Time for Walt Live-Action Blu-Rays?

[merlinjones]

Is the time is coming soon for Walt's live-action classics to debut on Blu-Ray disc? We have yet to see any released, even "Mary Poppins." Titles I'm most hoping to see make the hi-def format:

Mary Poppins
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (CinemaScope)
Swiss Family Robinson (Panavision)
The Parent Trap!
Pollyanna
Darby O' Gill and the Little People
Treasure Island
Song of the South

Also:

The Absent-Minded Professor
The Shaggy Dog
Old Yeller
That Darn Cat!
Summer Magic
Babes in Toyland
Three Lives of Thomasina
Dr Syn, Alias the Scarecrow
Third Man on the Mountain
The Moon-Spinners
In Search of the Castaways

And from after-Walt:

The Love Bug
Bedknobs and Broomsticks

[Wonderlicious]

I believe that Disney has done some basic 4K scans of the original negatives of a number of old live-action films (including Song of the South), yet they are supposedly only being done for the sake of general preservation. I heard that Mary Poppins will eventually come out on Blu-Ray but is being held back for its 50th Anniversary.

[BILLONEE]

I would very much love to see a Hayley Mills Blu-Ray series with all of her movies. A bonus for me would be a 5 minute intro on each by Miss Mills telling us a couple tidbits of trivia.

[merlinjones]

>>I would very much love to see a Hayley Mills Blu-Ray series with all of her movies. A bonus for me would be a 5 minute intro on each by Miss Mills telling us a couple tidbits of trivia.<<

Both "The Parent Trap!" and "Pollyanna" have a ton of supporting features from their excellent "Vault Disney" DVD editions that could be ported over to Blu-Ray, featuring Hayley, late director David Swift and others.

Would be nice to see her shoot some new HD bookends too. Hayley was the big baby boomer hit at the TCM film festival in Hollywood last spring. Hopefully the rights holders took notice, as they tend to undervalue Walt's live-action library.

They could even double-up "In Search of the Castaways" with "The Moon Spinners" and "Summer Magic with "That Darn Cat!" on Blu-Ray if that would help get these to true HD masters.

[Lazario]

Time for Walt Live-Action Blu-Rays?

Always.

But you'll never see them.

[merlinjones]

>>But you'll never see them.<<

Fortunately, I take Walt's films to heart and choose to have hope and optimism for the future -- and the longevity of the classics, despite the odds and pervasive negativity.

[Lazario]

That way of thinking, sweet though it is, is kind of liking holding a Bible up in front of a ravenous, man-eating lion. Can't fight a moving train. (That's a mixed metaphor, isn't it? Sor'z.)

And actually, I didn't mean negativity among fans. I'm saying the studios are manufacturing every door locking fans out of any access to better presentations of classic films, shorts, shows. You'll see soon enough there isn't enough positivity to fight those frozen corporate jerks.

The best you can hope for is something downloadable online. As a potential future medium for classic content studios think won't make enough money on Blu-Ray. And if that becomes a popular trend, you can count on Disney not offering much for people to be able to keep. Even at the worst of times, when they're at their most desperate.

[merlinjones]

Still, it's hard to see how they could avoid releasing the biggest baby-boomer favorites on Blu-Ray like "20,00 Leagues", "Swiss Family Robinson," "Parent Trap", "Pollyanna", and "Old Yeller" -- even as part of a classic library phasing-out process. There is still money to be made from those top titles in this (potentially) final "physical" home video format.

Anyway I hope so.

[Lazario]

I would imagine they compare the money they could make off of those titles to the money they'd make off releasing something new even if it were direct-to-video or a new kids' show and then the new figures crush the old ones. Hence... why things look so bleak right now.

[merlinjones]

The new and old libraries are not really competitive for the same markets, so why ignore the additional income? They wouldn't lose any money. Expanding niche markets for incremental growth would certainly be a welcome change of pace.

If not -- License the titles out to third parties, then. There are plenty of independents would love to market such valuable pre-sold titles. Then they can just sit back and collect royalties. Just please allow access to the good film elements for new masters.

[jpanimation]

Well, I mentioned this in it’s dedicated thread but HDNet Movies is showing Bedknobs and Broomsticks and That Darn Cat! all month! They are definitely HD masters and they look fantastic. Too bad I don’t like either of the movies lol

Just give me Mary Poppins, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Absent-Minded Professor, and The Shaggy Dog. Here’s hoping these will pop up on HDnet Movies soon (which - given the content the channel - would be a great place to premier Song of the South).

[UmbrellaFish]

We'll eventually get the main stays, I'm betting on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea first to coincide with the reboot or the film's 60th anniversary, whichever comes first. If anything is released before that it will be a Hayley Mills' title or Old Yeller, but these won't be treated with the same fanfare. We're guaranteed Mary Poppins but only in time for the film's 50th anniversary.

[merlinjones]

I would hope for Swiss Family Robinson and Darby O'Gill too.

Swiss and 20,000 Leagues, both being big budget widescreeen epics would seen to benefit most from a hi-def presentation - - a good place to start.

[Alphapanchito]

I would be happy with just 20k. Dying to see those amazing sets in high def. And the Nautilus's interior has a lot of rich reds, which should be beautiful on blu ray.

[milojthatch]

If not -- License the titles out to third parties, then. There are plenty of independents would love to market such valuable pre-sold titles. Then they can just sit back and collect royalties. Just please allow access to the good film elements for new masters.

Disney isn't interested in doing that. A decade ago they did, but then they stopped the practice. The irony is that it was Roy E. Disney who pushed for that change, feeling that Disney should release Disney titles. I wonder if he were alive today if things might be different, but who knows?

From what I can tell, I seriously doubt most of these titles will ever get the Blu-ray treatment. In fact, I really doubt most of the titles that have been released on DVD will ever make it to Blu-ray. I could be wrong, and hope I am, but don't think that is going to be the case.

Now, ultimatly, some may defy the odds, like Marry Poppins, but most are a long shot. If the 20,000 Leagues prequal/ re-make happens, I think the original film has a shot at a Blu-ray due to cross promotion. All-in-all however, Disney is too busy re-branding itself to give a darn about it's vintage library.

That is why I formed Open Vault Disney, in the crazy hope that maybe with enough of a push from the fans we might get as many of the title not released at least on DVD, before it is too late. As it is, they have done nothing to promote the very few vintage/ tv titles they have released via the Generations Collection. For that matter, even the Exclusives sold via the Disney Movie Club are only advertised if you are already a member or follow an online forum like this one. They will not ever give even a tenth of the advertising they do for say the Lady and the Tramp Blu-ray that was just released. You just won't ever see it. From what I can tell, they see it as saving money, and the old titles don't fit in with their re-branding efforts.

That does not mean however we can't change their minds. IF enough fans spoke up, I think they would listen. I suggest focusing any efforts on Robert Chapek and Alan Bergman, as DVD's and Blu-ray's are part of their responsibilities. As always, you'll find the full list of address to send such letters (and e-mails) on our website:

http://openvaultdisney.wordpress.com/ho ... addresses/

[merlinjones]

>>The irony is that it was Roy E. Disney who pushed for that change, feeling that Disney should release Disney titles.<<

Doubtless he didn't forsee they would stop releasing the films altogether.

Still, these kinds of decisions are easily reversed - - why not license at this point? They now license the Walt films for cable to TCM, Hallmark, et al and soundtracks to Intrada. What's the difference? These vintage/classic titles on blu-ray won't cannibalize their rebranding sales efforts for contemporary kiddie sales. Walt's admirers are not likely to buy Snow Buddies or Tinkerbell 8... they'll just buy classics from other studios instead.

In any event, I think the demand for the top Walt live-action titles amongst general film buffs, baby boomers and blu-ray adopters is undercalculated and they will expect at least the familiar top ten or twenty classics. As the boomers age, they will increasingly want the comfort and nostalgia of those titles in the best format.

[merlinjones]

Certain of Walt's live-action titles have been given deluxe treatment in previous formats:

LaserDisc "Disney Archive Editions":

Mary Poppins
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Swiss Family Robinson
Bedknobs and Broomsticks

DVD "Vault Disney" Collection:

Swiss Family Robinson
The Parent Trap!
Pollyanna
Old Yeller
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
The Love Bug

DVD various special editions or at least with some decent extras:

Mary Poppins
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Pete's Dragon
Darby O'Gill and the Little People
The Shaggy Dog

I would hope these choices would remain consistent (with a few additions) for potential Blu-Ray release.

[Snoops]

I agree that the appearance of some of these live action titles on Blu-Ray is now VERY long overdue!

In the meantime I was thinking about trying to get hold of the following OOP R1 2-disc DVD editions, which look like they have some good bonus features as well as decent DVD restorations:

The Love Bug
20,000 Leagues Under The Sea
Pollyanna (Vault Disney Collection)
Swiss Family Robinson (Vault Disney Collection)
Old Yeller (Vault Disney Collection)
The Parent Trap (Vault Disney Collection)

Does anyone own any of these editions? Would you recommend them? And can anyone tell me if they came with slipcovers?

Thanks!

[Disney Guru]

Pollyanna, Love Bug, Swiss Family Robinson and 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea are still in print. And can be purchased for quite reasonable prices on Amazon.com.

[disneyftw1]

Having Disney make Blu-rays of the classic live-action films all depends on the demand. People may want more classic Disney animated films on Blu-ray than live-action films. My bet is that Mary Poppins could be released in 2014 for the 50th Anniversary. For the other titles, it might take awhile if there's a need for a new restoration or, again, demand.