Rock-A-Doodle [G]

It has always been the job of the rooster Chanticleer to crow and bring up the sun. But one day, he is tricked by the evil Grand Duke of Owls and forced to leave the farm, taking the sunshine with him. Facing a long time of darkness and rain, the animals of the farm set off for the city to find Chanticleer and get him to come home and bring up the sun. Young Edmund and his family are also facing troubles with the rain so when he crosses paths with the Grand Duke, who turns him from a boy into a cat, he joins forces with the animals in the hope that Chanticleer’s crow will stop the rain for good. 

For some strange reason, this film has been on my brain recently. It’s one of those films that I vaguely remember from my childhood like The Land Before Time, The Pebble and the Penguin, and Thumbelina, nowhere near to scaling the lofty heights that the classic Disney films reach, but enjoyable and sometimes quite clever. 

It has always been the job of the rooster Chanticleer to crow and bring up the sun. But one day, he is tricked by the Grand Duke of Owls and forced to leave the farm, taking the sunshine with him. Facing a long time of darkness and rain, the animals of the farm set off for the city to find Chanticleer and get him to come home and bring the sun up. Young Edmund and his family are also having their troubles with the rain so when he crosses the path of the Grand Duke, who turns him from a boy into a cat, he joins forces with the animals in the hope that Chanticleer’s crow will bring up the sun and end the rain for good. 

Watching this again as an adult, I have to say that I don’t know what I ever really saw in this film. It’s a simple story with no real reason behind it. Sort of an it-seemed-like-a-good-idea-at-the-time type thing. 

I have to say though, that the film’s musical numbers and cute and clever characters are its real strong point. Chanticleer’s character is based on Elvis, singing wonderful and catchy 50s type rock-a-billy songs that will have you bopping along, like it or not. The character of Goldie Pheasant closely resembles that of Marilyn Monroe with her golden hair and wispy voice. I thought this characterisation was kind of cute and clever. 

Featuring the voice talents of Phil Harris, Glen Campbell, Eddie Deezen, Toby Scott Granger, Sandy Duncan, Ellen Greene, and Christopher Plummer, Rock-A-Doodle is a cute little film from my childhood, but ultimately one that can only really be enjoyed by a junior audience. Filled with talking animals, magic, rain, comedy, romance, and rock-a-billy music, it’s cute, but it’s not classic.