The Little Drummer Boy

1968 "His gift was his song."
6.9| 0h25m| G| en| More Info
Released: 19 December 1968 Released
Producted By: Rankin/Bass Productions
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

After being kidnapped and escaping, young drummer boy Aaron searches for his camel and finds him in the Nativity of the Baby Jesus. Aaron gives Baby Jesus the only gift he has, a song on his drum.

... View More
Stream Online

Stream with Prime Video

Director

Producted By

Rankin/Bass Productions

AD
AD

Watch Free for 30 Days

Stream on any device, 30-day free trial Watch Now

Trailers & Images

Reviews

Cebalord Very best movie i ever watch
SpunkySelfTwitter It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.
Aneesa Wardle The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
Calum Hutton It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...
SnoopyStyle Aaron doesn't like people and plays his drum for his animal friends Samson the donkey, Babba the sheep and Joshua the Camel. Bandits killed his parents and burned down their home. Ben Haramad sees him playing his drum and kidnaps him. In Jerusalem, Aaron gets angry at the townfolks and the entire troupe has to run away. Out in the desert, they come upon the caravan of Three Wise Kings. The Kings aren't interested in Ben or Aaron's performance. The caravan needs a camel and Ben sells Joshua to them despite Aaron's protest. Ben is gold drunk and lets Aaron with Samson and Babba go. They follow the star hoping to catch up to Joshua. In Bethlehem, Babba is run over by a Roman chariot. Aaron brings Babba to be healed by the Kings but only the King of Kings can help him. Aaron has no gift to bring that's fit to give the King. So he plays his drum and Babba is healed.This is one of the heaviest kids' Christmas specials. The dark material really works with the Bible's more serious nature. The final turn is heart wrenching and quite compelling. Not every Christmas special has to be kiddie fare. The stop motion is very rudimentary and has an old time charm about it.
mariannenagengast I am in my mid-twenties and was recently talking with two co-workers of around the same age about this song. I mentioned that it was only recently that I was able to appreciate it, as the Christmas special I watched every year as a child terrified me so much and rather traumatized me. My co-workers both emphatically agreed. It reignited my curiosity, as I haven't seen it since I was about ten or so, and I watched it this afternoon. As soon as I hit play, I remembered exactly why it had scared me so much -- parents being killed, a little boy being kidnapped by an evil man, a lamb almost dying... I read on some boards here some people rather belittling the opinion that the special can be disturbing for kids, so I just wanted to counterbalance it and say, yes, it can be disturbing, enough so that 15 years later I'm still transported back to being a child and being terrified of it. This isn't to say it's not a wonderful story, and that it does show the meaning of Christmas and adds a story to a beautiful song...but I definitely don't think it's appropriate for all children.
lilpernel44 I have watched this movie since childhood. I would really like to know if it is airing on TV in 2006. I also love the story it tells regarding the birth of Christ. My son is 26 years old and should be having children soon, I would love for them to be able to enjoy some of the classic holiday specials I enjoyed as a young child. My son is also an musical artist and some of the music in this particular special he could probably appreciate for his type of music. He is an hip hop artist that writes his own lyrics and is currently working on a Christmas demo, The Little Drummer Boy is has a classics song and he could probably incorporate some of that music on to his demo. Anyway, if it is airing on network television this year, would someone please let me know?
sflagal I hadn't seen this in years and watched it recently since I now have the Christmas DVD collection. It never occurred to me until now, as an adult, that this brings out the true meaning of Christmas. It is such a simple story yet touched me in a way no other 'Christmas special' (as others are so loosely called) has. It puts Christ back into Christmas and as far as I'm concerned, and in that sense, it's the best special ever created. As an added bonus, the choir music is angelic and very touching. It is a shame that in this day and age, nothing comes close to stories like these any more. Our country is slowly and methodically being turned into a God-less society and it's quite apparent in the media. I hope many of us will take a stand again and return to the simple morals and values that were once mainstream.