Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme (1990) ***1/2

Somehow I missed Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme (1990) when it premiered, which is weird because I was definitely the right age to be captivated by this bizarro TV movie. It's possible that my household didn't have The Disney Channel then, though I know we had it for a time, as that's how I first saw The Point (1971) (review).

The cast of MGRnR is vast and mind-boggling, though most of the stars' screen time amounts to a few minutes each. Really the whole silly affair is an excuse to get all those celebrities together (if executive producer Shelley Duval asks, of course you say yes) and show off some wild and weird production design and crazy costumes. Granted, said design is heavily reminiscent of Pee-Wee's Playhouse (1986–1991)—MGRnR even shares some of the same stars as the Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special (1988)—but that is very much my wheelhouse, so I'm okay with it.

While certainly goofy, fun, and cute (Shelley is lovely, as always), there is a fair amount of adult humor throughout Mother Goose, which is also in line with PWPH. Meaning I still laughed out loud a number of times, despite never having seen this as a child. I hope that someday this surreal road trip brain melt gets a Blu-ray release. It's only ever been released on VHS and it's very expensive on eBay. There are two versions of the film (78 minutes and 95 minutes, the one I watched) and they can both be viewed on YouTube. But I recommend shelling out $9 for an uncompressed download from DVD Treasures. It's worth it.