Once Upon A Mattress (2005)

This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

Sadly Over-hyped

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

Queen Aggravain (Carol Burnett) is ruthlessly testing any princesses who wants to marry her pampered son Prince Dauntless (Denis O'Hare). No one is allowed to marry until Dauntless finds a suitable mate. Lady Larken (Zooey Deschanel) is pregnant. She and Sir Harry (Matthew Morrison) are desperate to get married. Sir Harry travels to the Badlands and returns with Princess Winnifred (Tracey Ullman). The Queen plans an impossible test with a pea under 20 mattresses. King Sextimus (Tom Smothers) is muted due to a curse.It's the classic musical as a TV movie. It's probably loads of fun for Broadway lovers. Personally, I don't like this show or any of the songs. For this production specifically, I don't like Ullman. I don't find her endearing. She has too much anger. I also don't like Lady Larken. The TV production looks fair but there are too many little things that annoy me.

What can you say when the Broadway version and the DVD seem to present differing plots, songs, and lines? Some of re-arranging of scenes and songs "seem" to fit but, when watching in one run, the differences are glaring. The Broadway show is tighter and flows along. The DVD seems a bit sloppy at times with some bits not even coming to a satisfying tie. The play does leave out how they discover the test, which the DVD clarifies, and if you were to present this, I recommend you try to find a way to put it in the play. I do not think you can fault the cast of the DVD because of the material they were given with which to work. As a whole the cast over comes the age, songs, and all to present a fun one-Time viewing. As to multiple viewings, once really is enough. Carol Burnett, as always, is great as well as Zooey Deschanel, the fun Tommy Smothers as King, but the rest seem to walk through a lack luster script, trying just to get to the end.

When I first read of this production, with Carol Burnett as the Queen, I was very excited! I thought it would be fabulous. I was wrong. In the first 5 minutes I knew my popcorn would go unfinished, having lost my appetite when "Many Moons Ago" was chopped to but a few phrases. But when the cast started throwing away every good line with total disregard to the well-written tempo intended, I needed to get my Cast Recording ready and fire up the phonograph to get this director's bad taste out of my ears. Another reviewer mentioned the "rule of threes" - threes are everywhere in the script, but I don't think the delivery of ANY one was correct in this version. From the dismissing of Princess #12 ("Goodbye, good luck, now get out") to the discussion of Winnifred's test before "Sensitivity" ("Sounds fair (beat), seems fair, (beat), but isn't fair.") every opportunity to spin verbal straw into gold (I know, wrong fairy tale) was wasted. Larkin's revelation of pregnancy to Harry was real let-down. No build-up at all. She might as well have passed him a note.I didn't have a problem with any of the casting based on age or appearance - both can be overcome & overlooked with a good performance. But the writers/director didn't give the cast any help, so the weaker performers fell flat and the veterans just collected a paycheck.Where was the Minstrel? For that matter, where were the Jester and the King? Oh, the roles were there, but reduced to bit parts. The knights in "Shy" got to do more just by saying "Hey, Nonny nonny nonny, NO." Maybe Meatloaf thinks two-out-of-three ain't bad, but in this case, it IS bad. And I bet the writers thought they were clever switching the impetus for "Normandy" from "where can a pregnant Larkin go to hide" offered by the Minstrel to "where can Larkin go on a honeymoon" offered by Harry. Lame. And the Wizard as the Nightingale was just stupid. Hibbert's contract must have insisted on a minimum of screen time and since they eliminated the scene where the Minstrel schmoozes the Wizard, they made up for it with a chicken costume. I've gone on far too long, but better you spend a few extra minutes here than waste a few hours on this production. Now if you watch it anyway, you look for the things all these reviews have warned you about and make up your own mind.

Musicals are always fun to see. This made for TV musical, although was mildly disappointing, was extremely addicting! Rising to the top of the charts was Zooey Deschanel as Lady Larkin. Zooey although was not the best singer, had a very unique voice that some may find bad but others may find terrific. She played the art tremendously and her and Matthew Morrison had great chemistry on screen. Tracey Ullman as Fred, the Princess from the swamps was much to old to play the part and you don't seem to care for the part as much as if a young innocent girl was playing the part.Carol Burnette was disappointing as the Queen, but still played the part well. Over all I thought the entire movie was just good. There was nothing special but I still enjoyed it a lot!