Thumbelina

1994 Directed by Gary Goldman, Don Bluth

Follow your heart and nothing is impossible.

The tiny girl meets a fairy prince who saves her from the creatures of the woods.

Gino Conforti Barbara Cook Jodi Benson Will Ryan June Foray Kenneth Mars Gary Imhoff Joe Lynch Charo Danny Mann Loren Lester Kendall Cunningham Tawny Sunshine Glover Michael Nunes Gilbert Gottfried Pat Musick Neil Ross Carol Channing John Hurt Tony Jay Randy Crenshaw Stevie Vallance

87 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by QDB ½ 5

Don Bluth was a former Disney employee who became disillusioned with the company after their age of mediocrity following Walt Disney’s death and decided to strike out on his own to compete with Disney by showing people what painstakingly hand drawn animation and more mature story telling could do for the animation industry. Don Bluth actually succeeded at competing with Disney in the 80s with a string of hits (winners are based on my opinions, not reflective of box-office intake):
Don Bluth vs. Disney
The Secret of NIMH (1982) vs.
The Fox and the Hound (1981)
Winner: Both Films Tie
An American Tail (1986) vs.
The Great Mouse Detective (1986)
Winner: Disney
The Land Before Time (1988) vs.
Oliver & Company…
Review by olivia ★★★½ 5

20x5 - directors // (3/100)
don bluth (film 3)
indie arthouse cinema at its finest, folks. filmé in its most pivotal form. this is cinematic excellence. i'm just looking for my fairy prince to sweep me off my feet too. maybe if i sing a song like thumbelina he'll magically find me. with a better haircut, though, i hope.. sprinkle some pixie dust onto *me*, my good sir 🧚‍♂️✨😌 although i will say that thumbelina is quite dumb, and the whole damsel in distress thing is as tired as me when i don't sleep. which is.. always. but that's neither here nor there. also the villain beetle guy wanted to be a beetlejuice remix of jack frost so bad. try again my guy :/
Review by suzanne by leonard cohen ★★

all men drawn by don bluth is the same
Review by suzanne by leonard cohen ★★

this movie is a garbage fire but i'll be damned if the soundtrack doesn't slap
Review by carolinesfarts ★★★★★

many thanks to the Beetle Ball and Cornelius for my sexual awakening!
Review by Travis Lytle ★★½ 4

There is something almost weirdly charming about "Thumbelina," Don Bluth's sub-Disney foray into the animated fairy tale game. The film is a mixed bag of character types and animation styles (some endearing, some not); and its story can't decide if it's a rote romance or a more daring tale of a girl who wants the spotlight...and then becomes engaged to a tiny menagerie of forest folk. The whole experience feels like a small town repertory company trying to do big Broadway: everbody tries really hard, but the end product is more miss than hit.
Review by Liz ★★★ 2

Thumbelina never gave a shit about what was happening to her when there was a song involved. She’s wholly against marrying the mole until that mouse woman sings a song about it, then she’s in the corner jazz handsing.
Review by jaydeqt ★★★ 13

Guilty pleasure - pretty weird themes for a children’s movie like; arranged marriage, kidnapping, only being with someone your size, xenophobia, etc.
Review by Warhawk ★★½

I used to find the romance cute and a couple of the songs are nice. Aside from liking the "Marry the Mole" song and the characters of Thumbelina and Cornelius though this movie doesn't offer much else. The villains are boring and Bluth doesn't feel like he is breaking new ground here, just treading over his old stomping grounds. I was pretty checked out for most of the film and even though I liked Thumbelina's take charge attitude at the end, this movie didn't impress me at all.
Review by Malakie ★★½

I'm like embarrassed that I wanted to watch this but I was thinking recently about how I didn't remember anything that happens in this movie even though I'm pretty sure I watched it a lot as a kid but now I'm thinking there's a chance that I'd never actually watched this all the way through before because maybe my kid self had more discerning taste than I'd given her credit for because I think actually I used to start this movie a lot and then leave the room immediately due to the fact that this movie is frightening and everyone in it is either a lecherous villain or a villainous lech!! But can you blame me for wanting to love…
Review by Jay D 's Watching ★

Animation 2019 Challenge week 41 - A film from the Disney Renaissance Period
This Bluth/Goldman collaboration looks cheap and ugly-Don Bluth Entertainment went bankrupt before it limped to theaters in the '90s, and the level of animation quality feels notably rushed and lacking. Character designs are broad caricatures, some swerving into racist territory, and there's a lack of any detail or polish that might render the environments or the individuals more compelling or well-rounded. The story manages to both drag and be cringeworthy (basically Thumbelina beating off a parade of suitors while she waits for her boyfriend to thaw from an ice cube) and the music, supervised by uh, Barry Manilow of all people, is really not what kids in…
Review by ivylong ★★★★

Literally naming your kid “Thumbelina” seems like kind of a dick move.

Recent reviews

Review by alex6604 ★★★★

A beautiful film I watched on the plane, apart from the annoying bird with the bad french accent it was a surprisingly nice and wholesome film. I enjoyed the complex nature of the adventure the main character goes through and the songs were super catchy too! Although some situations seemed somewhat random, it was still wrapped up really well.
Review by Liz ★★★ 2

Thumbelina never gave a shit about what was happening to her when there was a song involved. She’s wholly against marrying the mole until that mouse woman sings a song about it, then she’s in the corner jazz handsing.
Review by Deirdre Sokolowska ★★★★★

I don't know what the fuck is wrong with everyone else but this movie is still amazing. Jacquimo is such a pal.
Review by Warhawk ★★½

I used to find the romance cute and a couple of the songs are nice. Aside from liking the "Marry the Mole" song and the characters of Thumbelina and Cornelius though this movie doesn't offer much else. The villains are boring and Bluth doesn't feel like he is breaking new ground here, just treading over his old stomping grounds. I was pretty checked out for most of the film and even though I liked Thumbelina's take charge attitude at the end, this movie didn't impress me at all.
Review by Deiner ★½

Maybe rewatching childhood movies is not a good idea...
Review by kneedles ★★★

3 stars for nostalgia but there’s like a lot of sexual assault for a kids movie? anyone else agree?
“all they had to do is suck face and she got wings? why didn’t she do that right away?” - Nicole
Review by Taylor Autumn

This was Jess’ favorite as a kid, and she always roasted me for never watching it-not even when I played Thumbelina on tour. SO on my last day in town we finally watched!
You just have to accept it for what it is. The story of Thumbelina feels really special to me now, so this was fun. And the music is NEXT LEVEL, there is no denying
Review by ladyinthewater ★★

There are so many problems in this movie.
The prince is 16 and I'd assume Thumbelina is about the same age, and she already thinks about marriage?? Bagaimana mungkin Thumbelina baru lahir, seujug-ujug udah mikirin ada atau tidaknya pasangan hidup buat dia?? Sedih juga emaknya yang udah lama pingin punya anak, just to have her 'taken away' in such short period.
Gw ngerti filmnya ngadaptasi langsung dari fairy tales tapi itu kan ga relevan dengan masa sekarang (masa itu deh, filmnya taun 90-an kan?). Sedih sekali kalo dipikir bahwa Thumbelina ga punya ambisi lain selain nikah. Dikirain kalo udah sama orang, ga bakal ada masalah kali ya? Untung diingetin sama si kodok penyanyi itu, tapi abis itu si kodok langsung…
Review by popularhistoria ★★★

Beautiful animation, some gorgeous songs, and memorable characters. I just wish the movie was more focused.
Review by gabbieuhrik ★★★★★

This was my favorite movie as a child and I literally don't remember a single thing about it but i'm just gonna assume I had good taste & give it 5 stars
Review by paul morrison ★½

My daughter Rebecca (4 yrs) didn’t like this one as much as the Disney movies. She asked after 20 minutes if the film had much longer to go, I rest my case.
Review by raia ★★½

can this girl catch a break ??