A Magical Time (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (DVD))

Member Name: Kara l

Product:	Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (DVD)
Date:	29/10/01 (1022 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Appeals to all

Disadvantages: none

Bang Bang Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, O you pretty Chitty Bang Bang, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, We love you ……….OK! OK!
I have to stop singing this song, although it is a fine song and was nominated for an academy award in 1968.
The reason I cannot stop singing this song from the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang film, is because my 5year old has discovered this classic film.
And anyone who owns a 5 year old and a video/DVD player will know how many times a person of this age can watch a movie!


The car, which is named Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by the Potts family on their first outing in the restored car, is the centrepiece of this film. Chitty begins life as a racing car with an abrupt end to it’s career, it is then rescued from a scrap yard after Jeremy and Jemima Potts persuade their father Caractacus to buy it.

The Potts, who consist of Father, Grandfather and two children, live in a windmill, which is full of gadgets.
Caractacus is an inventor…and relishes a challenge so he decides to restore the car, and this is when the magic really begins!

Nothing runs smoothly for Caractacus and during the first outing in the car he finds that he has run a beautiful girl off the road…this same girl had previously brought his children home after they had managed to run her off the road too.
But, because this is film and not real life instead of displaying any road rage she happily joins Caractacus and his children for a picnic at the seaside! The four of them enjoy a sunny day on the beach, and then they settle down to listen to a story told by Caractacus.


Caractacus is an extremely believable storyteller and it is at this point that fact and fiction merge! Well fiction and fiction merge!
To tell anymore of the plotline will spoil for all those 5 and 6 year olds reading this Op!!!!!!!!
So at this point I will switch to another aspect of the film, as I would hate to spoil it
for them!

Once hooked into this film it has you captivated for two and a half hours, but it is time spent with a quality film. It of course, stars the enchanting singing and dancing man I remember so vividly from my childhood… Dick Van Dyke. Sally Ann Howes plays Truly Scrumptious, the beautiful girl Caractacus ran off the road towards the beginning of the film.
There are also other known faces in this cast line-up, Barbara Windsor, and Benny Hill to name two.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was originally written by Ian Flemming and the screenplay for the Chitty film was by ken Hughes and Roald Dahl. So how could this film fail with such great talent behind it!
Chitty was made in England by MGM but was targeted at an American audience, as we all know the film has had a far wider appeal and still holds it’s own 30+ years later. It was made in 1967/68, but did you know that there was more than one Chitty car made?

The Production Designer on the film Ken Adam, who enlisted the help of the Ford racing team and Alan Mann, created the original Chitty Chitty Bang bang car.
Ken Adam believed that if the film was to be about a car then the car had to be believable and not just about camera trickery. I believe he succeeded in his quest!
The car was finished in June 1967 and no detail had been spared, it weighed 2 tons, and was 17feet long. The dashboard was from a British World War 1 fighter plane and brass fittings on the car were obtained from Edwardian boat wrecks. The engine though was a modern V6 ford engine with automatic transmission, which ensured it was capable enough to drive on sand as well the road.
The other cars that were made were dummy versions for the more tricky scenes, and some of these cars did not have engines but were attached to boats or flown from a helicopter, therefore creating the flying and sailing scenes.

Pierre Picton owns the road going Chitty that is actually licensed with the pla
te Gen 11, but the Cars of the Stars museum in Keswick, also has a Chitty car on display for all to see.
According to Pierre, if you read the number plate as genii, then it becomes the Latin genii which means magical person or being….which sums up the Chitty car nicely….magical!

Another point of fascination in our household, are the buildings that adorn the screen while Chitty is on! The windmill, which is home to the Potts, was given mock sails for the film, and these actually worked very well, without much help from the wind!
Ibstone Windmill is located near Turville in Buckinghamshire, but alas, it is not open to view. (Although you can get a decent look at it if you climb the hill from Turville.)

The Castle is located in Germany and is open to the public, but as our family have not visited it (yet!) I cannot tell you if it lives up to the screen image… But if it’s half as magnificent as catching a glimpse of Ibstone windmill, then it’s worth a trip to see!
Neuschwanstein Castle was started in the 1860’s for the Bavarian King Ludwig the 2nd and was never completely finished. If you ever get to visit, a guided tour takes about 35 minutes.

There are other locations that are stunning in the film, but as I have only glanced at where they are, (and the link to the info on the net is broken) I cannot give accurate information, so I will update this opinion soon.

To sum and get back to the point, this film is one not to be missed….it has a magical feel that will take any adult back to their childhood, and keep all the family entertained for over 2 hours…..
Definitely 5 Stars from me!!

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