Aladdin DVD release

[Dirk]

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there,

the Hollywood Report and through it Yahoo News at http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...film_aladdin_dc reports that "Proud of Your Boy" will be included in the 2-DVD release of Aladdin this October.

The article cites Robert Chapek, president of Disney's Buena Vista Home Entertainment, saying "The song was edited out of the first version," Chapek said, "but we're planning to bring it back along with the original pencil test drawings of a scene featuring Aladdin's mother." Which luckily means: they are not going to try to squeze the song into the actual film but it should be included as a bonus. Just too bad that they don't release all the songs from the original Aladdin version. There must be some story board sketches that one could have molded into something like a Leica-Reel (if it does not already exist as I presume). Well, it also means we will have another reissue of the soundtrack including the extra song.

Maybe also of interest: the articles states that the CD will feature a remixed 5.1 surround sound home theater track - as has premiered on the Lion King 2-DVD-set.



Yours
Dirk

 

[Eddie Valiant]

I've also read on the Digital Bits that "[t]o accommodate the sharper DVD image quality, more than 20% of the original artwork has been enhanced, with some characters redrawn to add more facial detail"

Eddie V.

 

[xfkirsten]

I saw that thing about the characters being redrawn, and quite frankly that ticks me off. The film was great the way it was, there is no need to go back and tinker with the animation! I can't see what value that could possibly add to the film other than a marketing ploy, and if I were one of the original animators, I think I'd feel insulted.

And another "Circle of Stars" music video. : Ugh. Give us the original A Whole New World music video, I thought that one was wonderful.

Glad to see Proud of Your Boy coming as (hopefully) an extra, though! That will be interesting to see!

I will definitely be grabbing a copy of this as soon as it comes out, though.

-Kirsten

 

[Jessica L]

They prepared Aladdin so that it could be shown on the IMAX screen, like BatB and TLK. However, since those two movies did not fair so well in the box office, I think they decided to stop the re-releases. So the re-drawing is just to prepare it for being blown up for the big (big) screen. If you watch BatB and TLK, they look the same (or at least to me they do) so the redrawing really doesn't change anything from the original release.

 

[David S.]

Re:Aladdin DVD release/IMAX thoughts

>They prepared Aladdin so that it could be shown on the IMAX screen, like BatB and TLK. However, since those two movies did not fair so well in the box office, I think they decided to stop the re-releases>>

Thanks for the info, Jessica. I figured it had something to do with the work done for the IMAX release.

As far as those not being successful at the box office, I would have gladly supported the IMAX presentations of Fantasia 2000, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, etc - had they played in my city. One thing I deeply miss about the Disney of my childhood was having a re-released animated classic to look forward to seeing every year IN THEATRES.

I asked the staff once at the New Orleans IMAX (which is part of our Aquarium) why they were showing other features like The Matrix at night after the aquarium was closed but never got any of the Disney features. They said as a zoological educational facility, their first priority was nature documentary type of things, but they looked into adding the Disney films to that mix but said Disney's demands for "exclusivity" at the theatre and things like that were just too harsh.

So it looks like another case of Mike's greed keeping an entire city from SUPPORTING these releases, and I'm sure there are several other cases of the same thing happening.

David

 

[xfkirsten]

Ah, I'm glad that's all it is. I didn't realize that they had done that much redrawing in TLK and BatB (other than having to change some of the castle stuff because it was "cleaned" in Human Again). Aladdin is one of my favorite Disney movies, and I love it just the way it is!

-Kirsten

 

[SharonKurland]

I remember seeing advertisements for the IMAX versions of Fantasia 2000, B&TB, TLK, etc., but not for Aladdin. And it DID come out in Imax form last month, didn't it? Didn't hear a word about it. Granted, it runs in limited theaters so not as many people get to see them, but if they don't advertise, people like me, who WOULD go if "reminded," can't.

As for low ticket sales...IMHO, using a venue like IMAX is milking things dry again...they've done it for 3 or 4 years straight. It's a nice concept but it's "been done." Time to use creativity to get more of an audience. So what else is new?

-Sharon-

 

[Dirk]

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there,

the "exclusivity" clause in the contracts for the Disney IMAX rerelases of their classic animated features was / is a huge problem. The IMAX theaters had to give Disney the garanty:

1. to run the feature up to a certain date (so no cutting short if noone came).
2. to show no other shorts or features at the same theater during this time.

While the first clause puts huge financial risks on the operating company of the IMAX the second clause was the breaker for many IMAX theaters especially after the disappointing showing if B&B. Many IMAX theaters are part of larger institutions / offers like aquariums, technicals museums etc. These IMAX theaters make quiet some profit with groups / school groups / ... who travel to the museum / aquarium / ... and afterwards watch an IMAX feature somehow fitting into the theme of the institution. With an full length Disney feature running exclusively many of these groups pass the IMAX by.


Yours
Dirk