Fantasia: 2-Movie Collection - 11/30/10 (Part 2)

[Escapay]

Anyone who cares so much about the film that bonus features are supremely important ought to be complaining there's no documentary addressing the restoration. I don't think anyone is giving the company *nearly* enough credit for the difficulty and effort and expense involved in creating a high quality high definition presentation of a 70-year-old film shot on film stock that's capable of spontaneous combustion. That work is all about *the film*, and it takes a helluva lot more than a sprinkling of pixie dust.

I certainly would love to see that. I love learning more about restoration. 20th Century Fox often includes brief restoration comparisons and text screens about restoring their films, and several other studios include brief featurettes ("Restoring Roman Holiday", "Prettier Than Ever: The Restoration of Oz", Gone with the Wind's "Restoring a Legend"). And there's lengthy articles about restoration for "Doctor Who" stories from the Doctor Who Restoration Team, and some of the DVDs include restoration features as well (I especially love the RSC featurette for "The Claws of Axos"). I'd love to see a feature-length documentary about the entire process from beginning to end. I don't think I've ever seen one before, beyond "More Loverly Than Ever" which is half about the making of My Fair Lady and half about its 1994 restoration.

Disney used to have short restoration featurettes on some of their DVDs (Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Bambi, a portion of "Music Magic" on Bedknobs and Broomsticks), but they haven't had any since Bambi, which is a pity.

albert

[singerguy04]

Why is it "childish" to want special features on these films? I would LOVE to know more about the production of the film. I missed out on the previous set and it would've been nice to have a definitive release on blu. Why is it that my opinion is somehow wrong and inferior to any of yours. Get the heck off your pedestal.

The film IS the most important part of the release, and no one has said different. I would just be happier with the release if there was at least a feature on the making of the original film. I'm still going to buy it, and I'll be very happy with the film. Just not happy with the set.

I don't know why all you guys are getting so huffy about having special features anyway. It's not like the disc makes you all watch every feature before letting you view the film. If you really feel like they are that much of a waste just ignore them. They don't even drive up the price of the disc.

Basically, you don't have the belittle the rest of us that would've been happy with special features just because you don't like/want them.

[BwayJ]

Has anyone heard of any special Fantasia screenings that will happen between now and the end of the year? I think I heard of one in California sometime a couple months ago, and I'd like to know if there are any more happening in either New York, California or wherever.

[Lorddh]

IDK, releasing a trailer advertising the shorts and having Don Hahn tell people on multiple occasions that we were getting them is pretty official to me. Either way, Disney marketing has spewed out misinformation too many times now that I've learned my lesson. I don't trust anything they say until it's in my hands and all there.

Pre-freakin'-cisely. It's not like Disney is the only studio that's ever put out a release that didn't measure up to earlier publicity, or entirely pull a release from the schedule. Nothing *anyone* says matters, no matter how official, until review copies are out and you've got your own copy for perusal. That's just the nature of the home media industry.

I love trailers, it's a gateway to another time. It's the trailers for re-releases that I could care less about.

Funny. That's the exact reason why the *only* trailers I've ever watched more than once were the ones included on...was it the PE of Snow White? In which they included the trailers for every theatrical re-release the film ever had. I thought that was pretty cool...but they didn't make such a deep impression I can say with confidence which film they did that for.

As far as editing and re-dubbing goes: The pickaninnies aren't going to be seen until this country comes somewhere close to healing its racial wounds, which may never happen at all. I think it's far more likely we'll get at least some of Deems Taylor, someday...but if they don't have *all* of his voicework, I'd rather have him overdubbed than put up with obvious & repeated shifts in voice and recording quality while watching the film. Not to knock Mr. Taylor or his role in the film's garnering public interest and acceptance, but when I watch Fantasia, I'm not watching it for Deems Taylor.

This just assumes that everyone owns the DVD release. What about those of us that don't (people that have never owned it, or just the VHS, or just a pirated copy, and so on)? I've only ever owned the VHS, so ported features are very much appreciated, and I'm sure people upgrading their DVDs would love to have everything ported so they didn't need to hold onto multiple releases.

I'm upgrading the DVD and I don't care that prior features aren't being ported---I've already paid for them, so why should I pay for them again? Which is why I think it's an interesting and appropriate solution that prior special features be made available via BD-Live & the virtual vault: if, in fact, that's what's going to happen, it'll be the best implementation of BD-Live to date.

There are plenty of films which I've bought and bought again for which I don't own every piece of bonus content ever produced. But am I, say, going to go out and buy into dead laserdisc technology just so I can have *everything*? No. Do I feel ripped off? No. Is my enjoyment of the feature presentation affected in the least by all the special features I *don't* own? Not a whit. I didn't see supplements in the theatre, I saw the feature presentation.There's no quantity of bonus material that's going to make me a part of the production process; there's always going to be *something* "important" I'll never know.

And *yes*---studios release on home media only to release again. The only significant way Disney differs from any other studio in that regard is that we know up front some releases are only going to be available for a limited time. If a definitive collection of special features is that important, the only way you're ever going to get them is to buy every release ever made: it's the nature of the beast, and it's why getting emotionally invested in special features is a losing proposition to begin with.

Nicely said.

And what's also funny is how he is saying that he wont be buying the film just because of that.
But he doesn't realize that by doing that he's giving Disney the reason why not to give it another great or even better release.

One person buying does make a difference.

[Mr. Yagoobian]

Disney used to have short restoration featurettes on some of their DVDs (Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Bambi, a portion of "Music Magic" on Bedknobs and Broomsticks), but they haven't had any since Bambi, which is a pity.

It *is* a pity, particularly since the restoration process has changed so dramatically over the past several years. And since the home media and the TVs have reached the point that it's possible to have an experience at home that's comparable to the theatrical presentation, it's of paramount importance that the information get out into the buying public...because the buying public, by and large, are still suffering from serious misconceptions about how things should like in high def. I suspect Disney quit on restoration featurettes because they figured no one really cared, that such material was too heady for releasing with family films. There was some really good info out there when the PE Sleeping Beauty BD came out, but you had to be interested enough in the process already to have any idea where to find the information.

I would LOVE to know more about the production of the film. I missed out on the previous set and it would've been nice to have a definitive release on blu.

The previous set is still available, new & used, from resellers, as is the 3rd Legacy disc on its own, which is where most of the meat is on the anthology release. Doesn't make it any more acceptable that this release seems skimpy, I know.

Of course, if the press were clearer we might not be having this discussion at all. The suggestion has been made that the Anthology bonus materials will be available through BD-Live in the so-called Virtual Vault, but there's nothing in any of the recent publicity that makes that explicit or clears it up in any way. I certainly hope it's true because that would make this release about as close to definitive as we could expect, and it would easily be the best use of BD-Live to date. I'd actually be quite happy if the vast majority of bonus features were made available that way, with the exception of commentaries and PIP features and such that run concurrently with the feature presentation---I think it would simplify releases and go some way to eliminating some of the authoring/hardware/compatibility issues that continue to crop up with the hard media...

[BwayJ]

Has anyone heard of any special Fantasia screenings that will happen between now and the end of the year? I think I heard of one in California sometime a couple months ago, and I'd like to know if there are any more happening in either New York, California or wherever.

I'd hate to seem insistent, but my family and I are making our Thanksgiving plans, and I'd like to find out if Fantasia is going to be playing in New York at any point during that weekend.

Does anyone have any clues?

[Mr. Yagoobian]

Has anyone heard of any special Fantasia screenings that will happen between now and the end of the year? I think I heard of one in California sometime a couple months ago, and I'd like to know if there are any more happening in either New York, California or wherever.

I'd hate to seem insistent, but my family and I are making our Thanksgiving plans, and I'd like to find out if Fantasia is going to be playing in New York at any point during that weekend.

Does anyone have any clues?

The California screening was at the El Capitan theatre, which is operated by the Disney company; it's recently been tricked out for a "4-D" presentation of The Nightmare Before Christmas (3-D plus smoke, smell-o-vision, other sensory effects). I don't think you can expect to find Fantasia showing anywhere but in homes this holiday season.

[DisneyJedi]

I'm still getting the movie(s) on BD, since I never got Fantasia on DVD, or Fantasia 2000 at all.

And I know I'm going to look foolish for this, but...

I WANT TO SEE THOSE NEW FANTASIA SHORTS, DAMN IT!!!

[Scamander]

The Fantasia movies are out now in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. Can't wait to get those next week from amazon.de

[miniroll32]

If you find any reviews could you post them please?

[Scamander]

The first review is online, but it's in german of course. It seems to underrate both, the movie and the restoration a little, but here it is, anyway.

In short:

Story: 4/5

Picture: 4/5

+high quality picture regarding 70 years old movie
+in general, highly satisfying sharpness and detail drawing
+balanced and consistent contrast ratio
+strong, brilliant colour reproduction
+various sequences offer a (very) good plasticity
+no dirt, damages or other artefacts
+live action sequences offer the same high class image quality

-just a few takes look somewhat softer and less detailed
-minimal less details in dark picture areas during the live action scenes

(german) sound: 4/5

supplements: 2,5/5

-Disney View
-three audio commentaries
-Disney Family Museum
-The Schultheis Notebook
-Interactive Art Gallery (with hundreds of pictures from both Fantasias. Mostly drafts)

[merlinjones]

According to the above linked German review, that Blu-Ray disc is coded for regions A, B and C - - great news if true -- Hope UK version is the same, as I only want the original Fantasia, not 2000.

[miniroll32]

Just translated that review myself - The author rightly laments the extras, and as such, says that what you see on the disc case/press release is all you get.

Thanks Disney!

[Coolmanio]

I dont know if this has been posted yet, but Amazon has some clips about Destino on their Fantasia page: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0040QTNSK?tag ... amp=211189

And if it has, then, even though the bonus features are not that extensive, I am still excited about this release, as I have never owned these movies in any way.

[pettla77]

In Norway and Sweden (maybe some other countries also) Disney has decided to release Fantasia and Fantasia 2000 separately...
No combo pack

The Swedish covers :

[SWillie!]

God I love those covers so much better than the ones wer're getting. So, does anybody have a list of which countries are releasing them separately? And with which cover arts? And whether or not they will be region-free?

[Scamander]

At least Germany and France get/ got those, too.

[miniroll32]

I don't get why the heck in the U.K, were only getting the original Fantasia in a single pack and not F-2000. Given that the Combo-Pack doesn't even contain the DVD's, it seems like such messy marketing to have all these different releases across the globe.

I've ordered both the single pack and the combo-pack, but if there are no extras features for the original film in the combo-pack then I'll just sell it.

[MJW]

I was just looking through a Disney coupon booklet I got the night I bought Beauty and the Beast at Toys R Us. Inside there was a $3 off coupon for Fantasia/2000. Does anyone know if I would be able to use this IN ADDITION TO the coupon that we will (HOPEFULLY) get direct from Disney?

I read the fine print on the back of the Toys R Us coupon, and it just says that it cannot be used with any other Toys R Us offer. It doesn't say anything about a manufacturer's coupon...

[JoeyOhhhh]

Toys R Us will let you stack coupons.

However, I believe the Toys R Us coupon you have to purchase two movies above a certain price.