101 Dalmatians (Two-Disc Platinum Edition)

Review by sally smith for 101 Dalmatians (Two-Disc Platinum Edition)
Rating:
My kids watched this movie one hundred and one times. I have it memorized. Well, one day it saved a life.

My dog, Keesha, was expecting pups, and a few days early, she had the first one on my son, Kyle’s bed. He was shocked and surprised, and didn’t know what to do. I was out shopping for groceries. The father was asleep in front of his newspaper.

That first pup didn’t move, our dog wasn’t the best mother, and she didn’t take care of it. My older son, Joel, upon seeing the lifeless, wet pup – and having watched “101 Dalmatians” so many times – knew exactly what to do!

He took the pup in a towel and rubbed it, bringing circulation to the wee babe’s tiny body. Just like he saw the dad do on the movie! And it worked!

Four more puppies later, the mom and all the babies were in good health. thanks to my smart son and this movie!!! Thank you Disney!

PS – I guess I should add – it is a nice Disney Classic movie – every house should have one or more. good story, good fun!!

Review by Benjamin J Burgraff for 101 Dalmatians (Two-Disc Platinum Edition)
Rating:
“101 Dalmatians” may be the most unfairly slighted of Walt Disney’s ‘classic’ animated films, as this dog-napping adventure literally saved the studio, introduced the ultimate Disney villainess, Cruella De Vil, and ushered in a visually graphic ‘style’ that would set the industry standard for a decade. Oh, and it’s great FUN, too!

Based on Dodie Smith’s 1956 novel (inspired by her own Dalmatian pets), Disney knew it would be a ‘natural’ for the screen, at a time when he desperately needed a blockbuster. Despite the huge success of “Cinderella”, in 1950, the decade, with the studio’s resources stretched between both live and animated features and shorts, television, and the opening of Disneyland, had been a costly one, and the skyrocketing cost of producing animation, after a string of less successful cartoons (culminating in the failure of “Sleeping Beauty”), threatened to curtail any future animated films. It was a desperate time (most of the major studios were shutting down their animation departments, and the ‘limited animation’ of Hanna-Barbera, which Disney detested, appeared to be the ‘future’ of cartoons), and he turned to production manager Ken Anderson to find a way to make the film cost-effective while maintaining the ‘Disney’ look.

Anderson’s solutions didn’t please Walt, but would create a film revolutionary in style, and far less expensive to produce. Utilizing xerox technology to copy original artwork directly onto cels, he eliminated the huge staff of painters who had traditionally inked and colored each frame. The line work had a scratchier quality, which he complimented by more stylized, linear backgrounds, with splashes of color. As the story would be the first ‘contemporary’ Disney feature (with far less music, and a more dramatic plot), the new ‘look’ worked perfectly (especially in the brilliant conception of the scene-stealing De Vil, who quickly achieved ‘legendary’ status among Disney villains). The technique did have shortcomings (the climactic chase between De Vil’s hot rod and a Dalmatian-filled moving van, as she plows into a snow bank, looks artificial, particularly as snow covers her car), but the film, as a whole, was an astonishing achievement.

Despite Walt’s misgivings, the film was exactly the blockbuster the studio needed, becoming the top-grossing film of 1961, and, for years, the highest grossing animated film of all time. Critically praised, it became such a fan favorite that it was re-released frequently, always successfully. Blessed with a rich, funny plot, unforgettable characters, and 101 of the cutest dogs you’ll ever see, it certainly has earned a place beside “Snow White”, Pinocchio”, “Bambi”, and “Cinderella”.

While I wish somebody had invited Rod Taylor (the voice of Pongo) to share his experiences of the production, I was blown away by the extraordinary quality of image and sound of this remastered edition, and enjoyed the second disc of special features (did you know TWO actresses voiced Perdita?)

This Platinum Edition is an absolute ESSENTIAL for every Disney collection!

Review by Daniel Jolley for Life
Rating:
Yes, this movie has plenty of funny moments, but there is a very real and sometimes rather touching story that takes precedence over everything that happens. You can’t get through the most serious of situations without the palliative of laughter now and again, and Life actually does tell a serious story. Eddie Murphy proves once again that he is a great actor, and Martin Lawrence was surprisingly good as the more serious of two men sentenced to life in prison for a murder they didn’t commit. One night in 1932, fate brought Rayford Gibson (Murphy), a smooth-talking hustler with big dreams, and Claude Banks (Lawrence) a respectable fellow about to start a good job, together in a New York nightclub. For entirely different reasons, both guys have to face the displeasure of the club owner’s wrath; and so it is that Gibson and Banks end up going on a bootlegging run to Mississippi. One dead man later, and both men are sentenced to life in prison for murder. Since Banks blames Gibson for getting him into all this mess, there relationship varies in quality as the years go by, but gradually a real friendship develops between them. They try to escape several times but end up spending basically their whole lives in prison. Along the way, we meet with several sub-plots involving some of their fellow inmates, but the movie never strays far from the lives of Gibson and Banks. The passage of time is marked by clips of historical events, and some excellent makeup works makes both men look old and worn out as they advance into their senior years. This is not a prison story of hopelessness, however. While no pardon ever comes their way, justice has a way of willing out eventually, and the final ten minutes of the film are just terrific. Since the story does take place in Mississippi in 1932 and beyond, race plays a major part in the film, but it does not define the movie by any means. There are a number of funny scenes, especially those involving pie and cornbread, and Eddie Murphy will definitely make you laugh – Martin Lawrence sort of plays the heavy here to Murphy’s periodic antics. Some familiar faces pop up in the movie: Rick James plays the New York club owner, Bernie Mac has a relatively minor role, and Heavy D plays a small but important part. Wyclef Jean contributes an original score for the film. The whole cast is excellent, and a very good script keeps the film on pace and lively.This isn’t Stir Crazy; there are plenty of laughs, but I wouldn’t call this a comedy – Life the movie is funny in the way life itself can sometimes be – laughter can get us through the hard times, but it doesn’t hide the fact that the hard times are there. This movie really deserves more attention than it has received; with its serious underlying quality, it ranks among Eddie Murphy’s most impressive films.

Review by Jerry C. Lewey for Life
Rating:
This movie is perhaps Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence’s Sistine Chapel. That is a bold statement but this movie is so funny and such a good, well made movie. There are endless funny moments in this movie. I might be being biased because I love timeline movies a lot (ex. FORREST GUMP). This movie will also make you cry from sadness and laughter. I laughed out loud many times and (ALMOST) cried from emotion.

The movie has an all-star cast as well which can sometimes be disastrous (ex.NOTHING BUT TROUBLE). It hits every angle possible and could not have been done any better for what it was. And that is one great, funny movie that is one of my all-time favorites.

Review by Eric V. Moye for Life
Rating:
I did enjoy this movie, even as I enjoyed Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy’s more popular and critically acclaimed work. They are a pair of convicts, one of whom caught up after being “along for the ride”, but jailed nonetheless for life in the South some fifty years ago. They do persevere after, through and despite any number of bad (some unbelievable) circumstances. Life in prison makes them close.It is very different from my other favorite prison movie, Cool Hand Luke. Like C.H.L., the brutality of prison life is left mercifully for other films. There is one scene common to both, though, with the prisoners resolving their issue boxing in the prison yard with typical results. As they age, their mutual disappointment makes their friendship ebb and flow from like to dislike and back (of course). Conservative Lawrence (yeah, him) not only blames the typically hustling Murphy for getting him into the situation in the first place. Murphy wants more assertiveness from his sidekick, vowing not to die having given up hope like his Father. As we know they must though, they find some hope, some enjoyment, and even some meaning in their circumstance. Another reviewer hit the nail on the head: this movie was erroneously marketed. The trailers show hilarity, and lead one to think this is a true comedy. Those expecting just that may be disappointed (unless they go straight to the hilarious outtakes). But it is much much more.Fantastic ending. Worth the price itself.