "Top Grossers of 1953". Variety. 193 (6): 10–11. January 13, 1954.
  3. ↑ "Hans Christian Andersen (1952) Why is it that the "Hollywood ending" or the "fairytale ending" has become something to be... – @dweemeister on Tumblr". www.tumblr.com. Retrieved July 26, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Hans Christian Andersen at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
  5. ↑ "Looks Like Nearly All Is Forgiven Goldwyn By Once-Irked Danes". Variety. September 23, 1953. p. 7. Retrieved October 8, 2019 – via Archive.org.
  6. 1 2 "'Hans' 80G in 6 Days, May Set Records in 2 B'Way Theatres". Daily Variety. p. 3.
  7. ↑ "The 25th Academy Awards (1953) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on July 6, 2011. Retrieved August 20, 2011.
  8. ↑ "NY Times: Hans Christian Andersen". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2009. Archived from the original on October 3, 2009. Retrieved December 21, 2008.
  9. ↑ "5th Annual DGA Awards". Directors Guild of America Awards. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Hans Christian Andersen". Golden Globe Awards. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Awards Winners". Writers Guild of America Awards. Retrieved June 10, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  12. ↑ "AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs Nominees" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 17, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  13. ↑ "AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals Nominees" (PDF). Retrieved August 13, 2016.
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