Once Upon a Time (1973)

I love this movie so much

Simply Perfect

Sadly Over-hyped

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

ONCE UPON A TIME is a West German fairytale compilation heavily indebted to the Walt Disney classics of old. It suffers from a real cheapness in terms of look and tone, with crude animation throughout and animated characters who are more than a little unpleasant. The version I saw, available for showing on Amazon Prime, suffered from having a typically blunt American dub job which took away any nuance that might have once existed. The plot is original but a bizarre mix of the most famous fairy tales of old, with elements of the Cinderella story popping up regularly.

I was doing laundry one day and all of a sudden I had a flashback of watching this movie about a beautiful young woman who has a horrible stepsister and stepmother, the girl meets and falls in love with a handsome prince, the girl and her stepsister fall into a well and enter this magical world where they are tested of their heart. There are crying little babies who are hungry and it is the beautiful young girl that proves to be the most kind and the most maternal. I remember seeing this movie when I was four maybe five years old during the mid eighties and I fell in love with it! I used to watch the movie over and over again...but it is nowhere to be found! There has to be a copy somewhere out there!

Hi. I am absolutely in love with this movie. It was a huge part of my childhood, and I spent most of my time growing up watching it. I probably still have it all memorized! We'll make it snow! We'll make it snow! I have been desperately seeking a copy for over 5 years. Until recently I haven't been able to find anything on it. Unfortunately I don't understand enough German even to go through the Amazon German site to purchase the copy that they have. I was hoping that someone could make a copy of theirs and let me purchase it. I am planning to have a child soon, and I would love for this movie to be a part of his childhood too.

I first saw this movie on KTLA's Family Film Festival around 1980. I loved it! I managed to see it a few more times up until the mid-80's and continued to enjoy it each time. Basically, it's Cinderella meets Alice in Wonderland. In order to marry her one true love, Maria must journey down a well into a magic country to retrieve a magical amethyst necklace, which is how the prince will recognize her. In the meantime, her wicked stepsister is also after the necklace and causes all sorts of trouble for Maria. The characters they meet in the well are quirky and fun. The fairy tale element is strong but not sappy. I also like the songs and music. But, Maria's dog Blue (who actually is blue!) is the character I truly miss the most. He's just so darn cute! I only hope the video comes out of moratorium someday. Overall, I give this movie five stars, but at least one of those is for pure sentimental value.