A Flinstones Christmas (1977)

This is a charming little film. The characters are just as likable as ever and it is always great to see The Flintstones again. This movie also has a nice, warm Christmasy feeling to it. On the downside this film does lack the amount of laughs the TV show had, and the songs come out of nowhere and don't fit in well. Though this may not be the classic that the Christmas episode of the TV show, or A Flintstones Christmas Carol were, it is fun, and that is just what you want from The Flintstones.

The movie's director was Charles A. Nichols. My fellow Disney buffs might reconize his name because he directed a lot of Pluto cartoons. Charles A. Nichols had also worked as the animation director for the original TV show. Mel Blanc and Jean Vander Ply repise there roles as Barney and Wilma. Jean Vander Ply even is still the voice of Pebbles, even though Pebbles is older and can talk now. However Fred and Betty's voices have been taken over by Henry Corden, and Gay Autterson, both would voice the characters many more times in the future. This film even features some of the original Flintstones animators like Ed Barge and Hugh Fraser.

-Michael J. Ruhland