Cars,Over the Hedge, Ice Age 2 DVD
Three recent Animated Successes now on Disc as well as Beavis & Butthead, Shreks 1 and 2, Madagascar, and the Fox and the Hound.
Release dates, 25th anniversary editions, interviews with voice actors and extras reviewed for a handful of new animated firlms and the DC Universe series DVD label.
(Source: Davis DVD)
There are no shortage of animation titles coming to DVD to keep fans happy and wallets slender. Here are some of the highlights.
1) One of Disney's lesser animated efforts, 1981's The Fox and the Hound, gets the 25th anniversary DVD treatment on October 10. There are several saccharine extras with this flick, including the DVD Storybook "New Best Friends," "The Best of Friends" Sing Along Song, and a "Forest Friendship" Interactive Set-top Game. There's also a sneak preview for The Fox and the Hound 2, a direct-to-DVD desecration - I mean, sequel, coming in December. The sequel stars the voices of Reba Macintire, Patrick Swayze, and Jeff Foxworthy. Why a Fox and the Hound sequel? Because, as you know, Cars and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest really flopped at the box office this summer.
Cars races to DVD shelves on November 7. This is a typically jam-packed Disney/Pixar set, which includes the animated shorts Mater and the Ghostlight (all-new) and One Man Band (which accompanied Cars in theatres). There's also a Ratatouille preview plus an "Inspiration For Cars" behind-the-scenes featurette.
Disney also brings Chip n' Dale Rescue Rangers Volume 2, Duck Tales Volume 2, plus Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears Volume 1 (Seasons 1-3) to DVD on November 14.
2) Sony/BMG announced November 7 as the date for Transformers: The Movie 20th Anniversary Special Edition. This 2-disc set reportedly packs on the extras, including a digitally remastered and color-corrected anamorphic widescreen and full-screen transfers, plus new on-camera interviews with 2007's live action Transformers movie director Michael Bay and producer Steven Spielberg.
3) Warner Home Video brings Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law Volume 2 to DVD October 10. Another 2-disc set, this will feature all 13 episodes, plus audio commentaries from cast and crew on 9 episodes, unaired scenes, a making-of featurette, the evolution of a scene, "Clothes-less Animation Pass" (a HB scene reanimated to be all naked all the time), "Birdman Stripper" (footage of a live action stripper dressed as HB), "Fun with Audio" segments, "Hey Mr. Passerby" music video, promos and never-before-seen footage.
Warner and DC Comics also announced that they will bring out thirteen animated films under the new "DC Universe" series DVD label. The films, to be released at a rate of two to three per year, will be joint productions between the writers and artists at both DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation. The first titles, due in 2007, include Justice League: New Frontier (written by Stan Berkowitz), Superman: Doomsday (written by Batman: The Animated Series' Bruce Timm) and Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (written by Marv Wolfman and Tom DeSanto). Future titles planned for the line will feature Green Lantern, The Flash, Wonder Woman and several others.
4) Depending on who you talk to, Dreamworks' Over the Hedge was either "a blockbuster hit" or "a disappointment." Either way, it hits DVD shelves October 17. Extras include an audio commentary with directors Tim Johnson & Karey Kirkpatrick, the new short "Hammy's Boomerang Adventure" (featuring optional commentary), a "Behind the Hedge" making-of featurette, a "Meet the Cast" featurette, interviews with the animation team, a virtual drawing lesson on how to sketch Hammy, a "Verm-Tech" infomercial spoof, art galleries, games and more. The disc will also feature "hibernating content:" fans can go the film's official website on November 28th and get a password that will unlock additional material on the DVD.
5) Paramount celebrates its $1.6 billion take-over of Dreamworks SKG by re-releasing several animation titles on DVD. Coming August 29 are Antz, Chicken Run, Joseph: King of Dreams, Madagascar, The Prince of Egypt, Shark Tale, Shrek, Shrek 2, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron and The Road to El Dorado. How are these DVD's different from the ones Universal previously released? They have a funky white border!
Paramount also double-dips with Beavis & Butthead Do America: The Edition that Doesn't Suck (does this mean all previous editions of this movie *did* suck?). This DVD includes commentary with Mike Judge and Yvette Kaplan, "The Big Picture" retrospective making-of featurette, "This Kicks A**!" music featurette with composer John Frizzell and Mike Judge, "The Smackdown," "Celebrity Shorts," and "12 Days of Beavis" features, TV spots directed by Judge and more. Due September 12.
6) Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment brings Ice Age 2: The Meltdown to DVD on Movember 21. This single-disc set includes a new Scrat short "No Time for Nuts," created exclusively for the DVD. Other extras include commentary with director Carlos Saldanha, producer Lori Forte and the production team, and introductions to new characters Ellie, Crash and Eddie. There's also "Silly Sid and John Leguizamo" and "Crash & Eddie Stunts" featurettes, a sound-effects lab, three short films, clips of Scrat's appearance on "Family Guy," Sid hosting Fox's "Animation Domination" lineup, a blooper reel, trailers and four set-top games.
