The Little Drummer Boy

Rankin Bass wanted to do another Christmas stop-motion film after 4 years. The best option is go to the very beginning of Christmas with the Little Drummer Boy.

Greer Garson tells a story about a little drummer boy named Aaron wonders in the desert with his camel named Joshua, Donkey named Samson, and a sheep named Baba. He wonders alone because his parents were killed by desert bandits with an assault of weapons and fire. (Less than implied his father was stabbed) Aaron vow to despise people ever since.

Aaron is being capture by Ben Harramond (voiced by Jose Ferrer.) and Ali to be their performer in Jerusalem. Later, Ben, Ali, and Aaron came across the Three Wise Men. The Wise Men; Melchior, Casper, and Belvoir are following The Star to their new holy king. Ben sold Joshua to the Wise Men since their camel got weak. Aaron has to find his best friend of a camel to where the Wise Men and his royal caravan are. 

I like Ben Harramond. Jose Ferrer’s performance makes a convincing smuggler and a good player of business. Aaron as a character, his backstory is tragic, but he’s not an interesting character. His hatred is only at stares, which is effective, yet most of Aaron facial is stubborn with some small vengeance.

“Urge to kill, rising!”

-Arron, being dubbed by Homer Simpsons from The Shinning.

It’s when he had his last straw of a tragedy at the end is where it gripping, almost symbolizing that he would be alone when he loses more of his family to the worst of humanity. What makes Samson the Donkey to Aaron is unknown to me in friendship as it’s the least things happened to him than others. The music is mostly forgettable, except for the beginning and last music of the Little Drummer Boy theme. The dialogue is timeless to fit time period, though questioning how Aaron knows what a gator, a frog, a lion, or an elephant if he lives in what’s going to be the Israel Desert.

This is the most characters Paul Frees in Rankin Bass, he voices the Three Wise Men, Ali, the soldier of the caravan, the Roman Soldier, and Arron’s father.

Aaron’s Mom was voiced by June Foray for two lines. This isn’t enough for me to talk about her here, so I’ll give more details about her when we get to the next Christmas film she got more to say as the second character, at least originally.

There’s another Little Drummer Boy done by VeggiTales, where there’s a little more emotion felt there, if they didn’t mention any pop culture, try to do comedy, and Broccoli Aaron’s parents lived at the end. There’s an animated version done by Burbank Animation. The best Little Drummer Boy I do know is done by Animaniacs.

Little Drummer Boy is often the weakest Rankin Bass in title character. Ben Harramond and the ending is what are worth the gift to give as we can accept. This end what should have been Book One, but apparently we have Book Two to read through.