DVDizzy Forum

Putting aside any personal biases or affinities to certain films aside, what do you think is Disney's best Blu-Ray release so far?

Answer in terms of visuals, audio, supplementary material, packaging, etc. I'm curious to see what everyone thinks.

In terms of supplements Beauty and the Beast blows any Blu-ray out of the water, however many people argue the transfer is horrid, so I guess you couldn't say its the best. I think Snow White or Sleeping Beauty are some other great transfers.

I own the following:

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Diamond Edition
Pinocchio Platinum Edition
Fantasia/Fantasia 2000 2-Movie Collection
Dumbo 70th Anniversary Edition
Bambi Diamond Edition
Cinderella Diamond Edition
Alice in Wonderland 60th Anniversary Edition
Peter Pan Diamond Edition
Lady and the Tramp Diamond Edition
Sleeping Beauty Platinum Edition
The Arisocats Special Edition
The Rescuers/Down Under 2-Movie Collection
The Great Mouse Detective
Beauty and the Beast Diamond Edition
The Lion King Diamond Edition
The Princess and the Frog Combo Pack
Tangled 3D Combo Pack
Winnie the Pooh Combo Pack

So, those are the only ones I can really judge. As you can see, I've avoided the '2-movie collections' of films that came with cheapquels. I DO plan on importing those (The Fox and the Hound, Pocahontas and Mulan) from Amazon U.K. in the future, however. Hunchback, though, will be the ONLY film I get that includes its sequel. I've also put off getting the later films like Treasure Planet, Home on the Range, and Chicken Little through Bolt, not because I'm against owning them, but for financial reasons. (Which is the same reason I've yet to import FATH and Pocahontas, honestly.)

Of all the Disney blu-rays that I own, my personal favorite is Sleeping Beauty. I love the film itself, but the visual quality is jaw-dropping on that release. The special features are also great. (Then, it's a platinum edition release. Back when Disney weren't skimping out on special features... Ah, those were the days...) I also have a bit of a personal history with that particular blu-ray. I only got into buying Disney blu-rays around the time Snow White's Diamond Edition came out. I think that was in 2010? By that time, Sleeping Beauty was 'in the vault' and I had a hell of a hard time tracking a copy down.

My least favorite release is the Great Mouse Detective. I love the film. One of my favorites. That's why this release let me down. The visual quality looks poor to me. (It seems so...blurry.) I never got around to buying the Mystery in the Mist DVD of GMD, instead having stuck with my 2002 DVD because I knew a blu-ray was inevitable. Man, did the transfer disappoint me. The special features are non-existent (they couldn't even give the film a commentary? I'd love to hear more about its production history, and what Musker and Clements have to say about the film itself, and how they feel about it. I have no idea about ANY of that, really.) The artwork on the release is also horrible. Basil looks creepy, Dawson, as one forum member pointed out, looks like he's on shrooms (:lol: ) and Olivia is looking up like she's just seen Jesus incarnate. They couldn't give us better art than THAT? Seriously, why isn't Ratigan, the TOP BILLED character in the credits, given representation? At least the old VHS had him on there. (Though terribly off-model...) As a fan of the film, its blu-ray treatment let me down. Though, I'm sad to say, it didn't surprise me in the least.

Pinocchio - Platinum Edition
Sleeping Beauty - Platinum Edition
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - Diamond Edition

ProfessorRatigan wrote:Of all the Disney blu-rays that I own, my personal favorite is Sleeping Beauty. I love the film itself, but the visual quality is jaw-dropping on that release.

This. Easily my favorite Blu-ray release.

Basically anything prior to 2011.

With regards to overall bonus features, Snow White and particularly Beauty and the Beast are the most comprehensive AND do the most with the Blu-Ray technology, even if they drop some important laserdisc and DVD materials. Sleeping Beauty probably has the best picture quality, and I also greatly appreciate the effort that was made on Dumbo after having seen it for years in such a grimey, grainy state compared to its contemporaries.

Easily the "Sleeping Beauty" Blu-ray release because of it's breathtaking picture and the substantial collection of bonus material.

Honestly, my answer would have to be...

Sleeping Beauty. Sort of obvious, but hey. It was the first Disney film, let alone the first film altogether, that I got on Blu-ray. And boy, did the guys at Disney deliver with this.

I'd have to say a lot of the early Walt-era animated films, with "Snow White" maybe being the best.

While far from the best, I have to give an honorable mention for the recent "Heavyweights" Blu-ray. It was such an improvement over the DVD release, to me it represents how Blu-ray SHOULD be, making a case to the pubic why re-buying a title is worth to upgrade. It fixed the aspect ratio issues, looks great and added extras features to the disc.

MiloThatch.... such as...?

Sleeping Beauty, handsdown! Although Beauty and the Beast is a close second for me. Both feauture great documentaries, solid visuals and great audio

For me, it's Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio, Snow White, Dumbo, Alice in Wonderland and Beauty and the Beast. Great transfer, beautiful restoration, amazing sound, and exhaustive bonus features.