Babar: The Movie facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Babar: The Movie
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Alan Bunce
Produced by	Michael Hirsh Patrick Loubert Clive A. Smith
Screenplay by	Peter Sauder J.D. Smith John de Klein Raymond Jafelice Alan Bunce
Story by	Peter Sauder Michael Hirsh Patrick Loubert
Starring	Gordon Pinsent Elizabeth Hanna
Music by	Milan Kymlicka
Editing by	Evan Landis
Studio	Nelvana Limited Ellipse Programmé The Clifford Ross Company
Distributed by	Astral Films (Canada) Forum Distribution (France) New Line Cinema (United States)
Release date(s)	28 July 1989 (1989-07-28)
Running time	70 minutes
Country	Canada France
Language	English French
Money made	$1.3 million

Babar: The Movie is an animated adventure film released in 1989. It is based on the popular Babar children's books by Jean de Brunhoff. This movie acts as the exciting end to the first season of the Babar TV series.

The film was made by Nelvana Limited from Canada and Ellipse Programmé from France. It was shown in Canada by Astral Films and in the United States by New Line Cinema.

Plot Summary

The story begins on the night of Elephantland's big Victory Parade. King Babar tells his four children a tale from his early days as king.

On his very first day as king, Babar needs to pick a name for the Annual Parade. His advisors, Cornelius and Pompadour, say it must be carefully discussed by a committee. Suddenly, Babar's cousin, Celeste, arrives. She tells him that her village was attacked by Rataxes, the mean rhinoceros lord, and his army.

Babar wants to help Celeste right away. He orders an elephant army to be ready to fight the rhinos. But his advisors are very slow. They say it will take three days to gather the army. Babar feels he cannot wait. He asks his cousin Arthur to take over as king for a short time. Then, Babar bravely goes into the dangerous jungle by himself.

He finds Celeste's village burning. The rhinos are taking the adult elephants as slaves. They want the elephants to build a rhino city. Babar tries to stop them but is attacked. Celeste is thrown into a well.

The next morning, Babar wakes up and rescues Celeste from the well. They decide to save Celeste's mother and the other elephants from Rataxes. On their journey, they meet a monkey named Zephir. He tells them where Rataxes' secret hideout is.

Babar and Celeste find Rataxes, who plans to attack Babar's kingdom soon. After a wild chase through the rhinos' hideout, Babar and Celeste are captured. But they escape with Zephir's help. They rush back to Elephantland. They find Rataxes' army waiting outside the city.

Babar, Celeste, and Zephir sneak into the rhino camp. They try to pretend to be rhino warriors to learn the attack plans. But they are discovered! They escape by launching themselves from a catapult. They land in a fountain, surprising Babar's advisors.

Rataxes gets ready to attack. He says Elephantland will be destroyed in an hour. To gain time, Babar tells Cornelius and Pompadour to distract Rataxes with their slow "committee" meetings. Meanwhile, Babar and the elephants quickly build a giant elephant float. This big float scares off Rataxes and his soldiers!

At sunrise, Babar's friends congratulate him for saving the day. Babar then announces that their first Victory Parade will be held that afternoon. The older Babar tells his children that the parade has been called the "Victory Parade" ever since. This is because the committee could never agree on another name!

As Babar finishes his story, he sees his children have fallen asleep. After he closes the door, his children playfully act out parts of the story. Babar then tells them again to go to sleep.

Main Characters

Here are some of the main voices you hear in the movie:

Music from the Movie

The film has five main songs that help tell the story. These songs are performed by different artists like Molly Johnson, Judy Tate, and The Nylons. Some of the voice actors also sing!

Here are the songs from the movie:

• "Elephantland March" - sung by The Nylons, Judy Tate, Debbie Fleming, John Rutledge, and Neil Donell.
• "The Committee Song" - sung by Stephen Ouimette, Chris Wiggins, and The Nylons.
• "The Best We Both Can Be" - sung by Molly Johnson.
• "Monkey Business" - sung by John Stocker, Judy Tate, Debbie Fleming, John Rutledge, Neil Donell, and The Nylons.
• "Rataxes' Song" - sung by Charles Kerr.

See also

In Spanish: Babar: the movie para niños