Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

I understand why some of the reviewers have fond memories of seeing "tom thumb" when they were kids. Back in 1958, the special effects were amazingly good. However, when seen today, the film comes off as very badly dated and a bit stupid. There...I said it. So, despite some wonderful George Pal effects, today it just seems like a silly and insignificant film.The story begins with a magical queen giving an old couple a 'son'--a 4 inch high one! Tom turns out to be a lot like Pinocchio--very naive and ripe to be taken advantage of by baddies. And, the baddies (Terry-Thomas and Peter Sellers) convince the little guy to steal for them--and poor Tom doesn't know what he's going. Additionally, Tom has lots of singing and dancing adventures with magic shoes, toys that come alive and the like.I guess that part of the reason the film hasn't aged well is that stop-motion has been supplanted by CGI. The computer animations simply look better and don't have a 'halo' around characters when they are superimposed onto backgrounds. Another problem is the singing and dancing--there is just too much and it probably would bore many kids. Overall, a nice film back in the day but a terribly dated one today.

Made 52 years ago and still enchanting, this MGM musical and puppetoon version of TOM THUMB is still a valid solid family delight. Told in a very European storybook manner, rather like the illustrations from a Little Golden Book, TOM THUMB unfolds into a spectacular special effects laden thrill... and no CGI all marvelous sets and over-sized art direction with amazing stop frame animation and puppet movements. It actually became more interesting for the astonishing and clever ideas edited together to make the story work. In 2009 this version might at first seem a bit too juvenile for today's kids but the simple ideas presented as a pantomime with sheer brilliance of on screen mastery and some hilarious acting by Terry Thomas Peter Sellers and Russ Tamblyn made me in middle age realize that once the lights go down and a genuinely well made film begins, it works for any person of any age. The two 8 year olds with me who are saturated with Harry Potter and Star Wars simply loved TOM THUMB and like kids of any year gone, laughed along with the beauty and wit on screen. It must have had a big budget because what I saw in scene after scene was a beautifully constructed lavish fantasy with completely convincing special effects.. made of cardboard and film. TOM THUMB still works !! What a delight. This version did not have a gollywog dance wither so it might have been the shorter version still clocking in at about 92 minutes. I saw the Gollywog but he was lying down by the time he appeared. I saw a new 35mm print in a cinema in Sydney on Jan 13, 2009. The color was rich and a bit dark and the grain obvious, but it was so clever and funny I forgot any film laboratory hardness.

Rich, colorful musical fantasy based on a Grimms fairy tale that is delightfully fun to watch. Telling the tale of a woodsman who is granted three wishes by a very beautiful blonde fairy, the Forest Queen, after he agrees to not cut down a giant oak. But he blows it on the wishes (gee, who could have guessed that would happen?!), much to the chagrin of his patient wife, by blurting out a wish for a sausage, which ends up on his nose via another wish, forcing him to use the last wish to get it off his nose - okey dokey. Luckily, the Forest Queen is very patient, apparently, for they are given a fourth wish - they would like to have a young one to play with their room full of toys, someone they can love even if he is no bigger than their thumb. Well, next thing you know, Tom Thumb (played by Russ Tamblyn) has come knocking on their door - he's tiny, but he sure can dance! He's bedded down for the night by his new "parents" and wakes up to have a magical dance party with his toys, now come to life via some really wonderful special effects. Another fun musical number features a village dance where all the dancers have purchased "talented shoes" from the cobbler that keep dancing as long as there is music. Later poor Tom gets mixed up with two villains who force him to steal bags full of gold (this part of the film was the one segment that I thought dragged the story down a bit). There is also a subplot involving a local music man (Alan Young) who is in love with the Forest Queen and doesn't realize that he can turn her into a mortal via a kiss.As a whole, this film is really a lot of fun - with great dancing, brightly colored period costumes, and trick photography which really succeeds in making Tom look small. All the actors are great in this - but Russ Tamblyn really steals this film with his marvelous, amazing, athletic skill at combining dance with gymnastics - really a fantastic talent. The music in this is fairly good, although nothing spectacular - though I must say that I saw this screened at Cinecon 43 in Hollywood four days ago (it looked great on the big screen, by the way) and I still keep finding myself humming one of the tunes from this all day long, it's really stuck in my head. Alan Young appeared in person for this screening and proved to be highly funny and entertaining during an interview after the film was shown. This would be a terrific movie for children to see, for adults I also find this film to be quite entertaining - I am partial to fantasies, this was a treat to see.

Tom Thumb is a film that can be enjoyed by all age groups its harmless fun and the special effects are really state of the arc for 1958,especially when the toys come alive the puppetoons are really fascinating to watch and should even by todays standards keep children amused.George Pal went on to direct The Wonderful World Of The Brothers Grimm which I've never been able to get round to seeing as i keep missing it on TCM,but i know its suppose to be just as good. Russ Tamblyn was the perfect choice to play the title role as he really does come across as a little boy even though he was 24 years old,his dance routines are amazing especially with the added acrobatics you cant tire from watching him he makes his routine look so easy when obviously its not. Also another great bonus is the pairing up of two of my all time favourite comedians Peter Sellers and Terry Thomas as the two dastardly villains Tony and Ivan who greedily cheat and use Tom to steal a bag of the Kings gold and let Toms parents take the blame. They weren't very often teamed up in films together but if you ever want the chance to see them paired up then this is a good opportunity. Tom Thumb is a very simple story its easy to follow and this probably makes it all the more enjoyable and suitable for young children,there's no complicated plot its just pretty basic. Also Toms theme song 'This is my song '{DOO DEE DOO DEE DOO}is very catchy and your sure to start humming it before the end of the movie.