Originally Posted By mawnck >>ecdc, how dare you call "Bambi" tripe.<< Sarcasm, Bellella. Twas sarcasm. Actually, the Blu Ray of Bambi is one of their best restorations, even according to the super-purists. It's arguably over-scrubbed, but by humans going frame-by-frame, so software-generated artifacts aren't an issue and it still looks like a FILM. IIRC, the Golden Classics SitS was a standard definition analog video transfer, technologically outdated and obviously not suitable for Blu Ray. They would've had to go some to make a Blu Ray that looked worse … which, of course, they did.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 Wow - what a shame they're doing it this way. The "after" image is just plain less detailed and looks like a dumbed down image of the "before."
Originally Posted By RoadTrip But for every person like one of you, how many are there out there like me? I don't need a perfect reproduction. A clean copy is fine with me. I don't have an HDTV. I don't have a Blu Ray. And I don't plan to until my present stuff wears out. It was all high-end equipment when I bought it, and I will use it until it dies. When you are retired you can't replace every piece of electronics in the house with the "latest and greatest" or all your savings would rapidly go away.
Originally Posted By ecdc But that's just it...an old DVD version you have will look better than a new blu-ray on a new TV, thanks to Disney. The point isn't to look fancy, but to be faithful to the original film. Disney has failed miserably.
Originally Posted By mawnck >>I don't need a perfect reproduction. A clean copy is fine with me.<< You would be getting neither with the current release. Even if you were to buy it on DVD.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan The difference between the two images is pretty apparent. If you are someone like me, who treasures hand-drawn animation, this is the equivalent of a color-by-numbers version of the Mona Lisa compared to the original. It just looks clumsy and cheap.
Originally Posted By Witches of Morva ORDDU: Add this coven to the list of those who hate what Disney is doing to animation features. For the first time in our lives, my sisters and I are actually glad that our film--The Black Cauldron--isn't popular enough to undergo any of these 'restorations'...
Originally Posted By basil fan Makes me sick. Even if I didn't love Mickey's Christmas Carol, it would make me sick. RoadTrip, I don't do the Blu-Ray/HDTV thing, either, but I can't stomach this. I'd rather have a copy with dirt specks on the "negative" than this. It looks like a coloring book page. Disney's Bad Boy Hero <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/disney/kuzco.html">http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/...zco.html</a>
Originally Posted By Mickeymouseclub saw them at Costco today and wanted to put a warning label on them … I got to witness a mother trying to convince her little boy that he wanted Dora Holiday. I heard her mutter that at least it was educational as she threw it into the shopping cart.
Originally Posted By basil fan I just watched my old DVD of Ichabod and Mr. Toad again, and it has several weird color spots from a damaged negative. And, you know what? I'll take it. Because it also has beautiful animation. Please, Disney, don't "restore" it. The Man From Atlantis <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/glitch/maglitch.html">http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/...tch.html</a>
Originally Posted By basil fan >>I don't know that normally I would ever notice or that it would bother me... especially since I've not seen the originals. I imagine that is the situaiton that most people are in. Road Trip, let me explain it this way: Suppose you and I were first in line for Pirates of the Caribbean in DL after a major, much-publicized refurbish. As we entered the town for our first look at the pirates, you noted that all the audio-animatronics had been replaced with cheesy replicas. All the characters were recognizable: the redhead, the mayor, the guy with the pigs, but they looked fake and amateurish, like a cheap version of the old attraction. You are outraged, but I just shrug and say it looks fine to me; after all, I haven't been to the park in 30 years and don't remember the originals. What you consider a crummy ride is good enough for me. If that scenario would bug you at all, you can get an idea of what us movie fans are feeling. Just FYI, I don't own a Blu-Ray player either. I wasn't going to buy this, but I do want Disney to treat its movies with respect, to turn out a quality product, and to preserve its heritage instead of intentionally ruining it. Great Mouse Detective <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/basil/bakerst.html">http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/...rst.html</a>
Originally Posted By Bellella basil fan, I really hate those weird color spots, especially on a DVD. It makes me feel like I just bought a VHS on disc. (Redundancy factor 1000!!!) I really wish they'd just take those out. The package features and "The Black Cauldron" need to be given their due with a decent restoration- i.e. no more dust, dirt, color spots and an improved soundtrack. And that's IT!!!
Originally Posted By mawnck >>The package features and "The Black Cauldron" need to be given their due with a decent restoration- i.e. no more dust, dirt, color spots and an improved soundtrack.<< NO! And who are you, and what have you done with Bellella? The trashing of Mickey's Christmas Carol we're discussing in this topic has all the dust, dirt, and color spots removed, and much of the artwork went with it. It looks horrendous. DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED on improved soundtracks. Those awful new surround sound mixes are the aural equivalent of colorized movies, or of "it's a small world" with characters added. They're adding digital effects that were never intended by the filmmakers (nor even *available* to them), and (in the case of Pinocchio) accidentally leaving out stuff that was supposed to be there to begin with. A meticulous, careful restoration job is extremely expensive and requires extensive QCing and comparisons to make sure there are no mistakes. The problem with the "restorations" on the recent releases is they are neither meticulous nor careful. It is MUCH better to have the print flaws visible and the sound a bit tinny than to switch on DVNR and have details disappearing from iconic scenes (Cinderella!!), or be forced into a reverby, noise-reduced soundtrack remix because the Walt-approved original mix wasn't included on the disc. Disney can't afford to fully restore everything - only the premiere titles that are going to sell gazillions of copies. It is neither realistic nor reasonable to expect Make Mine Music to get the Snow White treatment. It *IS* realistic to expect a new un-futzed, uncensored HD transfer, with the original mono soundtrack mix included for the purists. Either restore it right, or DON'T RESTORE IT. That's the message to Disney.
Originally Posted By basil fan Bellella, I would also love it if Disney restored Ichabod, or any other animated film, and removed the color spots, dirt, etc. But I'll keep them if I have to to get the animation undamaged. It's the lesser of 2 evils. Disney's Other Villains <a target="blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/disney/villainmisc.html">http://www.whatsitsgalore.com/...isc.html</a>
Originally Posted By Bellella What I meant was clean up the film so we don't have to see any problems magnetized. Those things can really be a distraction. I didn't mean they should alter the animation art. God, no. As far as sound restoration goes, you're right. I just listened to all the songs I got from the package feature DVDs, so no complaints there. And yes, they could have done a much better job on that on some others. (Pinocchio!!!!) Would it be too much of a deviation if I stated that I'd love to see a "Fantasia" DVD where Sunflower is digitally removed? I'm pretty tired of seeing the picture suddenly go fuzzy because they decide to zoom in. It just doesn't work.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA I wonder if, when these restoration experts look at a movie like "Sword in the Stone" -- they see the sketchy Xerographic lines as a flaw and so, go and fix them. Don't they understand that the animators at the time did this intentionally? See also 'The Jungle Book' '101 Dalmatians' and 'The Aristocats'
