Customer Reviews
"I Swear I Saw a Dragon!" - By: Mark Baker, 19 Sep 2007 
Pete (Sean Marshall) is a poor orphan. He's been adopted by the mean Gogan family run by the matriarch Lena (Shelley Winters). The Gogans make him work from morning til night & beat him for the slightest thing.
So, naturally, he runs away. Only this time he has helpin the form of Elliot. Elliot is a dragon. And while he doesn't always think about what he's doing, he means well. And he really wants to help Pete.
Pete & Elliot happen to find the town of Passamaquoddy on the coast of Maine. Their first trip through town doesn't go well, so they find themselves out by the lighthouse, where they make friends with Lampie (Mickey Rooney) the lighthouse keeper & his adult daughter Nora (Helen Reddy). Have they found a real home at last?
Meanwhile, Doc Terminus (Jim Dale) & his assistant Hoagy (Red Buttons) have wandered into town. The Doc is a quack, selling fake potions & running from one town to the next just ahead of the lynch mob. They get word of the dragon & set out to capture him for the money they can make from his body parts. Will they get their hands on Elliot?
This was a favorite movie as a kid, & I still find it entertaining as an adult. Which is surprising when you consider the serious subject matter dealt with. Lampie is an alcoholic & Pete is running away from an abusive home. I think one reason it works is that the villains are so over the top you can't take them too seriously. There's some classic vaudevillein them. Heck, I often feel like booing the bad Doc.
And the music really helps. Yes, this is a musical with 10 songs. Honestly, I love all these songsin their own way. Of course, "Candle on the Water" is the most famous. I think my favorite is "Brazzle Dazzle Day."
Elliot is an animated dragon inhabiting a live action world. While by no means state of the art for today, it does hold up remarkable well for a 30 year old film.
All told, this really is a fun movie that kids of all ages will enjoy. If that's you or your family, sit down & watch this classic today.
Heartwarming musical adventure! - By: Taran Wanderer, 03 Aug 2007 Pete's Dragon, originally releasedin 1977 along with The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh & The Rescuers is the heartwarming story of a lonely orphan boy named Pete & his large, invisible friend Elliott the dragon.
Pete is mistreated by his evil adopting family, Lena, Merle, Willie & Grover Gogan &in his misfortunes, Pete talks to his closest friend, a dragon named Elliott who helps him run away from the Gogans & into a new lifein the town of Passamaquoddy. After a few days of causing mischief around town, Pete finds shelterin the warm & loving lighthouse of Nora & his father Lampie. Nora, unlike her father, naturally does not believein the existence of Elliott the dragon, but still allows Pete to let his imagination go wild. Pete soon learns about Paul, Nora's fiancé who sailed off into the sea & was never seen again; Pete promises Nora that Elliott can bring him back & for the sake of Pete's happiness, Nora accepts this promise. Nora, Lampie, Pete & even Elliott are happy & comfortablein their new home, promising each other to keep together forever, unfortunately, before this can be, they'll have to fight against the wicked Doc Terminus & his companion Hoagy, a pair of villains who've discovered the existence of Elliott the dragon & now want to get him to make a profit from his goods. To make matters worse, Doc Terminus counts with the help of the Gogans, who arrivein town justin time to re-claim what rightfully belongs to them.
Although Pete's Dragon has an outstanding story line & one of the most touching ones Disney has ever produced, its strength is reallyin the musical numbers. The film features about 10 different songs, all of which are great, some of the bestin my opinion include the Academy Award nominated "Candle on the Water", "There's Room for Everyone" (A very inspiring & beautiful song) & "Brazzle Dazzle Day" (Very uplifting & cheery).
While the acting may not always be there, the film features great actors & actresses, Jim Dale as Doc Terminus, Shelley Winters as the evil (Yet hilarious!) Lena Gogan, Mickey Rooney as Lampie & Jane Kean as the hilariously wicked school teacher Miss Taylor. Pete's Dragon is certainly a '70s Disney jewel to behold that will be enjoyed by children & those adults who like the good old Disney films of Yesterdayear.
This Gold Collection DVD features decent picture & sound quality but lacksin the amount of bonus features. It includes two original film trailers, different behind the scenes goodies, an interactive "Where's Elliott?" game & a super fun "Lighthouse Keeping" original Disney cartoon starring Donald Duck!
Highly recommended! Also check out other grand '70s Disney films, "Bedknobs & Broomsticks" (1971), "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" (1977) & "The Rescuers" (1977).
Timeless - By: Stuey Bates, 08 Jun 2007 Most Amazon reviews label this film as being for the under 10's only & I have to disagree. My 64 year old father regularly sites this as one of his favourite films & it was also amongst my Grandfathers' too as he adored Helen Reddy.
It's completely feel-good & is a film with a great heart. Your teenage children may outwardly brand this corny but I guarantee that inside they are dancing & sneekily wiping away a tear with the rest of the family by the end.
disney would be ashamed. - By: Mr. A. E. Ward Davies, 05 Dec 2006 
i've seen some poor "disney" filmsin my time, but "pete's dragon" remains one of the worst; the plot is rambling, special effects are terrible, the songs are rubbish & the acting leaves a lot to be desired.
the quality of the "disney" films had been taking a turn for the worst since the early 60s, & it showsin this case.
the only highlight for me, is jim dale as the crooked doctor. he at least gives the film a boost with a reasonable performance, plus his rendition of a particular song is passable.
otherwise, avoid this if you can.
Disney puts its money where its mouth is - By: M. I. Hasted, 10 Nov 2003 I love dragons! I think they're great, & I think it's all probably because of this fun-filled Disney movie. Now I'm not normally one to sing the praises of Disney films but this time I have to tip my cap to them. Why? Well, this film does exactly what it says on the box. It's about this boy called Pete who has an invisible dragon for a friend. Wonderful!
Okay, so the dragon is invisible, but we do get to see him from time to time & he's quite a funny fellow too! But, there are a lot of other films out there who love to insinuate that there'll be a dragon somewherein the movie; Red Dragon, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Enter the Dragon, The Last Dragon & the list goes on. But guess what? No dragons!
