The Care Bears in the Land Without Feelings

Infobox Film
name = The Care Bears in the Land Without Feelings
director = Pino Van Lamsweerde
producer = W.H. Stevens
Hugh Campbell
starring = Rick Jones
Les Lye
Anna MacCormack
Abby Hagyard
cinematography= Ron Haines
Jan Topper
editing = Jennifer Irwin
Norman LeBlanc
Gerald Tripp
company = Atkinson Film-Arts
distributor = Family Home Entertainment (video, 1989)
released = week of April 22, 1983 (television syndication)
runtime = 23 min
country = Canada
language = English
followed_by = "The Care Bears Battle the Freeze Machine" (1984)
imdb_id = 0490832

"The Care Bears in the Land Without Feelings" is the first television special to feature the Care Bears characters. Made by Atkinson Film-Arts of Canada, it premiered on syndication in April 1983.

Much of what is seen in the special serves as a pilot of sorts to the DiC/Nelvana animated television series of later years. Surprisingly enough, only the ten original Bears (see Tenderheart's profile in List of Care Bears) appear in this one along with the rarely-seen Cloud-Keeper and Professor Coldheart. All of them would come back for "The Care Bears Battle the Freeze Machine" the following year.

The special won a Silver Medal at 1983's International Film & TV Festival of New York. [http://www.crawleyfilms.ca/awards/awrd_list.html ]

Author Ward Johnson loosely adapted the special into a book in the "Tales from the Care Bears" series, entitled "Caring is What Counts" (ISBN 0-910313-05-9), with illustrations by Tom Cooke.

"The Land Without Feelings" has been out of print since the end of the 1980s. However, in honour of the Care Bears' 25th anniversary, it received its DVD premiere in the fall of 2007. This DVD is not available by itself. It is sold with limited-edition commemorative plushes based on Tenderheart and Love-a-Lot. [http://www.playalongtoys.com/press/pr_070212_CB25.aspx] Additionally, the version featured on this DVD is not the rare original released version. Instead, it is the more common version seen as part of the later syndicated run of the regular DIC and Nelvana series (which was also seen on the Disney Channel, and later Toon Disney).

Plot

The ten happy Care Bears are sent on a mission to help people express and share their feelings. They must also save a boy named Kevin from the evil Professor Coldheart. Many songs are heard along the way, as the movie is a musical.

External links

*imdb title|id=0490832
*amg title|id=1:8212
* [http://home.att.ne.jp/blue/patchan/CareBearsFolder/CareBear.html A behind-the-scenes look at making the special as told by one of its animators, Patrick Thomas Connolly]