The Hobbit

Long unavailable on home video, Arthur Rankin Jr.'s excellent animated adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic fantasy is being re-released on a new label with new packaging. Featuring the voices of Orson Bean, John Huston, Otto Preminger, and Richard Boone, the story follows the trials and tribulations of little Bilbo Baggins--a kind of Walter Mitty type--who is wrested from his comfortable existence down in his hobbit hole and thrust into a battle of good and evil which threatens the very existence of Bilbo's world, the enchanted Middle Earth. Wizards, elves, dwarves, dragons, and many other fantastic creatures populate this rich made-for-TV production, which will be generally appealing to the entire family. Highly recommended. (R. Pitman)