The Canterville Ghost

Director: William F. Claxton William F. Claxton

Overview

While vacationing in an old English manor, a family is bothered by an ancient ghost. When the young girl discovers that he is bound to roam the house until he performs a heroic deed, she helps release him to finally be laid to rest.

Product Details

Release Date:	07/06/2010
UPC:	0011301620552
Original Release:	1991
Rating:	NR
Source:	STUDIO DISTRIBUTION SERVS LLC
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo]
Language:	English
Time:	1:00:00
Sales rank:	19,981

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Shelley Fabares	Actor
Richard Kiley	Sir Simon de Canterville
Mary Wickes	Actor

Technical Credits

B.W. Sandefur

Bradley Wigor	Executive Producer
B.W. Sandefur	Screenwriter
Sascha Schneider	Producer
Joseph Maurer	Executive Producer
William F. Claxton	Director

Editorial Reviews

Gr 7 Up Lovers of Oscar Wilde's stories will delight in this new illustrated version of The Canterville Ghost if the picture book format does not keep them from finding it. Wilde's story of an American family who moves into Canterville Chase and annoys a weary ghost with their lack of belief in him is a wry commentary on the ways of British nobility and of their hard-headed American cousins. Like many of Wilde's tales, this one is filled with sophisticated allusions to his social and political milieu, but ends as sentimental romance. Zwerger's wry pictures highlight this tone beautifully. Her toothless ghost is round and comical, as would suit a ghost whom no one fears, and her heroine, Virginia, is young and sweetly boyish. All of the illustrations are set against misty gray watercolor backgrounds except for the climactic scene, echoed on the front cover, in which the tiny huntsmen on the wallpaper call out to Virginia to ``Go Back.'' This will make a fine read-aloud for audiences of secondary students who are prepared to savor Wilde's ironic humor and Zwerger's delicate watercolors. Barbara Chatton, College of Education, University of Wyoming, Laramie

School Library Journal

The second volume in a series of comic book adaptations of Wilde's tales [see BKL Ja 15 93 for previous volume] gives "The Young King" and "The Remarkable Rocket" the Marvel-DC treatment. In elaborate underground "comix" style, Russell reintroduces the tales with an accessible if nontraditional approach to picture-book illustration and better-than-average adaptations of the original texts. Whether you believe circulating comics in the library is appropriate or not, this full-color book won't stay on the shelf for long, and it may well attract readers to a genre they might not usually find appealing.

Janice Del Negro

Exciting books for holiday gift-giving or anytime . . . The Canterville Ghost provides younger readers with the opportunity to be introduced to this talented writer. Beautifully interpreted with the delicate, detailed illustrations by Lisbeth Zwerger, readers will delight in this edition of this classic story.” —Kendall Rautzhan, poconorecord.com

From the Publisher

The combination of outstanding sound effects (ghostly laughs, a fainting housekeeper, a speeding carriage) and Rupert Degas's expert performance guarantees that listeners are in for a treat. After hearing about its resident ghost, an American family nevertheless takes up residence in a haunted mansion. Degas performs American and English accents to perfection. To the ghost he says, “I must insist that you oil those chains,” and his comic delivery is hilarious. The moving conclusion completes an enjoyable listening experience. S.G.B. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

NOVEMBER 2015 - AudioFile