Disney Animation Collection 4: Tortoise & The Hare

For those nostalgic for these classic animated shorts and don't own any previous Disney animated shorts on DVD, check it out!
As a child, I can easily remember my prized possession was a Walt Disney book that my father purchased for me and it featured the chronology of the early classic Walt Disney animated shorts. Some of these shorts were shown on the Disney Channel when I was younger but suffice to say, with all the new animation, a lot of these classics have probably been forgotten or have been released on VHS video.

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment are now releasing a few of these shorts on DVD for the first time (some have appeared on past Disney DVD releases). With the first three volumes released, the fourth, fifth and sixth volumes will be released on May 12, 2009.

A lot of these short films were created in the 1920-1940's and typically featured characters that were not reoccurring (with the exception of the tortoise and the hare which appeared in a second short). Some were released under the "Silly Symphony" moniker of animated shorts released between 1929-1939 which...

My 4-year-old Daughter Loves It
Enjoyable for both children and grown-ups to watch together. Indeed, it is helpful to watch this with your kids so you can explain some of the grown-up elements to them.

The really odd thing here, marketing-wise, is that the award-winning Paul Bunyan cartoon is easily the best and most well-known short here. I can remember enjoying it as a kid on the Sunday night Wonderful World of Walt Disney show. Now, my daughter loves Paul and Babe the Blue Ox, too. The cartoon has everything: heart, humor, pathos, and an ending that is both sad and happy. Also, the recurring theme song is wonderful.

The dog here is the Windwagon cartoon, which is artistically beautiful, but the characters and plot just doesn't hold interest. It especially suffers here, following the completely absorbing Paul Bunyan. My daughter goes away and plays with her toys when Windwagon comes on. Paul Bunyan should have been the final cartoon on this DVD.

The tortoise and the hare cartoons...

Not all great but Paul Bunyan is a Disney Classic IMHO
Its been over 50 years since I've seen these shorts. Yep, saw them either in the theatre or on TV as a kid. Not all hold up well... "The Goddess of Spring" and "Babes in the Woods" were "Silly Symphonies" which were aimed at adults more than kids and feature full colorful animation. "The Tortoise and the Hare" - and its lesser-seen "Toby Tortoise Returns" were short 8 minute humorous cartoons. The prizes here are the later "Paul Bunyan" and "The Saga of Windwagon Smith", each in the later style limited animation - but beautifully colored, and each running a full 16 minutes or more.

Watching "Windwagon Smith", I'm wondering how many folks noticed a nod to the recent Bernie Madoff scandal. The town folks all invest in this big "scheme" to make money and then build an even bigger ship (the way they plan to move folks west), only to return home with their money lost.

The quality varies based on the age of the film and they were not restored (the last two didn't need...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Disney Animation Collection 5: Wind in the Willows

GREAT Film - BAD Transfer
"The Wind in the Willows" is a terrific piece of animation -- one of the best of the Disney Studio from the 1940s. Originally released as the front half of the 1949 theatrical feature "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad," I always felt that Wind in the Willows could have easily stood as a full feature length film on it's own. It has a gentle comforting style of humor not unlike the '60s' Winnie the Pooh featurettes, but then climaxes in a thrilling train chase and the mayhem-in-the-manor fight with the weasels, one of the masterpieces of action staging. If you ever wondered where those weasel characters in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" were originally from, they are from this great film. This new DVD contains the "featurette" version, with it's own opening title sequence as re-released theatrically, and as seen on the Wonderful World of Disney TV series.

However, this DVD edition suffers from a VERY bad transfer. "Wind in the Willows" is extremely dark, making even the...

For those nostalgic for these classic animated shorts and don't own any previous Disney animated shorts on DVD, check it out!
As a child, I can easily remember my prized possession was a Walt Disney book that my father purchased for me and it featured the chronology of the early classic Walt Disney animated shorts. Some of these shorts were shown on the Disney Channel when I was younger but suffice to say, with all the new animation, a lot of these classics have probably been forgotten or have been released on VHS video.

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment are now releasing a few of these shorts on DVD for the first time (some have appeared on past Disney DVD releases). With the first three volumes released, the fourth, fifth and sixth volumes will be released on May 12, 2009.

A lot of these short films were created in the 1920-1940's and typically featured characters that were not reoccurring (with the exception of the tortoise and the hare which appeared in a second short). Some were released under the "Silly Symphony" moniker of animated shorts released between 1929-1939 which...

Great content, horrible print
While the other five shorts in this collection are in decent condition with fairly bright color and delineation, the state of the centerpiece cartoon "Wind in the Willows" is unbelievably poor. Without exaggeration, it looks like a print you might find on a public domain bargain bin collection. I could have handled a fair amount of speckling and such (which this cartoon also has in abundance) but the picture itself is so fuzzy and murky it's almost impossible to make out details in any of the darker scenes even with the contrast turned all the way up. The sound quality is pretty substandard as well. Is this really the best print Disney has in its archives? I know that none of these shorts are restored but the other five look infinitely better and they are all from the 1930s while "Wind in the Willows" is from 1949. I haven't seen any of the previous DVD collections that included it so I don't know if this is the same print they've been using all along but Disney should really be...

Click to Editorial Reviews

Disney Animation Collection 6: The Reluctant Dragon

If you don't own any previous DVD collection of these classic animated shorts, then this may be worth checking out!
As a child, I can easily remember my prized possession was a Walt Disney book that my father purchased for me and it featured the chronology of the early classic Walt Disney animated shorts. Some of these shorts were shown on the Disney Channel when I was younger but suffice to say, with all the new animation, a lot of these classics have probably been forgotten or have been released on VHS video.

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment are now releasing a few of these shorts on DVD for the first time (some have appeared on past Disney DVD releases). With the first three volumes released, the fourth, fifth and sixth volumes will be released on May 12, 2009.

A lot of these short films were created in the 1920-1940's and typically featured characters that were not reoccurring (with the exception of the tortoise and the hare which appeared in a second short). Some were released under the "Silly Symphony" moniker of animated shorts released between 1929-1939 which...

Reluctant Dragon is an all-time favorite for me & the family
I've raised 3 kids on this video and seen it a dozen times.
It's always fresh and among the funniest things I've ever seen.
A few lines stick with me as classics.
The animation is just delightful.
The poetry "slam" is hilarious, as is the big battle scene.
Hey, it's time I watched it again.

Favorite
Appearances aren't everything. Dragons may be big and have a horrible reputation, but they may be nothing like what they have been stereotyped to be.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Miracle [Blu-ray]

When the actors aren't acting
As the Cold War fades into memory, it is hard to explain the on-going, almost mystical fascination with The Miracle on Ice; the defeat of the vaunted Soviets by a bunch of unknown American college kids. Yes, national pride plays a big role, and more generally everyone loves an underdog. But I think what has really made this event such a cultural touchstone is the pure joy that surrounded it. Across the nation, and the world, for a myriad of reasons, but distilled and purified in the players and coaches who pursued their dream not for fame and fortune, but because the only dreams worth chasing are the hard ones.

"Miracle" captures this spirit down to the smallest nuance; in a day and age when you are as likely to read about athletes in the police blotter as the sports page, it is refreshing to watch people play for the pure joy of sport and love of the game. The ability to capture this love of the game was made possible by the fact that every single one of the actors portraying a...

"You don't have enough talent to win on talent alone..."
The first hockey games I ever watched were during the 1980 Winter Olympics and I know I was not alone in that respect. It took a while to understand what a blue line had to do with icing the puck and I have never gotten past the idea of what basketball would be like if it was played the same way as hockey (you are allowed to foul the guy with the puck/ball). But I remember watching the games the U.S. Hockey Team played against the Soviet Union and Finland. How big was the miracle that Al Michaels proclaimed during the final seconds of the semi-final match against the Soviets? Well, when "Sports Illustrated" came out the next week there was no need for a headline or caption on the cover photo of the U.S. team celebrating.

Knowing what is going to happen in "Miracle" is important because if we did not know that this team is going to win the gold medal then we might suspect the means that coach Herb Brooks (Kirk Russell) is using to achieve that end. Brooks is haunted by...

"I am not looking for the best players...
I am looking for the right ones". And that is really what this movie is all about: the power of people working together as a team instead of individually. Nowadays, we are tired of seeing superstars in different team sports that think that they are the greatest thing in the world and that their teammates are just the supporting cast. This is true in the US mostly in football and basketball, and in other countries in the word mainly in soccer.

I was born in Uruguay and lived there until the year 2000, and therefore am a big soccer fan. I am tired of seeing the players from my country excel in their European clubs only to see them fail miserably when they play for our country. The reason is that several of them think they are stars when they come to play for Uruguay and neglect to play as a team. They should all get together and give this movie a try!

Herb Brooks (Kurt Russell) is the new coach of the US men's hockey team that will compete in the Winter Olympic...

Click to Editorial Reviews

The Secret Life of the American Teenager: Season Two

Enjoyable and fun. Some storylines were a bit far off but overall, an enjoyable second season
The ABC Family series "THE SECRET LIFE OF THE AMERICAN TEENAGER" received a lot of attention during its first season as the series was critically acclaimed and also how ABC Family didn't sugarcoat the challenges of teenage pregnancy. Showing us the ramifications of being pregnant as a young teen but also the responsibilities and difficult choices one needs to make. The series was also popular for its portrayal of teenagers of today. Again, nothing sugarcoated and despite it being on ABC Family, the series shows us the real-life challenges that teenagers are facing. These characters are just regular people, not upper class and each of them have their own set of problems.

The series primarily focuses on the life of teenager Amy Juergens (Shailene Woodley). Your typical girl next door. A 15-year-old who plays the French Horn in a band and part of a typical American family ala dysfunctional. During a summer at band cap, Amy met her high school band's "player" Rickey...

Teen Show
I have not seen the show yet ( I saw some pictures and a promo a long time ago ), but I just want to say one thing. This dvd does not contain the second season, but contains the second part of the first season, dvd released a few months ago. So buyers are not confused.

Pregnant at 15 - a must see for young and old
Hi, Im a 47 year old female from Australia and have watched and thoroughly enjoyed The secret life of the American Teenager. I have seen season one and season two and loved them both. I recommend this show for the young and old. Young children would need to be supervised while watching as there maybe some questions they would like to know. But this is what happens in real life, but a little more happy endings and exciting moments than most lives. Teen girls get pregnant. Teen boys accidently get girls pregnant. Great Cast with a few famous actors that are just excellent. A must see for all.

Click to Editorial Reviews

Army Wives: The Complete Season 2

It's about time the military families' challenges are explored !
What a GREAT cast! Each character is played and developed so well that by the end of the show, now I can hardly wait for the Second Season to arrive in the mail. EACH actor as well as the programs creators must be applauded for their outstanding, deeply moving, uniquely individual personae that are portrayed. I was not even aware of the existence of the show until I found out that Catharine Bell had continued her career after the incredible job she did during all of the JAG years. That's the reason I purchased the series--I gambled on Catharine. And then to find the entire group so talented and convincing, was a real treat. For those who love JAG, NCIS, The Unit, or any other military-focused series, this is a very welcome addition. Extremely enjoyable is the "partial cast group question-answer session with the produces, or creators of the show." The actors show their true selves during this session, and seem to have developed a family- comeraderie, which I found very...

Season 2 - AWESOME !!
I just love this series and I am absolutely hooked on it. I recommend it highly. It is a very realistic series on how families, married and single, are effected when their partners, husbands, sons and daughters go away to war and how they have to manage whilst they are away and also how their spouses/sons/daughters/brothers/etc attitude to life has changed since their deployment and how they manage life when they return home.

Top show!!!!!

Looking out for season 3.......is there one???

Army Wives - one of the best series today
Army Wives is one of the best series on TV today. I was so pleased to get the second series on DVD. The first season built the characters and history which really launched the second season into a whole new level. The 2nd season is filled with drama, laughter, and tears. We are brought into the women's lives in a deeper manner and can relate so much more. Since I didn't have cable to watch it on TV, I couldn't get enough watching it on the DVD's - played one episode right after another. Bonus with the second season - the packaging for the 5 discs is the best I've seen for a TV series. Wish all DVD's came like this.

Click to Editorial Reviews