Ponyo
Miyazaki’s latest film is a fantasy spectacular. The simple story and quiet ending do little to detract from what is an animation tour de force. |
My Neighbor Totoro
Miyazaki’s family classic gets its best DVD treatment yet. The reissue has no serious drawbacks, and packs in some nice new extras. |
Castle In The Sky
Studio Ghibli’s first film is an imaginative adventure movie, but the new DVD has some problems. Video, dubbing, and a lost subtitle track are all concerns. |
Kiki’s Delivery Service
The 2010 DVD edition of this fine Studio Ghibli film easily bests the 2003 version, with better video, changes that bring it closer to the original Japanese film, and a plethora of new bonus features. Miyazaki fans should be very pleased. |
You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown: Remastered Deluxe Edition
The animated adaptation of the musical that came from an album inspired by the comic strip. Despite the fourth-generation status, it still feels delightfuly like Peanuts. |
Super Friends: Season One, Volume One
Finally, Warner releases the very first incarnation of Super Friends. The two-disc set is no-frills, but it’s nice to finally meet Wendy and Marvin. |
Golden Globes for animation, and a teaser for this week…
Up and Avatar win at the Globes. And more to come this week! |
Shorts
Robert Rodriguez adds another children’s film to his resume. This one is mostly for kids, but with fun for adults if you don’t mind some gross-out stuff. Fun special effects and decent bonus features make the Blu-ray worth a look. |
Yogi’s First Christmas
Yogi awakens early from hibernation, and finds himself the star of Warner Archive’s first cartoon release. |
I Want A Dog For Christmas, Charlie Brown: Remastered Deluxe Edition
Rerun pines for a puppy in this latter-day Peanuts classic. This new release bests the old Paramount one in the video department, and adds a second holiday special and featurette that makes for a nice disc. |
Walt Disney Treasures: Zorro – The Complete Second Season
Walt’s perfect TV series gets another Treasures set. |
Saturday Morning Cartoons – 1960s: Volume 2
A couple of new-to-DVD shows are here, but otherwise this set gets bogged down in Looney Tunes and more of what we’ve seen before. Jetsons again?! |
Saturday Morning Cartoons – 1970s: Volume 2
More Saturday morning fun from Warner Bros.! There are few classics here, but lots of fondly remembered shows and a few obscure gems. |
Tinker Bell And The Lost Treasure
The second Tinker Bell movie improves on the first, with an adventurous tale that teaches lessons of responsibility and friendship. |
Peanuts: 1970’s Collection Volume 1
Only six specials over two discs, but you can’t argue that most of them are pretty good. |
Wallace And Gromit: The Complete Collection
The charming British inventor-and-dog team get their best disc yet, including their newest effort, A Matter Of Loaf And Death. With only a couple of minor caveats, this is the best way to collect their adventures. |
Gigantor: The Collection, Volume Two
More giant robot action is always good, I suppose, but there’s more history than excitement in these primitive shows. |
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies
This is a wild ride, though far from the best story to adapt from the comics. There are some nice extras on the disc, however. |
The Astonishing Work Of Tezuka Osamu
Art triumphs over commerce! Here are thirteen less commercial works from the creator of Astro Boy, each marvelous to behold. |
Bedknobs And Broomsticks: Enchanted Musical Edition
Unfairly knocked for being a poor man’s Mary Poppins, this film has its own richness of magic. Though this is a lesser package than the previous DVD edition, it is still bound to please most who haven’t got the old DVD already in their collections. |
Astro Boy And Anime Come To The Americas
Lots of great material exists in the first third of the book, after which the author loses his way, and the poor writing and lack of a proper editor make this a tough one to recommend. |
Pete’s Dragon: High-Flying Edition
This tale of a boy and his dragon showed that the 1970s were not so bad for the Disney studio as many remember. The DVD shines with numerous fine bonus features. |
Super Friends: The Lost Episodes
These episodes saw the last of ther Wonder Twins, and a lot of cheesy plots. But darned if I wasn’t entertained. |
Green Lantern: First Flight
DC Comics’ Emerald Warrior gets his own exciting, visually impressive movie. The extras are plentiful even if they don’t address the movie too much. But comic fans especially will enjoy everything. |
Peanuts: 1960’s Collection
All six classic specials come in a nifty little package. Putting them accross two discs is a bit of a joke, but the contents are still golden. Great Vince Guaraldi profile, too! |
Gigantor: The Collection, Volume One
Giant robots became popular after the launch of this classic Japanese series, presented here in its modified English version. |
Ice Age coverage, Chuck does Tom & Jerry, and more of Saturday Morning
It’s summertime, and a few of us have taken time off to attend to other matters, such as a wedding I just returned from. Ben will be letting us know what he’s been doing quite soon, and Rodney’s been tending to some DVD reviews which will be posted in the near future. The member of […] |
The Art Of Up is simplexity itself!
Jeremie Noyer drops by again today to bring us his review of the new book The Art Of Up, apparently a fitting tribute to the wonderful Pixar film. As Jeremie writes, the images perfectly capture the “simplexity” of the production design in Up. Read his review to see what he means. After a flurry of […] |
Saturday Morning Cartoons – 1970s: Volume 1
Ignore the ridiculous warning on the cover— These cartoons ARE for kids, and kids at heart. There are too many episodes on here that we’ve seen on DVD before, but there are also some pretty rare shows. |
Review Roundup: Up flies high, plus Hanna-Barbera classics
We’ve had lots of fun reviews for you guys and gals this past week! Ben’s been too busy to brag them up, but I wanted to be sure to bring these items to your attention before the week ended. First up is Up, James’ review of Pixar’s latest theatrical feature. As usual for Pixar, there’s […] |