Loss of Quality in the Platinum Editions?

[I Love Bambi]

I thought Bambi's platinum edition was great. It had more special features than most of my DVDs, both disney and non-disney. The one Platinum edition that I didn't like was The Lion King, because of the extra song that wasn't in the original tape.

[BrandonH]

The one Platinum edition that I didn't like was The Lion King, because of the extra song that wasn't in the original tape.

I'm not sure if you knew this or not, but you can watch the original version with no extra song by going into the Setup menu. I'm in agreement with you about the song, but since the theatrical cut is included, it's not a big deal.

[Beast_enchantment]

even the original cut wasnt the original cut on that DVD. they re-animated the crocodiles which i know really anoyed people including me. so far, the Lion King has been the worst platinum edition DVD, not in terms of extras, even though they were a shambles but still amounted up to more than other PEs , but in terms of the film itself!

[blackcauldron85]

The waterfalls during "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" were also reanimated...

[BrandonH]

I equate the crocodile animation decision with the changing of the priest's knee in TLM, the redone Pastorale in Fantasia, and the lyric change in "Arabian Nights" in Aladdin. I would pick the original if given the choice, but it's not as bad as something like changing Zazu's character model would be. It's not something I would even notice if it wasn't pointed out.

[Beast_enchantment]

the change to the priests knee in TLM is fairly minimal, and it was only done due to inuendo that was circulating. they had no reason to change the crocodiles/waterfalls in the lion king. it was completely pointless.

[UncleEd]

I agree that the Little Mermaid doc was mediocre. I've stated that here many times.

What's different on the waterfalls? I never noticed that.

The crocodiles were supposedly changed because of some lawsuit about a print of artwork. I read it on this forum once. I find that hard to believe though.

I've talked with people who made these films in the early 90's and they have all told me that the only reason the films get changes is so that the executives that were micromanaging in the late 90's on could feel like they were part of the greatness that these films were. However nearly all changes have been complained about.

I think they got some things wrong in Human Again. There are definately elements that look more cartoony than the original film did and that's my biggest beef. This film was a more realistic one and some of those new enchanted objects look like they come from a Bonkers episode. Having the table the rose jar is on running around feels very out of place as well and Cogsworth Keep off the Grass sign doesn't fit other. I know there were a few other examples as well. I think the old lead in was sweet and charming and even though the song moment is moved ithe same care should have been applied to the lead in. A cow mooing sound? I mean come on...

[Beast_enchantment]

Disney should nto mess around with it's classics. by doing so, consumers arent buying what they intend to buy, theyre buying altered versions and i think its a breech of trust!

anyway, i didnt care for the human again sequence - yes it is a good song and adds more depth to the objects but the way it was executed was wrong. for one, you see the ballroom being cleaned up - Originally the first time the ballroom is seen is during th amazing dance sequence with belle and the beast in all it's CGI glory. seeing it beforehand being cleaned up, and not looking quite the same takes away that wow factor when you see it later on.
Also a big aspect is the wardrobe (forget her name) she is seen jumping off the castle at the end of the sequence - very funny and outrageous i admit but the only time you should see the wardrobe acting over-the-top like this is in the storming of the castle sequence during the climax of the film. like the ballroom scene just mentioned, this wardobe scene decreases the effect of the wardrobe later on in the film - which should be the first time we see the wardrobe acting really outrageously NOT BEFORE!!!

- if you can follow that? lol

not to mention the animation that really stood out like a sore thumb from the rest of the movie. also not to mention the colours of the restoration - everything looked too bright e.g Belle's hair was red and the beast's navy dinner jacket was not navy
it cheapened the movie, took away some of it's visual, artisitc value and made it look alot more cartoony - i prefer to watch BATB on my old VHS tape - it looks alot better!

[Disney Duster]

I think the old lead in was sweet and charming and even though the song moment is moved ithe same care should have been applied to the lead in. A cow mooing sound? I mean come on...

Is that for Human Again? What are you talking about? Just clarify and explain more.

Beast_enchantment, what I don't understand is how a film already digitally done on the computer needs to be "restored". I also heard rumours that Disney told the "restorers" of the films to make them brighter because kids will like them more (which accounts for Cinderella and other color-changing restorations)... I think the same goes for the drop in quality on DVD releases, kids want to find things easier, just get to the movie and not have animated menus that take too long, and want games to play, ad don't want a lot of backstage Disney material! That's just my guess, but I know they put Fastplay on DVD and only 1 Disc versions of DVDs because parents wanted to make it easier to just pop in one disc for their kids to watch while they have alone time. Well, they should just say "sorry you're horrible parents!!!!!"

I also prefer the pre-restoration versions of most of the films. Sleeping Beauty's gonna get ruined, too...just you wait...

[Beast_enchantment]

i agree!
i think in future Disney should release two DVD versions

one disc version for the kids with the movie really bright, straightforward menus and tons of games.

two disc version for the serious disney fans with substantial backstage material (that isnt labelled backstage disney - i hate that), very enticing and creative menu designs, and decent movie picture quality

[Disney Duster]

Oh, very nice idea! In some other country, Cinderella was sort of done that way. 1 Disc with just the movie and some material for the kids, then 2 Discs with the same overly clean and bright movie, but all of the material (that the US got).

There were rumours Disney was saving all the best material for Blu-Ray releases. I think even rumours of the "two versions" idea, like one for kids and "normal people" and one for hardcore Disney fans and collectors. We'll see when Sleeping Beauty comes out, I suppose!

[Escapay]

I think the same goes for the drop in quality on DVD releases, kids want to find things easier, just get to the movie and not have animated menus that take too long, and want games to play, ad don't want a lot of backstage Disney material! That's just my guess, but I know they put Fastplay on DVD and only 1 Disc versions of DVDs because parents wanted to make it easier to just pop in one disc for their kids to watch while they have alone time. Well, they should just say "sorry you're horrible parents!!!!!"

*imagines the year 2021, where a 36-year-old Scaps sitting down about to read the evening paper*

(Scaps is sitting down about to read the evening paper. His children, Jet Rocket and Rainbow Sunshine, come bursting in.)

Jet Rocket: Daddy! Daddy! We want to watch Peter Pan!

Scaps: Again? That's the fifth time today!

Rainbow Sunshine: I know, but we love Tink!

Jet Rocket: I'm going to marry her when I grow up.

Rainbow Sunshine: You can't marry Tink! I'm going to marry her!

Jet Rocket: No you won't!

Rainbow Sunshine: Yes I will!

(They bicker about this for awhile. Scaps tries to escape.)

Jet Rocket: Wait! What about Peter Pan?

Scaps: *sigh* Okay, I'll go get it for you guys.

(He gets up, opens the cupboard and pulls out not the Timestream Download, not the Virtual Realifile, not the ClearChip MoxBox, not the Holographic Video Disc, not the Blu-Ray...but the old DVD from 2002. Jet Rocket and Rainbow Sunshine look disappointed.)

Jet Rocket: Not that old thing! We want the Timestream Download! It lets us live the film as if we were one of the characters!

Rainbow Sunshine: No, I'd rather get the ClearChip MoxBox! We get to watch it in the special MoxBox room and be able to touch things!

Scaps: Kids, back in my day we actually had to take a VHS tape-

Jet Rocket: What's a VHS?

Rainbow: It's a black plastic thingy...right, Daddy?

Scaps: Yep. We had to take this VHS tape and put it in the machine, then press "Play"...and hope the tape was rewound.

Rainbow Sunshine: Rewound?

Scaps: Make sure the movie would start at the beginning. If it wasn't rewound, it could start anywhere. THe end, the middle...

Jet Rocket: That sounds so bad...

Scaps: Not only that, but we had to watch it on a television screen. We could only see and hear it...no touching, no smelling, no tasting...

Rainbow Sunshine: Aaagghhh, stop, Daddy! You're scaring me!

Scaps: Wait until I tell you about two-disc DVDs. Ignorant parents would get confused as to which disc to put in the player....they might accidentally put in the disc with bonus features and the kids would end up not watching the movie...but the making of documentary!

Jet Rocket & Rainbow Sunshine: nooooo!!!!

I also prefer the pre-restoration versions of most of the films. Sleeping Beauty's gonna get ruined, too...just you wait...

I can't wait for the Pink versus Blue battle to become the Magenta versus Cerulean!

Scaps

[Escapay]

i think in future Disney should release two DVD versions

one disc version for the kids with the movie really bright, straightforward menus and tons of games.

two disc version for the serious disney fans with substantial backstage material

Oh, very nice idea! I think even rumours of the "two versions" idea, like one for kids and "normal people" and one for hardcore Disney fans and collectors.

Disney experimented with this in the early 2000s with dual-releases of Tarzan, The Emperor's New Groove, Dinosaur, and Atlantis: The Lost Empire. Poor sales of the two-disc sets for Atlantis and another title (I think TENG) led to them abandoning the idea until Warner started doing it in...2005 with new releases. Then every studio started doing it.

Scaps

[UncleEd]

I'm talking about the lead in on the original demo. The broadway show follows the demo more too I think. You need that kind of tone more than what the animated version got. I'm not against animated Human Again, I just don't like how aspects of it turned out so it doesn't blen in with the film. It should have been seamless but it wasn't. I don't mind cleaning up the ballroom because you don't really see it in all its glory though.

[2099net]

Beast_enchantment, what I don't understand is how a film already digitally done on the computer needs to be "restored".

Beauty and the Beast and the Lion King were not "restored" (although Disney use that word themselves) because lots of changes were made to add detail for the IMAX screenings. We basically get the IMAX versions on the DVDs released.

Because IMAX screens are so big, many changes above and beyond the crocodiles and waterfalls and Mustafa's heavenly face (for example) were made to The Lion King - usually adding detail to characters and objects in the background. The same was done to Beauty and the Beast. We also got the added songs (but at least these were optional).

Restore means to revert to its original state. Disney never intended to show the IMAX screenings in their original state - they were making them better.

I'm not sure if similar work was done on Pocahontas and Aladdin - I understand that there was some debate at the time if IMAX-i-fication had been done/started for these movies before their DVD reissue/release. Because at one time both of these films were scheduled for an IMAX reissue too. But the returns for the IMAX reissues were disappointing and the policy was dropped as a result.

[ichabod]

I'm not sure if similar work was done on Pocahontas and Aladdin - I understand that there was some debate at the time if IMAX-i-fication had been done/started for these movies before their DVD reissue/release. Because at one time both of these films were scheduled for an IMAX reissue too. But the returns for the IMAX reissues were disappointing and the policy was dropped as a result.

Aladdin was Imax-ified as is pointed out in the book that came with the collector's set, images of the original and imax versions are compared.

i don't think Pocahontas was however.

[Beast_enchantment]

Disney never intended to show the IMAX screenings in their original state - they were making them better.

I understand what you mean, but it never did make them better. as a result it took away some of the films value, visually and kind of was an insult to the hardwork that the animators put in to the movie originally.

[2099net]

Disney never intended to show the IMAX screenings in their original state - they were making them better.

I understand what you mean, but it never did make them better. as a result it took away some of the films value, visually and kind of was an insult to the hardwork that the animators put in to the movie originally.

Hey, I'm all for keeping the original version available. But the originals were not made for showing on huge IMAX screens. They were made "better". Crowd scenes for example on IMAX would just be huge areas of faceless blobs, and clearly visible as such when magnified up.

The question is not were the IMAX changes (if you ignore the new songs) "Better" or not, but should they have been released on a home format or not?

[Beast_enchantment]

why did they show them in IMAX theatres anyway? hardly anyone wouldve gone to them if they already had VHS tapes. it was pretty much pointless and therfore pointless to alter the movies. i've heard the excuse that the people invovled in the rerelease wanted to feel apart of it so they altered bits here and there - but they shouldn't do that!!! would you tamper with Snow White? these more recent movies are classics too and should not be touched in anyway. they deserve just as much respect as the older disney movies.

[2099net]

Nobody did see them. So they stopped.