Live-Action Fairy Tales: The Nutcracker and the Mouse King

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Albert Einstein: "If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."


Fairy tales, literary nonsense, tall tales...whatever you want to call them.  I'm a sucker for a wonderfully told, beautifully presented one.  Especially when they come in live-action form.  There's something...magical when it's done right.  Some of these are taken right from the pages of a book, some are new takes on old tales.  If you get surprised by a title, stop and think about it for a second.  It'll make sense. :)

Is your favorite version listed here?  If not, tell me in the comments!

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The Nutcracker and the Mouse King

This is a story created by author E.T.A. Hoffmann.  It's about a girl, her godfather and his toy nutcracker.  The girl's brother accidentally breaks the nutcracker's jaw and she bandages it.  That night, the toys come to life and battle mice right in her room.  She sees the Nutcracker in trouble, throws her shoe at the Mouse King and faints.  The next day, no one believes her story.

Her godfather comes to visit and tells her the tale of the man who's been cursed to be a Nutcracker.  The Mouse King threatens the girl at night when no one else can hear him until, finally, the Nutcracker asks for a sword to finish this once and for all.  He comes back with the Mouse King's crown.  She later tells the Nutcracker that she would never treat him like the girl in the story did and the next thing you know, her godfather shows up with his long-lost nephew.  The curse is broken.



A musical TV movie starring Robert Goulet.



A Polish family fantasy film.


Nutcracker (1986)

A feature-length film that combines acting with ballet.



This American adaptation is a musical holiday film that stars Macaulay Culkin.



A Canadian fantasy film in which the main character, Clara, searches for her father in a WW2 prisoner camp.



A British/Hungarian fantasy film that stars Elle Fanning (Maleficent, Super 8).



A German TV production that's part of the Six in One Go programs.



A big-budget fantasy take on the classic holiday-esque tale.


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Do you like fairy tales as much as I do?  Check out my other live-action lists:
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