101 Dalmatians isn’t one of my favorite classic animated Disney films, though on the whole save for a couple, they’ve never been my cup of tea, but with the inclusion of Cruella De Vil makes it far more memorable and the animation is still fantastic to this day and still plays well today for younger viewers.
101 Dalmatians
(1961)
REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall
Genre(s): Animation, Comedy
Disney | G – 79 min. – $36.99 | February 10, 2015
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MOVIE INFO: Directed by: Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske, Wolfgang Reitherman Writer(s): Dodie Smith (novel); Bill Peet (story) Voice Cast: Rod Taylor, J. Pat O’Malley, Betty Lou Gerson, Martha Wentworth, Ben Wright, Cate BauerDISC INFO: Features: Featurettes, Animated Short, DVD Copy Digital Copy: Yes Number of Discs: 2 Audio: English (DTS-HD MA 7.1), French (DTS-HD HR 5.1), Spanish (Dolby Digital 5.1) |
** Click Here to Purchase 101 Dalmatians on Blu-ray from Amazon.com **
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Pongo (ROD TAYLOR), Perdita (CATE BAUER) and their super-adorable puppies are in for thrills, hilarious spills and an epic action-packed adventure when they face off with Cruella De Vil (BETTY LOU GERSON), Disney’s most fabulously outrageous villainess. Unleash all the excitement and suspense of Disney’s 101 Dalmatians, a beloved classic.
SPECIAL FEATURES – 3.0/5
This “Diamond Edition” release comes with a reflective and glossy slip cover. Inside is a code for the Digital Copy and a standard DVD Copy.
Disney View is a feature (of sorts) that allows viewers to experience the movie beyond the original aspect ratio with decorative patterns on the side bars for those who don’t like it.
The Further Adventures of Thunderbolt (1:46; HD) is a newly made animated short.
Lucky Dogs (9:08; HD) – This is a featurette with animators and others who worked at Disney back in the day.
Dalmatians 101 (5:20; HD) – Hosted by Disney Channel’s Cameron Boyce where he counts down the five reasons why 101 Dalmatians is so great.
Walt Disney Presents “The Best Doggoned Dog in the World” (1961 Version) (51:05; HD) is a live action special hosted by Walt Disney himself.
Classic Bonus Features:
Redefining the Line: The Making of One Hundred and One Dalmatians (33:55; HD) is a retrospective featurette split into seven parts and has interviews with those in the business as they discuss what makes it so special.
Cruella De Vil: Drawn to be Bad (7:10; SD) looks at the character design of one of cinema’s most memorable and delicious villains.
“Sincerely Yours, Walt Disney” (12:48; SD) is a featurette on a series of letters from and to Walt Disney and author Dodie Smith.
Under Trailers & TV Spots we get a couple trailers and TV spots for the 1961 original release as well as the 1979 and 1985 reissues.
There are three Promotional Radio Spots
Music & More:
“Cruella Di Vil” Music Video (3:25; SD) is the remix song sung by former Disney pop star Selena Gomez.
“March of the One Hundred and One” (2:29; SD) is a deleted song sequence.
Abandoned Songs: “Cheerio, Goodbye, Toodle-oo, Hip Hip!” and “Don’t Buy a Parrot from a Sailor”
Demo Recordings and Alternate Versions: “Dalmatian Plantation,” “Cruella De Vil” and “Kanine Krunchies”
VIDEO – 4.0/5
101 Dalmatians released by Disney presented in its original 1.33 full frame aspect ratio and a new 1080p high-definition transfer. The picture might not be overly glorious or especially bright but the restoration work done seemed good with no obvious signs of artifacts, aliasing or other flaws.
AUDIO – 3.75/5
Surprisingly, the movie comes with a full 7.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio track which seems to be overkill but effective nevertheless. Dialogue comes through well enough and the music sounds fine but it’s not exactly the most dynamic track and has its limitations due to the film’s age. Still, it’s no doubt an upgrade over anything that has come before…
OVERALL – 4.0/5
Overall, 101 Dalmatians isn’t one of my favorite classic animated Disney films, though on the whole save for a couple, they’ve never been my cup of tea, but with the inclusion of Cruella De Vil makes it far more memorable and the animation is still fantastic to this day and still plays well today for younger viewers. This “Diamond Edition” release by Disney is fine with solid video and audio transfers and an OK selection of bonus material.
Published: 02/08/2015
Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.
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