Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Did You Know?

• The film's original soundtrack album was released on LP with mostly vocal songs and few instrumentals, edited to fit time constraints.
• The 1993 gatefold LaserDisc release by MGM/UA Home Video was the first home video release with the proper 2.20:1 Super Panavision 70 aspect ratio and contains the original British theatrical trailer.
• The soundtrack has been released on CD four times; the 1997 Rykodisc release included short dialogue bits but used the LP master.

Plot

In 1910s rural England, siblings Jemima and Jeremy are captivated by a wrecked champion racecar and ask their widower father, eccentric inventor Caractacus Potts, to save it from being scrapped. They meet wealthy Truly Scrumptious, who drives them home and argues with Caractacus about their truancy. To raise money for the car, Caractacus tries selling a musical candy whistle to the Scrumptious candy company, but the sound attracts dogs and ruins his pitch.

That evening at a carnival, he uses an automatic hair-cutting machine, then joins a song-and-dance act after a mishap, earning enough tips to buy and rebuild the car, naming it "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" for its engine sounds. On their first trip to the beach, Caractacus, the children, and Truly enjoy a picnic, and he tells them a story. Baron Bomburst of Vulgaria tries to steal Chitty when it is stranded by high tide, but the family escapes as the car transforms into a boat.

Bomburst sends spies who accidentally kidnap Truly's father and his valet, then disguise themselves to kidnap Caractacus but instead take Grandpa Potts in his outhouse via airship. Caractacus, Truly, and the children follow as Chitty sprouts wings and propellers, flying to Vulgaria.

Production

Ian Fleming wrote the children's novel after a 1961 heart attack, basing it on stories about a flying car he told his infant son. The book was published in three volumes starting in October 1964, two months after Fleming's death, and became a bestseller. Earl Hamner completed a script in December 1965, and by July 1966 Broccoli announced the film without Harry Saltzman. Ken Hughes was set to direct in April 1967 from a screenplay by Roald Dahl, which Hughes then rewrote; Richard Maibaum made further revisions.

Dick Van Dyke was cast after turning down the role of Fagin in Oliver! (1968). Julie Andrews was originally sought for Truly Scrumptious but declined, feeling the part was too similar to Mary Poppins; Sally Ann Howes, who had replaced Andrews in My Fair Lady on Broadway, accepted. Van Dyke's casting was announced in December 1966, and Howes signed a five-picture contract in April 1967. Child stars Heather Ripley and Adrian Hall were cast after an extensive search, making their film debuts.

Filming ran from July 17 to October 4, 1967. Due to miserable summer weather, production moved to Cap Taillat and the South of France, where vineyards had to be hidden.

Reception

Roger Ebert called the film "about the best two-hour children's movie you could hope for," praising its magical auto, adventure, and dances, but criticized an additional 45 minutes of "soppy love songs" and "corny ballads" aimed at adults. He noted the film was more colorful and faster than comparable works, with believable children and visible working inventions. Time magazine described it as "a picture for the ages—the ages between five and twelve," and wrote that its eleven songs lacked melodic variety, though persistent syncopation and choreography partly redeemed it.

The review credited director Ken Hughes's fantasy scenes for much of the film's success. Renata Adler of The New York Times called it "a fast, dense, friendly children's musical" with a "remarkably good" screenplay and a preoccupation with sweets and machinery ideal for children. She concluded that the film did not betray the audience's eagerness to have a good time.

Adaptations

The film diverged significantly from Fleming's novel. A novelisation by John Burke, published at the time of the film's release, followed the film's story but included differences in tone and emphasis, such as Caractacus's difficulty coping after his wife's death and a clearer indication that the Bomburst sequences were fantasy. Corgi Toys produced a scale replica of Chitty with working features like pop-out wings; Mattel Toys made a different replica, and Aurora released a detailed hobby kit.

Post Honeycomb cereal offered a free plastic model inside specially-marked boxes. An educational PC game, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang's Adventure in Tinkertown, was released in October 1996. A musical theatre adaptation with music and lyrics by the Sherman brothers and book by Jeremy Sams premiered at the London Palladium on April 16, 2002, featuring six new songs. A Broadway production opened on April 28, 2005.

After closing in London, the show toured the UK and opened in Singapore on November 2, 2007; an Australian production opened on November 17, 2012, and a German premiere on April 30, 2014. In 2008, Michael G. Wilson was reported to be considering a remake. In 2024, a remake was reported in early development, to be produced by Amazon MGM Studios and Eon Productions, with Matthew Warchus directing and Enda Walsh writing.