Along with Thurl Ravenscroft’s inimitable rendition of “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” from the 1966 “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” cartoon special, Burl Ives’ performances of “A Holly Jolly Christmas” and “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” have probably been passed into the fetuses of multiple generations subconsciously along with all the amniotic stuff (and here I thought being able to quote “Sliding Doors” off the top of my head would never be helpful). Ives recorded the tunes while voicing Sam the Snowman, the narrator of Roemer’s “Rudolph” special and a character who, apparently, looks like the brother of Taylor Swift’s current boyfriend to a lot of people. Personally, I think those Yukon Cornelius comparisons make more sense, but that’s just me.
Ives’ soothing, wizened vocals and undemanding narration are perfectly tailored for “An Ewok Adventure,” a humble fairy tale that has no pretensions of being anything other than a basic parable about the importance of helping others in their time of need and the relationships forged in the process. It’s not the best Ewok picture; that honor belongs to the 1985 sequel “Ewoks: The Battle for Endor,” a film that opens by killing off most of the heroes from the first movie in a shocking, brutal manner before turning into a “Lord of the Rings” or “Chronicles of Narnia”-style war epic. (Literally, there’s a tie-in book titled “The Ring, The Witch, and The Crystal: An Ewok Adventure,” in case you think I’m exaggerating.) Even so, “An Ewok Adventure” holds many of the same simple charms as similar ’80s titles like “The Dark Crystal,” and Ives’ voiceover is a major part of that.
(Seriously, though, if you like your “Star Wars” dark and pulpy, you should at least watch “The Battle for Endor.”)
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