The Jungle Book: Platinum Edition Press Release, Discussion

[carter1971]

No one's going to be able to prove that the new restoration is 100% accurate to the original, but I think we can safely say that it'll be more accurate than the washed-out Limited Issue DVD.

[Major Fatal Moebius]

but I think we can safely say that it'll be more accurate than the washed-out Limited Issue DVD.

the limited ed looks perfectly fine to me.

[singerguy04]

I watched the jungle book trailer on the new peter pan dvd and it truly boggles the mind. No way did the film look like that when it first came out. They're putting millions of different kinds of green everywhere and it looks way more vibrant than it oughta. Why can't they just update the damn thing without tinkering with the colors so much?

Anyway, i've got the limited edition now and i'm not going to buy this unless somebody can prove me that the restauration is how it really looked like to begin with...

While reading this I can't help but wonder what exactly you have to work off of. Are you questioning Disney's ability to make color? As far as I'm concerned I don't think you have any reason to doubt the restoration process. True, there probably really is no way possible to present a film this old as it was originally in a perfect matter, but so far the restorations we've seen in the PE's have come close to perfect. I don't feel that they've "tinkered" with the colors at all, I just think that you've never seen it in such a good presentation.

As far as the Limited Issues go, to be perfectly frank, they are crap IMO.

[Major Fatal Moebius]

o far the restorations we've seen in the PE's have come close to perfect.

Didn't you hear everybody complaining about the just released peter pan, or bambi or cinderella?

I'm not an expert on this subject, but i do know these restaurations are far from perfect.

[TheSequelOfDisney]

Didn't you hear everybody complaining about the just released peter pan, or bambi or cinderella?

I'm not an expert on this subject, but i do know these restaurations are far from perfect.

First of all, restorations. And who was complaining about the "Peter Pan" Platinum Edition in terms of the transfer? All I heard was that it was spectacular, an achievement from the Special Edition released a few years ago. "Bambi" there might have been a few problems, but come on, it's 63, when the PE was released, years old, can you really blame anyone? All I heard about "Cinderella" was that it was a little too perfect, and some of the colors were different. So, these restorations, are pretty close to perfect, the best that they could possibly be. So no one was complaining, maybe you were imagining things.

[Escapay]

And who was complaining about the "Peter Pan" Platinum Edition in terms of the transfer?

People who just want to find more faults in Disney and say "It's not like the original theatrical colors or animated cels!" despite the fact that:
1. After 54 years, colors will most definitely fade on the cels, despite the best care made to preserve them. So 54-year-old animated cels are good source material, but not necessarily the best and most accurate.
2. They weren't there 54 years ago when it was in theatres, and even if they were, would you really rely on a 54-year-old memory of those colors from a theatregoer's point of view? Heck, I don't even remember what the original colors looked like on Aladdin when I saw it back in 1992, and that was a mere 15 years ago! If it was the original animator, then yes, I'd rely on it. But not someone who saw a movie once when they were 5 and choose to complain about it when they're 59.

I haven't seen The Jungle Book in its entirety, like, ever. So when I see it, it'll be a first for me and I doubt I'd think, "Oh man, the colors are different from the 15 minutes I saw of this in 1993!"

Escapay

[goofystitch]

Amen, Escapay. I got some flack from making a similar comment under that topic, but it's nice to know that someone else feels that an old man's reccolection of the films colors more than 50 years ago aren't enough to convince you either.

[BackgroundActorman1976]

And who was complaining about the "Peter Pan" Platinum Edition in terms of the transfer?

People who just want to find more faults in Disney and say "It's not like the original theatrical colors or animated cels!" despite the fact that:
1. After 54 years, colors will most definitely fade on the cels, despite the best care made to preserve them. So 54-year-old animated cels are good source material, but not necessarily the best and most accurate.
2. They weren't there 54 years ago when it was in theatres, and even if they were, would you really rely on a 54-year-old memory of those colors from a theatregoer's point of view? Heck, I don't even remember what the original colors looked like on Aladdin when I saw it back in 1992, and that was a mere 15 years ago! If it was the original animator, then yes, I'd rely on it. But not someone who saw a movie once when they were 5 and choose to complain about it when they're 59.

I haven't seen The Jungle Book in its entirety, like, ever. So when I see it, it'll be a first for me and I doubt I'd think, "Oh man, the colors are different from the 15 minutes I saw of this in 1993!"

Escapay

Iam really starting to like escapay, your responses allmost allways make me laugh.
pretty cool

[Princess Stitch]

Some people seem to get really charged up about this stuff. Does it really matter if the grass is a different shade of green than it was in the original? It doesn't change the story or the movie at all. It's not like they made baloo pink or changed mowgli's haircut.

Maybe it's just me, but I don't think I've ever watched a Disney movie and gone "Hey, that water used to be cerulean and now it's cobalt! what a sham!"

The fact of the matter is, it's probably going to be impossible to restore any movie to EXACTLY what it first was.

[Lars Vermundsberget]

Basically correct - there is possibly no entirely reliable source or memory of exactly how it looked originally, several decades ago. But some of the complaints are quite justified, in my opinion - when there's seemingly been an attempt to make old animation look like it could have been made last year with computer technology. The fact that the story and characters remain unchanged isn't quite going to cut it for everyone. It might look good, but it's still not given that "good" equals "right".

[Major Fatal Moebius]

Basically correct - there is possibly no entirely reliable source or memory of exactly how it looked originally, several decades ago. But some of the complaints are quite justified, in my opinion - when there's seemingly been an attempt to make old animation look like it could have been made last year with computer technology. The fact that the story and characters remain unchanged isn't quite going to cut it for everyone. It might look good, but it's still not given that "good" equals "right".

exactly. the bolded part bothers me the most. It's almost as if it's done on purpose so that the newer disney films and all the millions of sequels don't look out of place or absolutely awful compared to the golden classics. It wouldn't surprise me if this really was the case...

Anyway, i don't want to take away anyone's enjoyment for the platinum restorations. If you're happy with it you're happy with it!

[Jules]

Iam really starting to like escapay, your responses allmost allways make me laugh.
pretty cool

It has been scientifically proven to be impossible to not like Escapay, what with his Philippino-American charm, sense of humour, mischief and cheekiness. Escapay rocks!

And if you like him, then you'll like his brother aswell ... Kram Nebuer, who hasn't been on for ages now I suppose it's the school work. Oh Kram, where art thou?

[Escapay]

Amen, Escapay. I got some flack from making a similar comment under that topic, but it's nice to know that someone else feels that an old man's reccolection of the films colors more than 50 years ago aren't enough to convince you either.

Iam really starting to like escapay, your responses allmost allways make me laugh.
pretty cool

It has been scientifically proven to be impossible to not like Escapay, what with his Philippino-American charm, sense of humour, mischief and cheekiness. Escapay rocks!

Hehe, thanks guys! (goofystitch, Ltinker1976, and UD's favorite Maltese Poster, Julian Carter!)

And if you like him, then you'll like his brother aswell ... Kram Nebuer, who hasn't been on for ages now I suppose it's the school work. Oh Kram, where art thou?

He's off doing school work once again. And if not that, then he's off doing volunteer work once again. The little brat does nothing but wear his heart on his sleeve and help others and doesn't have time to discuss Disney and DVDs as often as before.

Every time I bring up UD, he's like "Man, I haven't been there in so long, they probably forgot about me!" and "I haven't been there in so long, what are you talking about???", or my personal favorite "How do you find time to always go on there and do your schoolwork at the same time?"

Escapay

[Jordan]

More details on the Platinum Edition with this news from DVDTimes:

Extras include:

- The Lost Character: Rocky The Rhino - For the first time ever, the near-sighted, short-tempered rhinoceros named Rocky is brought to the screen using original storyboards and original voice recordings by Frank Fontaine.

- The Bare Necessities: The Making of The Jungle Book - A comprehensive look at the last animated film that Walt Disney produced using existing archival footage in addition to new interviews with Richard Sherman, Brad Bird, Glen Keane, Eric Goldberg, James Baxter, Will Fi’nn, Andreas Deja, Burny Mattinson Ted Thomas, Bruce Reitherman, John Culhane, John Canemaker and Neal Gabler—plus a never-before-seen collection of artwork and treatments from the film

- Disney’s Kipling: Walt’s Magic Touch on A Literary Classic - A discarded film treatment from 1963 includes scenes from Kipling’s “Mowgli Stories” and more are used to illustrate Walt’s interpretation of the literary masterpiece

- The Lure of The Jungle Book - Many of today’s biggest names in animation were inspired to pursue their careers after seeing The Jungle Book; this feature examines this phenomenon and features new interviews with Brad Bird, Andreas Deja, Sergio Pablo, Will Finn and Eric Goldberg.

- Mowgli’s Return to the Jungle - Learn about nature filmmaking and the experience of making The Jungle Book firsthand from Bruce Reitherman, the voice of Mowgli.

- Baloo’s Virtual Swingin’ Jungle Cruise - Join everyone’s favourite bear in this set-top and DVD-ROM game on an adventure through the jungle: enjoy fun activities and musical challenges, but keep an eye out because there’s no telling what’s on the other side of the river bend!

- Audio Commentary - Combines comments from current animators with audio from the original creative team who made the film

- English Learning Feature
- Still Frame Art Gallery

Looks like a promising set, especially the making of and "Disney's Kippling"! I can't wait!

[Escapay]

- Audio Commentary - Combines comments from current animators with audio from the original creative team who made the film

That's all I can say.

Escapay

[Timon/Pumbaa fan]

The Jungle Book Platinum so far looks freakin' awesome!

Glad to see one of my personal favorites get justice from Disney for once!

[Escapay]

Glad to see one of my personal favorites get justice from Disney for once!

It's just too bad we can't get our ten-disc Chicken Little as well!

(and I'm still brooding over the shoddy Peter Pan: Platinum Edition. At the very least, all it needed was an extra 30 minutes re-edited with the 16 minute featurette, the two songs known to be deleted since they're on the soundtrack, and a frickin' trailer. Is 30+ minutes too much to ask, Disney? IS IT???)

Escapay

[Disneykid]

You guys might wanna cover your ears...

HOW THE FREAKING HECK DOES THE JUNGLE BOOK GET A COMMENTARY TRACK WHEN CINDERELLA AND ALICE IN WONDERLAND GOT ZILCH?! HECK, I COULD VAGUELY UNDERSTAND ALICE CONSIDERING DISNEY DEEMS IT TO BE A MIDDLE-CLASS FILM, BUT CINDERELLA?!?! THAT'S ARGUABLY THE STUDIO'S MOST FAMOUS FILM AND YET JUNGLE BOOK IS DEEMED WORTHIER OF A COMMENTARY??!?!

All right, now that I've gotten that out of the way...

Yay for a commentary track! No, seriously, I really am happy that Jungle Book's getting one even though it boggles my mind that they decide to bring it back now of all times. I'm really interested in the Bruce Reitherman featurette, and if it deals with his time at Disney as a whole instead of just Jungle Book, I'm hoping he'll clear up the mystery of the Christopher Robins. All this release needs are trailers (deleted scenes and songs, while not mentioned here, have been confirmed elsewhere). The release is sounding mighty impressive, and could be part of the upper class Platinum sets like Snow White, Aladdin, and Beauty and the Beast.

Oh, and the news of a commentary on this bodes well for One and One Dalmatians and Pinocchio, yay! I'll try not to think of the fact that Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, and Lady and the Tramp will be the only 2-disc sets without commentaries...

[Simba3]

Wow, sounds like the bonus features are going to be pretty solid! It doesn't seem overy full of features, but the ones it does have all sound like they will be good. I'm glad some of the Disney vets will be on disc talking about "The Jungle Book", that is always the best stuff. The Lure of The Jungle Book should be a really good bonus feature, given it is long enough to be worth wile. The Bare Necessities: The Making of the Jungle Book should be great too. I don't know if it is on the limited edition, because I don't own it, so it will all be new to me. I am really eagar to see the lost Rocky the Rhino character, that ought to be pretty cool. The only think I am disappointed about is the lack of a Disney Pedia, those are my favorites.

[TheSequelOfDisney]

So far, we can expect:

1.75:1 Matted Aspect Ratio
5.1 Disney Enhanced Home Theater Mix
Original Mono Track

Backstage Disney:
Audio Commentary
Combines comments from current animators with audio from the original creative team who made the film

The Bare Necessities: The Making of The Jungle Book
A comprehensive look at the last animated film that Walt Disney produced using existing archival footage in addition to new interviews with Richard Sherman, Brad Bird, Glen Keane, Eric Goldberg, James Baxter, Will Fi’nn, Andreas Deja, Burny Mattinson Ted Thomas, Bruce Reitherman, John Culhane, John Canemaker and Neal Gabler—plus a never-before-seen collection of artwork and treatments from the film

Disney’s Kipling: Walt’s Magic Touch on A Literary Classic
A discarded film treatment from 1963 includes scenes from Kipling’s “Mowgli Stories” and more are used to illustrate Walt’s interpretation of the literary masterpiece

The Lure of The Jungle Book
Many of today’s biggest names in animation were inspired to pursue their careers after seeing The Jungle Book; this feature examines this phenomenon and features new interviews with Brad Bird, Andreas Deja, Sergio Pablo, Will Finn and Eric Goldberg.

Mowgli’s Return to the Jungle
Learn about nature filmmaking and the experience of making The Jungle Book firsthand from Bruce Reitherman, the voice of Mowgli.

Still Frame Art Gallery

English Learning Feature

Music Video

Deleted Materials:

Songs:
-"Brothers All"
-"The Song of the Seeonee"
-"Bare Necessities"
-"Monkey See, Monkey Do"
-"Hate Song"
-"In A Day's Work"
-"I Knew I Belonged to Her"

Character:
The Lost Character: Rocky The Rhino
For the first time ever, the near-sighted, short-tempered rhinoceros named Rocky is brought to the screen using original storyboards and original voice recordings by Frank Fontaine.

Games & Activites:

Baloo’s Virtual Swingin’ Jungle Cruise
Join everyone’s favorite bear in this set-top and DVD-ROM game on an adventure through the jungle: enjoy fun activities and musical challenges, but keep an eye out because there’s no telling what’s on the other side of the river bend!

DisneyPedia: Junglemania 'Ed'venture

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

So far, this looks like a wonderful set. I cannot wait until this release. I've only ever seen the movie twice and I don't even remember it. I can't believe I'm so excited for something I really haven't seen before!