Here Comes Peter Cottontail
Here Comes Peter Cottontail
NR | 04 April 1971 (USA)
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Peter Cottontail wants to be the #1 chief Easter Bunny, and everyone in April Valley agrees...except for Evil Irontail. Peter must deliver more eggs than this archrival to earn the top spot...and save Easter for children everywhere!

Reviews
GamerTab

That was an excellent one.

Titreenp

SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

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Alistair Olson

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

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Scotty Burke

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

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Dawalk-1

This is the very first Easter special (by Rankin-Bass or otherwise) I ever saw, I believe. One reviewer of this typed that this is actually an adaptation based on a book, which I didn't know. Another mentioned that this is a rare Easter special, which surprises me, because I grew up watching this special and it's the most well-known to me, at least, anyway. I don't even remember ever hearing of nor seeing the two, other, Rankin-Bass Easter specials when I was little at all. Although it hadn't been aired on regular t.v. in years, it aired there again for the first time, in a long time, earlier this month on CW. I don't remember what year regular t.v. aired it last before that. That was unexpected, I know for me anyway, at least.Still nevertheless, it's one of the most beloved holiday specials of all time. This is the first in the Rankin-Bass Easter special trilogy, followed by The First Easter Rabbit and The Easter Bunny Is Comin' To Town. This and the third special are stop-motion animation, whereas the second is traditionally hand-drawn. I haven't decided which of these is my most favorite yet, as I still have to see the third Easter special. The titular Easter bunny in this is to succeed in Col. Wellington B. Bunny's position in a contest to determine who will become the holiday's next chief Easter rabbit as he's retiring. Peter's competitor/opponent is another rabbit named January Q. Irontail, who is so named for his iron, prosthetic tail, which he uses as a replacement for his real tail after it was broken off when a kid accidentally skated over it. That incident made Irontail very bitter, he's held a grudge against kids ever since. Despite this, he still agreed to partake in the contest anyway, just in vindictiveness and his intention is to ruin the holiday once it arrives again. He comes up with a plan to ensure his chances of winning and Peter ends up oversleeping. After failing to keep his word and losing the contest, Peter is exiled from April Valley and Irontail becomes the new chief Easter bunny. But Peter vows to compensate and take the position that is more rightfully and suitably his. Along the quest, he meets the French caterpillar, Antoine, whose time machine transports them throughout the various holidays as Peter attempts to give away alterations of the eggs; the talking bonnet, Bonnie; and a female rabbit named Donna, among others. Peter's mission isn't quite an easy task as he has some hurtles along the way, but somehow, he manages to get and come through them in the end.I've always loved this special, the whole thing is great. I loved every minute of it. There's a recurring gag that involves one of Peter's ears flopping over whenever he fibs, among many, other moments. If anyone reading this needs great recommendations for an Easter special, then he or she can never go wrong with this. This is definitely an essential one, so come along for the ride. All of Rankin and Bass' Easter specials should be released as a triple feature DVD pack, which I don't believe ever has. And if that has never occurred, then it should be considered. Even though the second Easter special's running time is shorter than the others.

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TheLittleSongbird

I love Rankin'/Bass, their specials and their films are timeless childhood favourites. I had never seen this before and never even heard of it until three days ago, and for many reasons which I will explain later I desperately wanted to see this. Thank goodness for good ol' YouTube, for this was a fun special, that is very ideal for the Easter season.The animation is surprisingly colourful and detailed. My complaint really was the picture quality. As it was on YouTube, the quality of the video was a little fuzzy. Also, while the story is very well done and original, I do think specials like Santa Claus is Comin' To Town has a slightly stronger storyline. That said, the writing is very well done and is constantly entertaining, whether it is the references to Peter's ears drooping when he lies or the lines from IronTail. The songs are very sweet and memorable, especially If Only I Could Get Back To Yesterday and When You Can't Get It Altogether, Improvise. But what made the special was the voice acting. I just wish to add that I admire every member of the cast involved. Paul Frees does strong voice work as usual, and Casey Kasem, who I best know as Shaggy in the Scooby Doo cartoons, is a sheer delight as Peter. The villain IronTail is voiced magnificently by the brilliant Vincent Price, who is superb in everything he's in, particularly in Abominable Dr Phibes, Great Mouse Detective and Theater of Blood. And then there's the underrated and very talented Danny Kaye, who was the perfect choice for the narrator.All in all, I recommend Here Comes Peter CottonTail. It isn't my absolute favourite of the Rankin'/Bass specials, and despite one or two minor flaws, it is pretty darn good. 8/10 Bethany Cox

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Julia Arsenault (ja_kitty_71)

I love animation from Rankin/Bass, along side with Walt Disney Studios, Hanna/Barbera and Max Fleischer Studios. This is also one of my favorites (out of the three) Easter specials along with "The First Easter Rabbit" from 1976. You know, I was very lucky to buy it on DVD, because they show it on TV anymore now...DAMMIT! I love it whenever Peter lies, his left ear droops. Of course I am left-handed, so it would be the right ear. I also love the Valentine's skating party scene, where he meets Donna a cute little girl bunny. The casting for Peter Cottontail I think are top-notch, like Danny Kaye as Seymour S. Sassafras, Antoine and Col. Wellington B. Bunny; Vincent Prince as January Q. Irontail and I love the talents of Vincent Price. And Scooby Doo's Casey Kasem as Peter Cottontail himself.

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Lee Eisenberg

I must have been six when I saw "Here Comes Peter Cottontail". Now that I know who did some of the voices, that only makes the movie cooler. The plot of course has good rabbit Peter Cottontail (Casey Kasem, aka Shaggy on "Scooby-Doo") trying to become the Easter Bunny after lascivious rabbit Irontail (Vincent Price) wins the contest. Through some mishap, Peter accidentally travels through the whole year, selling eggs for every holiday.Maybe this does mostly serve as a kids' movie, but it's pretty neat. With Shaggy as the good guy, Dr. Phibes as the bad guy, and Danny Kaye as the narrator, how can you go wrong?

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