Have you ever seen the film, or read the book, called The Snowman? It was written by Raymond Briggs. It’s a beautiful story, both the animated and book versions. It’s sold more than 8.5 million copies worldwide.
If you are unfamiliar with the story, The Snowman follows the wonderful adventures of a young boy and the remarkable Snowman he creates. This iconic story was adapted into an Oscar-nominated movie that first debuted in 1982, which will be airing on Sprout this holiday season.
Here is an interesting fact – The Snowman is celebrating it’s 30th anniversary! Wow! I didn’t realize the story has been around for that long.
In honor if it’s anniversary there is a squeal to the beloved story called The Snowman and the Snowdog. If you loved the first story you are sure to love this one just as much.
The Snowman and the Snowdog is made out of 17,000 HAND DRAWN and colored frames. WOW! It also took 30 animators to make and together they used 3,000 colored pencils.
The brand-new charming sequel, The Snowman and the Snowdog, will also debut on Sprout.
The Snowman and the Snowdog picks up what I am assuming is a few years after the first film. A young boy and his mom move into the same house as the original film (but the neighborhood looks different). They bring with them the boy’s elderly dog. Sadly the dog dies a few months later and the young boy is very sad about his loss.
It was just before Christmas and the young boy thought it would write a letter to Santa and ask him for another dog. When he was rushing downstairs to give the letter to his mom to mail out he trips and loosens one of the floorboards. When he goes to fix it he finds some toys and a box hidden underneath. Inside the box is a hat, scarf, coal, a dried up orange and a photo of a young boy (the one from the original story) standing next to a snowman. Just as he opens the box it starts to snow.
The young boy can’t contain his excitement. After he eats he heads out to the backyard to build the same snowman that was in the photo.
Missing his beloved dog the young boy also builds a snowdog out of some extra snow, some mismatched socks for ears and mittens for spots. He even used the dried up orange that he found in the box for it’s nose (he had given the snowman a new orange nose).
That night, at the stroke of midnight, the boy awakens when he hears a dog barking. He looks outside and cannot believe his eye. The snowdog moved!
The young boy rushes outside to discover both the snowman and the snowdog have magically come alive.
The trio spend the rest of the night on a magical adventure that involves skiing penguins, a lot of snowmen, flying and Santa.
What happens at daybreak? Will the young boys adventure continue or will he have to return to his home? And what will become of his two near friends? To find out you need to pick up a copy of The Snowman and the Snowdog available where most films are sold.
This is a beautiful movie. It runs for a little less than 30 minutes. I think the colored pencils really give it a lot of character. I think the medium also makes the movie more magical.
I could have done without the dog dying in the beginning, but aside from that I loved the movie. It was sweet. The animation is beautiful.
If you are a fan of the original Snowman you might have seen the plush Snowman doll. Now you can also purchase the Snowdog too, complete with his mismatched sock “ears” and mitten “spots”. I don’t know what age the plush dog is appropriate for but I don’t see any swallowing hazards. It should be fine for little ones. He’s oh-so-soft-and-snuggly! The same applies to the cute Snowman plush too.
You can find Snowman products are available on Amazon. The movies are also available in the iTunes Christmas shop.
For more information you can visit the official site of The Snowman™ as well as the official Facebook page.
Are you fan of The Snowman? Do you plan on catching The Snowman and the Snowdog on Sprout? Feel free to share your thoughts.
Kimberly
*I received free product samples in order to do this review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.
Richard Hicks says
This seems like a very sweet movie. I want to take the kids to see it!
ellen beck says
I read the book quite some time ago and I agree it is so sweet. It is about time they made this one into a movie!
Jenn says
Adorable! I love how soft and cuddly he looks.
Debbie Welchert says
I have never heard of this movie but it sounds really cute. I would love to see the first one too. I know my grandchildren would enjoy them.
Tammy S says
I love the Snowman book. It’s a classic that I used to read to my kids all the time. I think it’s great that they have created as sequel.
Jennifer says
My husband used to watch this as a kid all the time! The DVD is still around somewhere…