Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Disney)

The movie looks and sounds great .... a beautiful restoration. Images are sharp, sound is clear. You can listen to the original mono soundtrack, or an improved digital track in English or French. If you choose French, even the opening sequence of a printed fairy tale book appears in French. Pretty cool.

The extras include Streisand singing 'Some Day My Prince Will Come'; a karaoke edition of 'Heigh Ho'; a 39-minute documentary about the making of the film narrated by Angela Lansbury; audio commentary by Walt Disney himself, pieced together from archived materials; an animated short used to test some of the animation; and Dopey's Wild Mine Ride -- a great little trivia/puzzle game -- and that's just the first disk!

The second disk is spectacular -- there are dozens of elements here, but I will mention (what I consider to be) the best: storyboard/film comparison; scenes deleted from the film (including a great scene of the dwarves making Snow White a bed, with comments penciled in by an animator); camera tests; featurettes about the voices, audio sessions, restoration of the film, and artistic concepts -- layouts, backgrounds, character sketches and development; publicity materials (posters, photos, trailers, radio commercials); and a timeline of the history of the film *and* Disney studios.

The amount (and quality) of extras is truly incredible; and there is a well-designed print brochure, as well as on-disk tours of the material, to help you find your way around.

This is a great version of a wonderful film -- and an exemplary use of the DVD format.

Highly recommended.


Timeless film; handsome DVD package   October 10, 2001
keviny01
18 out of 19 found this review helpful

Disney's first "Platinum Edition" DVD is a terrific 2-disc set that every DVD fan should keep for all eternity. (I received an early, free copy from Amazon which allowed me to review it before the Oct 9th release date. This is a promotion by both Amazon and Buena Vista.) The THX-certified video transfer of the movie is blemish-free, almost always sharp, and has only an occasional softness perhaps due to age. Colors look splendid. The sound is clean and without a scratch, although some dialogs lack detail. The 5.1 audio remix provides mildly effective separation and bass for the background music. Otherwise, it is neither better nor worse than the included original mono soundtrack.

The supplements on the first disc includes a 40-minute retrospective documentary that actually serves as a nice introduction of the supplements on the second disc. For nearly every aspect mentioned in the documentary, the extras on the second disc cover at length. There is an audio commentary track by historian John Canemaker that includes contemporary recordings of Walt reminiscing about the difficulties and fortunes during the making of the film. The commentary reveals that Deanna Durbin was once considered for the voice of Snow White, but she was deemed "too old". Canemaker, besides introducing each of Walt's recordings, also provides excellent scene-by-scene analyses. After the movie is over, Michael Eisner introduces Barbara Streisand's decidedly more mature rendition of "Somewhere My Prince Will Come". The first disc also includes four games -- two for set-top players, two as DVD-ROM content.

The second disc contains a large amount of archival material of the movie. There are over 400 stills (all high-quality scans) of pencil tests, backgrounds, layouts, character designs, photos of the voice talents, photos of the production, the premiere, the 1937 pressbook, merchandise, and posters. There are quite a bit of video content as well. Notable is a new, nicely conceived, 40-minute segment called "Disney Through the Years"; it chronicles SNOW WHITE's theatrical releases in every decade (all trailers are shown) as well as Disney's accomplishments through the years. There are the original credit sequences with the RKO logo. There are deleted scenes that were fully animated and dubbed, one of which is a spectacular soup-eating scene. There are scenes that were conceptualized but were abandoned before animation, such as a dream sequence for one of Snow White's songs. There is a segment about the film's restorations in 1987, '93, and 2001. There are also vintage video of voice actors, models for live action references, techniques used in animation (two excerpts of Disney's "Tricks of our Trade" TV show are included).

And there is more! There is a half-hour live radio broadcast of the film's premiere in which many celebrities are interviewed. There is another half-hour radio program in 1938 in which several songs from the movie are performed. There are two 4-minute radio interviews of Walt Disney by Cecil B. DeMille, one of which was recorded on the eve of the premiere. There are eight radio commercials from the 50s and 60s. There are recordings of two deleted songs, one of which, we are told, were only recently discovered in Disney's archives. There are also text screens about the film's production and Walt's life and career. A nice inclusion is the English translation of the Grimms Brothers' "Snow White."

Future Platinum Edition DVDs will include BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, ALADDIN, THE LION KING, BAMBI, THE JUNGLE BOOK, CINDERELLA, THE LITTLE MERMAID, LADY AND THE TRAMP and 101 DALMATIANS. It disappoints me that DUMBO will not be a Platinum Edition (it will come out Oct 21st as a "Gold Edition" DVD). It irks me even more that only one Platinum Edition DVD will be sold each year for only a limited time; thereafter it will be put on a TEN-YEAR moratorium. This will no doubt lead to buying frenzies, so run, don't walk, to your nearest personal computer and order this SNOW WHITE DVD right away. I do not oppose releasing one Platinum DVD per year, since I understand it takes time and care to produce these great discs. But I do oppose Disney's long-standing policy of putting their video releases on moratorium for long, long periods. Their rationale has been that if people own the movie on video, they may not want to see it in theaters. Not true. Seeing this spectacular SNOW WHITE DVD has actually increased my desire to see the film in a theater.


Oh, For More Movies Like Snow White   November 18, 2001
T. W. Fuller (Wheeling, IL. USA)
18 out of 21 found this review helpful

The story of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is an enchanting, experimental romp with animation. At the time of its release, in December of 1937, Walt Disney was taking a heavy, financial risk with this movie. Film goers were used to watching short animated films, like "Steamboat Willie", starring Disney creation, Mickey Mouse. However, what was yet to be known was ... would audiences sit through an hour and a half cartoon?

The story itself is simple enough. A wicked queen, vane in every respect, has but one sinister ambition. That being to be "the most beautiful of all". Every day she asks her mirror, "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the most fairest of them all?". One day, however, the mirror answers, "Snow White" as the most fairest. Outraged that there is another person more beautiful than her, she orders a huntsman to find Snow White, and kill her. He obeys this command up until a point. After taking her deep into the forest, he has seconds thoughts, tells Snow White what the queen wanted him to do, and pleads with her to escape, which she does.

Snow White meets up with seven dwarfs, who initially have no interest in her, nor her imposing ways. The dwarfs are bachelors, of sorts; at least, living in the manner of a bachelor. They are dirty and unkemp, as is their home. Snow White gets them to clean up and live more respectfully; a rough task in the beginning, and much despised by the dwarfs. However, she grown on them, and soon they come to respect her.

Meanwhile, the queen discovers Snow White is still alive. Finding out where she is, the queen disguises herself as an old hag, and goes in search of her. In her possession she carries an apple ... a poisonous apple with which she intends to give to Snow White to eat. While the dwarfs are out working, Snow White encounters the queen, and is given the apple. After taking one bite, she falls to the ground, dead, unable to be revived and brought back to life but by "love's first kiss". Eventually a prince comes along, as is the custom in fairy tales, and kisses Snow White, bringing her back to life. What happens to the queen is an entirely different matter indeed.

So is a short synopsis of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs". However, problems evolved in the making of "Snow White". Based on a Grimms Bros. fairy tale, there was not enough material to make it into a film version, and Dinsey wondered how he could make an animated feature length film, and still keep the audiences attention. He also wondered what he could do to offset the horror in the film. "Snow White", after-all, dealt with, and ultimately contained, much terror that even today still frightens some younger viewers.

The answer came in several factors. One was in fast paced crosscutting scenes, so that the action was not concentrated on one particular character for too long. Another answer came with using sweet, mellow songs to help move the story along. "I'm Wishing", "With A Smile In My Song", "Whistle While You Work", and "Heigh Ho" were just some of the songs that helped carry "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs". A third factor, and perhaps the most important of them all, came in the comedics of the dwarfs themselves. Doc, Sleepy, Grumpy, Happy, Sneezy, Bashful, and Dopey were all meticulously created, each with their own identities; and but for them and their silliness throughout "Snow White", the film may not have moved with the speed it did, and older members in the audience may have become bored, while younger ones may have become more frightened.

All of the elements were now in place, including a wonderful cast
that starred Adriana Casoletti as Snow White, Harry Stockwell, as the prince, and Lucille Laverne as the Queen. In its initial release, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" pulled in over four million dollars, thereby securing both Disney's future, and the future of animated films. Without the success of Snow White, it is easy to conclude Disney would not have attempted it again, and we never would have known of "Bambi" "Pinocchio", or "Dumbo". Thanks to Walt Disney's heavy gamble with "Snow White", his exhausting persistence in seeing it through, a flood gate of highly successful animated films have graced the silver screen, amusing and entertaining audiences for decades hence.


Disney's Limited Issue: Dumbest. Idea. Ever.   March 12, 2006
T-Man
18 out of 21 found this review helpful

Disney. Listen up. You make movies for children. People have children who didn't have them before. Those children grow up and aren't children anymore. Are your DVDs only for the people who happen to have children during the period you choose to sell them?

When this movie was released, I didn't have a child. I didn't buy Snow White. Now that she is getting to the age that she might enjoy it THE MOVIE ISN'T AVAILABLE! I WANT to buy Snow White, but I CAN'T buy Snow White. By the time you decide to re-release it SHE WILL BE TOO OLD TO ENJOY IT! I WON'T buy Snow White.

This idea of limited issue of children's movies has to be the dumbest idea...ever.

EDIT: I found a copy on eBay. I don't know if it's legitimate (there are a *lot* of obvious fakes available) and, frankly, I don't really care.


I think it's safe to say that...   August 3, 2001
Clayton Perry (Charlotte, North Carolina USA)
17 out of 39 found this review helpful

DISNEY has finally come to their senses!!! I am an avid DVD collector (200+) and I do not own a single Disney-animated DVD. Why? For years, people have been begging Disney to put their massive catalog on DVD. Disney obliged and the resulting DVDs were horrible- nothing more than inadequate upgrades from their previous VHS format. Simply put, their presentation in the ever-so-popular DVD format was RIDICULOUSLY skimpy (in terms of bonus features)!!! Do you remember the 9-DVD box set they put out in 1999 for $300? They called it "The Classic Disney DVD Collector's Set!" HA!! It was a box of tripe! The box was anything BUT "classic." It included none of the memorable DVDs of days gone by. FAST FORWARD 2 YEARS...they have sold millions of "bare-bone" DVDs and now are re-re-re-re-re-releasing them to the public...in a format they should've been in initially! Either Disney purposely planned to MILK MILLIONS from their customer base or someone threw a brick upside their heads- finally making them comes to their senses. Whatever the case, the latter case being said in EXTREME sarcasm, Disney is finally starting to release QUALITY DVDs.

The PLATINUM 2-DISC edition of Snow White is a must have for everyone. The picture and sound on both discs are flawless. The sound on each disc is THX certified and has been remixed in Dolby Digital 5.1 (English & French). Also, BOTH DISCS have a truckload of features including rare newsreel footage from the premiere, an insightful look at the restoration process, archaic featurettes and original trailers! WAY TO GO DISNEY! This set is truly worth every penny! My only hope is that Disney will continue to do this with future titles and re-re-re-re-re-release all of the classics (The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Sleeping Beauty, etc.). PRE-ORDER/BUY THIS TODAY!!!