---
title: "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang"
year: 1968
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/chitty-chitty-bang-bang"
fi1m_id: "chitty-chitty-bang-bang"
imdb_id: "tt0062803"
tmdb_id: 11708
wikidata_id: "Q1637791"
fi1m_score: 70
critics_score: 66
critics_reviews: 6
published: "2026-09-24T02:18:22.223159+00:00"
updated: "2026-09-24T02:18:22.717839+00:00"
region: "KR"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)

Directed by Ken Hughes · 2h 24m · Family, Adventure, Fantasy, Comedy

## Identity

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/chitty-chitty-bang-bang
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** chitty-chitty-bang-bang
- **IMDb ID:** tt0062803
- **TMDB ID:** 11708
- **Wikidata ID:** Q1637791
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062803/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/11708, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1637791

**Fi1m score: 70** · Critics 66 from 6 reviews

*In a sentence:* The car flies, the songs stick, and a man in a top hat with a net has ruined bedtime for generations

> Ken Hughes’s musical is a bright, generous family film whose first half is far better than its second. The songs hold, the car is a real machine, and Robert Helpmann’s Child Catcher has earned every sleepless night. It is twenty minutes too long.

## Synopsis

Edwardian England. Caractacus Potts (Dick Van Dyke), a widowed inventor whose machines seldom work, lives in a windmill with his father, Grandpa Potts (Lionel Jeffries), and his two children. The children love a wrecked racing car rusting at the local garage, and it is about to be sold for scrap. Caractacus needs money he does not have to save it. The same morning, the children are nearly run down by Truly Scrumptious (Sally Ann Howes), daughter of the sweet manufacturer Lord Scrumptious (James Robertson Justice). Caractacus tries to sell his sweets to the factory, scrapes the money together and rebuilds the car. On a beach picnic he begins a story about Baron Bomburst (Gert Fröbe), a tyrant who wants the car for himself.

## Review

Albert R. Broccoli took Ian Fleming’s novel, handed it to Roald Dahl and Ken Hughes for a script, hired the Sherman brothers for the songs and Dick Van Dyke to sing them, and asked for a British [*Mary Poppins*](https://film.one/film/mary-poppins) (1964). Critics at the time judged it against that film and found it wanting, which was unfair then and is beside the point now. *Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* is a good family musical with a first half that is close to lovely and a second half that goes on and on, and the best thing in it is a man with a butterfly net.

The first hour is set in an England of meadows, windmills and steam, and it is where the film is happiest. Ken Adam gives Caractacus Potts a windmill full of machines that cook breakfast badly and cut hair worse, and he builds the car itself, long, brass-trimmed and red-leathered, so solid it looks as if it might start. Christopher Challis shoots the countryside in a green so bright it looks freshly painted and keeps the car in wide frames so we can see all of it. Joan Bridge and Elizabeth Haffenden dress Truly Scrumptious in white from hat to hem and every Vulgarian in frills.

The Sherman brothers’ songs hold up. The sweet-factory number turns the building into a dance floor. “Me Ol’ Bam-boo” gives Van Dyke a fairground routine with a troupe of dancers and bamboo poles, and he does it with the loose-limbed ease that was always his gift. The number that got to us is the lullaby sung to two children in a windmill at night. It is a small, sad tune from a widower with no money, and it moved us more than we expected.

Then there is the Child Catcher. Robert Helpmann plays him on his toes: long black coat, top hat, a nose that arrives before he does, and a way of sniffing the air for children. He drives a cart with a cage hidden under a canopy of lollipops and calls out that the sweets are free. We were horrified by him as children and we are not over it. Watching again, the fear still works, because Helpmann never once plays it as a joke.

The trouble is Vulgaria, where the film spends its second half and where John Shirley’s editing stops cutting anything. Gert Fröbe and Anna Quayle, as the Baron and Baroness, play a couple who want each other dead and sing a duet about it, which is funny once and is repeated. Two spies (Alexander Doré and Bernard Spear) fall off things at regular intervals. Somewhere in the palace, watching two adults in silk repeat a slapstick routine we had seen twenty minutes before, we were bored, and then annoyed at being bored by a film that had made us cry an hour earlier.

The romance is thin, too. Sally Ann Howes sings cleanly and looks the part, but the script gives Truly a motor car, a father and a name, and nothing to want. Lionel Jeffries, as Grandpa Potts, is better company; he plays him as a pantomime old soldier, big and warm. Benny Hill, as the Toymaker in a country where children are forbidden, is gentle and nearly unrecognisable, and his scenes are the quietest in the film.

Most critics now like it and one or two never did; we sit near the middle. Set beside *Mary Poppins* it is less disciplined and less sure of its story. Set beside most other family musicals of its era it has a real car, a real tune and a real villain, and children have gone on remembering all three. It runs 144 minutes and carries a U certificate, which is generous to the Child Catcher. Watch it at home with an interval at the beach picnic, and be ready to explain at bedtime that the man with the net was only pretending.

*Fi1m score 70, published 24 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics like it, and four of the six recommend it as a family film. The praise clusters on the songs, on the picture-book Edwardian setting, and on the mixture of fantasy and honest frights, with the Child Catcher singled out as the part that frightens children in the right way. Dick Van Dyke’s lead is noted, as are the colours and the choreography of the “Toot Sweet” factory number, which one later notice says look better than ever in restored form.

The reservations are about length, which even admirers find excessive, and about Mary Poppins, which hangs over nearly every review. Radio Times argues the comparison is unfair and that the film stands on its own merits; Variety, writing at the time of release, finds the film emotionally cold, with performances and musical talent that fall short of the earlier film’s warmth. The spread is wide, from outright rejection to firm enthusiasm, and the only rejection is the contemporaneous one; the later reviews are consistently kinder.

## Straight answers

**Is Chitty Chitty Bang Bang worth watching?**

*Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* is worth watching for families who want a bright musical with a real car and a real villain, and we scored it 70. The first hour is close to lovely, with the Sherman brothers' songs and a lullaby that moved us more than we expected. The Vulgarian second half runs on twenty minutes too long.

**How long is Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and what is it rated?**

*Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* runs 2h 24m. It is a family and adventure film.

**Where can I watch Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in South Korea?**

*Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* is not on any streaming or rental service in South Korea at the moment. It is available in 48 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily.

**How does Chitty Chitty Bang Bang compare to Mary Poppins?**

*Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* is looser and less sure of its story than [*Mary Poppins*](https://film.one/film/mary-poppins), which is the better film of the two. Both share Dick Van Dyke and the Sherman brothers' songs, but the earlier film is tighter and quietly about a father, while this one has a flying car and a Child Catcher children never forget. Pick *Mary Poppins* for discipline, this for spectacle and a scare.

**Is Chitty Chitty Bang Bang based on a true story or a book?**

*Chitty Chitty Bang Bang* is based on a novel by Ian Fleming, not a true story. Roald Dahl and Ken Hughes wrote the script, and the film builds an Edwardian fantasy around an inventor, his rebuilt racing car and a tyrant who wants it. You need not know the book to follow any of it.

**What should I watch after Chitty Chitty Bang Bang?**

After *Chitty Chitty Bang Bang*, try [*Mary Poppins*](https://film.one/film/mary-poppins) (1964, Fi1m 83): The film it was measured against; tighter, and Van Dyke attempts the accent. Then [*Spirited Away*](https://film.one/film/spirited-away) (2001, Fi1m 92): A child in a land run by grotesque adults, drawn with far more care; and [*The Wizard of Oz*](https://film.one/film/the-wizard-of-oz) (1939, Fi1m 91): Another long trip to a painted kingdom, with a witch children still dream about.

### Reviews we read (6)

- **Empire**, Neil Jeffries (85/100, inferred): The critic finds it a justly celebrated, vivid and entertaining children’s film, despite its excessive length. They single out the iconic Child Catcher and the film’s mix of catchy songs, fantasy and genuine scares. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/chitty-chitty-bang-bang-review/)
- **Radio Times**, Jeremy Aspinall (4/5): Aspinall says the musical was unfairly judged against Mary Poppins and finds it a splendid family film with its own merits. He praises its toe-tapping songs and picture-book Edwardian setting. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-q6lje5/chitty-chitty-bang-bang/)
- **Time Out** (70/100, inferred): The blurb gives the film a positive recommendation for kids of all ages. It singles out Dick Van Dyke’s starring role and the film’s appeal to young viewers. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/newyork/film/chitty-chitty-bang-bang)
- **The New York Times** (64/100, inferred): The page content is unavailable, so the critic’s verdict cannot be established. No specific praise or complaint is visible in the supplied page. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1968/11/03/archives/chittychitty-poppop.html)
- **Variety**, Variety Staff (25/100, inferred): The review finds the film emotionally cold and lacking in genuine feeling between its characters. It faults the performances and musical talent for failing to recreate the warmth of *Mary Poppins*. [Read](https://variety.com/1967/film/reviews/chitty-chitty-bang-bang-1200421673/)
- **HeyUGuys**, David Sztypuljak (75/100, inferred): The critic warmly recommends the film and its remastered Blu-ray release. They particularly praise the restored picture quality, vibrant colours and choreography in the “Toot Sweet” factory scene. [Read](https://www.heyuguys.com/chitty-chitty-bang-bang-blu-ray-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** Ken Hughes
- **Director:** Ken Hughes
- **Screenplay:** Roald Dahl, Ken Hughes
- **Novel:** Ian Fleming
- **Cinematography:** Christopher Challis
- **Editor:** John Shirley
- **Music:** Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman
- **Production design:** Ken Adam
- **Costume design:** Elizabeth Haffenden, Joan Bridge
- **Producer:** Albert R. Broccoli
- **Cast:** Dick Van Dyke as Caractacus Potts; Sally Ann Howes as Truly Scrumptious; Lionel Jeffries as Grandpa Potts; Gert Fröbe as Baron Bomburst; Anna Quayle as Baroness Bomburst; Benny Hill as Toymaker; James Robertson Justice as Lord Scrumptious; Robert Helpmann as Child Catcher
- **Runtime:** 2h 24m
- **First release (the UK):** 12 December 1968
- **Genres:** Family, Adventure, Fantasy, Comedy
- **Budget:** $10 million
- **Box office:** $8 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CV75eP3_WF4

## Where to watch in South Korea

Not streaming, renting or buying in South Korea at the last check.

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IT, JP, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *The Railway Children* (1970): Lionel Jeffries directs, and finds the same Edwardian England without the tyrant or the flying car
- *Mary Poppins* (1964), Fi1m 83: The film it was measured against; tighter, and Van Dyke attempts the accent — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/mary-poppins.md)
- *Spirited Away* (2001), Fi1m 92: A child in a land run by grotesque adults, drawn with far more care — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/spirited-away.md)
- *The Wizard of Oz* (1939), Fi1m 91: Another long trip to a painted kingdom, with a witch children still dream about — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-wizard-of-oz.md)
- *Paddington 2* (2017), Fi1m 91: A modern family film that knows how long a joke should run — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/paddington-2.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/chitty-chitty-bang-bang