The Point
The Point
| 02 February 1971 (USA)
The Point Trailers

Years ago, there was a place called The Land of Point, because everything in The Land of Point had one: the barns, the houses, the cars, everything, even the people. Everyone in The Land of Point had a point at the top of its head. Everyone, that is, except Oblio, who was born round-headed. Since he had no point, Oblio, along with his trusty dog, Arrow, was banished to the Pointless Forest. Join them to see what wonders await these two intrepid travelers as they make their way on their amazing, song-filled journey of discovery!

Reviews
StunnaKrypto Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.
Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.
FrogGlace In other words,this film is a surreal ride.
Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.
Trey Yancy I've been a fan of The Point since the album came out. The marker-drawn animation of the movie is a bit rough, some elements are somewhat clichéd, and there are a few differences between the movie and the album, but it's a good movie for kids and it teaches an important lesson about intolerance. I do prefer the album, however. I enjoyed Harry Nilsson's easy-going narration and the pace was more lively than the movie, with narration handling the story and the dialogue. I don't know why the sound track has stayed with me all these decades, but I still remember the lyrics to a number of the songs. I hadn't played the album since the mid 70's, but the story of Oblio stayed with me. When, as a graphic designer, I created a mascot for the company, it turned out to be inspired by Arrow. It is good these days to remind people that those who run around with points on their heads cannot overcome the forces of unity and oneness.
maryanntx This is definitely a must see. I first saw it in the early 70s and loved it. Years later, when my kids were 4, 5 and 6 while at a video store I rented it for them. It brought great such joy to all of us - I wound up buying the video. When my son got his first dog, he named him "Arrow,". This movie has a wonderful message, and great songs. Now that it's on DVD, I will definitely buy it for my grandsons!!!!
tedg Its hard to fathom right now, but at the end of the 60s, the nature and future of narrative was in the hands of The Beatles. They had consciously experimented with new forms based on underlying mechanics that today would be called "new age" and considered bogus. Their White Album was based on the kabbalistic structure of Alice in Wonderland, obfuscated by superficial stories and elaborated by hallucinogenic dynamics.One of the "best friends" during this period (friends of John and Ringo) was Nilssen. Out of that relationship came this.It preserves some of the mechanics: the relationship of small form song narrative to a larger assembly; the hallucinogenic imagery in word and film; the references to Pepperland and Alice, and even after a period of fighting for Ringo, he appears as the narrator. But as Harry was essentially a sweet drunk, it lacks the underlying ambition of The Beatles: to re- invent the common cosmology around less destructive geometry.Taymor would mine this for her visual exploration of the Beatles.And because Nilssen was a sex addict as well, much of the key imagery follows that, allowing for the transmission through the director/artist. (This whole thing was written during a series of sexually enhanced acid trips.) For instance, the first "pointless" thing with a point after the stoned guy is three dancing fecund redheads. Check out redheaded Marijke, the Beatles' Tarot reader of this period.As with Beatles songs, this is appreciated for its small form sweetness, and the larger aspiration is ignored or discounted as naive.Except for perhaps the inescapable notion of going to the forbidden, unknown and risky "forest" to discover self.Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.
hmghosthost The Point is one of those films that crawl inside you and never lets you go. I saw this film as a small child but could never remember the name of it. As an adult I asked other people if they had heard of it, and the faces of every single one of them lit up from the memory and they recalled how it had effected them as a child. But no one could remember the name of this film.It wasn't until it came out on video that I finally discovered the name. I was particularly excited to learn that the voice of Oblio's father, the Pointed Man's Right Head, and The King was none other than Paul Frees - the spooky Ghost Host of Disneyland's and Walt Disney World's famous Haunted Mansion attraction, as well as the voice of several pirates in The Pirates of The Caribbean attraction.This film ranks at the top with other childhood favorites, such as the Rankin-Bass stop motion animated Christmas specials "Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer" and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town".