AllMovie

Comparisons between The Blue Bird and The Wizard of Oz are perhaps inevitable, given that The Blue Bird was put into production in response to The Wizard and that two of its stars (Shirley Temple and Gale Sondergaard) had been sought for Wizard. Bird falls far short in comparison with the MGM classic in almost all categories, but taken on its own, it's decent children's entertainment. Certainly, Bird's flaws are not due to monetary constraints; a great deal of money was lavished on the production, and it's all there on the screen. The costumes and sets are undeniably impressive, and the special effects are first rate, with the forest fire sequence simply stunning. Unfortunately, despite all the money, the end result simply isn't magical. It never really takes wing, tending to plod instead -- mainly because, for all the talk of a search for an elusive blue bird (of happiness), there's never any real sense of urgency or purpose to the film. Instead, it meanders along from one segment to another -- and since those segments are not especially interesting, and since the characters are not particularly well developed, the film never really makes an impact. The cast is good, although Temple is not ideally suited to the role of a selfish girl whose self-centeredness keeps her from being happy. Bird's visual delights and the appeal of its performers make it worth a glance, especially for young viewers; but its episodic nature and lack of genuine excitement may cause attention to stray.