Alternate Disc-Tractions: Toy Story and Toy Story 2 on Blu-ray, DVD
by at March 25, 2010 9:32 am
Sections: 3D, Action, Ads & Media, Consoles, Features, Genres, Home Video, Movies, Opinions, PS3, Reviews
|
Sign up for the FREE Tell Membership and receive benefits that include the digital edition of Tell Magazine sent straight to your inbox, product giveaways, coupons and much more!
These are the movies that started it all.
OK, so that’s a bit of an exaggeration but Toy Story is certainly the movie that made Pixar a household name in terms of big screen releases and established it as the go-to company for amazing animated movies.
It’s difficult to deny the fun, imagination and creativity of these films in any form. What does become clear even between these two movies – especially after watching them in high def – is that, over time, not only has our expectations for films become more demanding but so have Pixar’s skills have become equally adept.
We’ll certainly see this evidenced in the upcoming theatrical release of Toy Story 3 (June 18, 2010). Until then, here’s a look at the latest release of Toy Story and Toy Story 2 on Blu-ray (and DVD).
Toy Boxes
Both films are told from the perspective of a group of toys belonging to a little boy named Andy. Lead by a cowboy doll named Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks), they want nothing more than to be loved and played with by their owner yet have to deal with the continued threat of separation.
In Toy Story 2 (1999), Woody get damaged, is stolen and becomes part of a rare toy collection that is about to be sold and shipped to Japanese collector. All serious problems when you’re a toy. Buzz leads a squad of toys to his rescue, while Woody tries to find a way to get repaired, escape and find his way home.
Both movies have sweet stories, lots of lovable characters, slightly dark villains, little twists and plenty of comedy. Each toy has a unique character exemplified by expertly selected and performed voice actors aplenty.
Parallel Extras
Both Blu-ray+DVD combo releases include a list of seemingly identical extras when, in fact, they are simply similar in form and unique in content. For example, both contain “Animated Studio Stories,” which are short, semi-stick figure style animated stories of Pixar production silliness. Both also contain a short Toy Story 3 sneak peek, although one focuses on the film’s story and the other in its characters. Likewise, both has different stories that focus on NASA footage of the international space station complete with Buzz on board.
Both also contain ye olde features (making of featurettes, commentaries and “deleted scenes” we’ve already seen on previous releases) as well as at least one tale of how each movie almost didn’t get made.
As for unique extras, Toy Story does contain “Buzz Takes Manhatan” which focuses on the Buzz Lightyear parade float whereas Toy Story 2 has a featurette about Pixar’s Toy Story figure-based zoetrope (which is amazing)
In both cases, there are plenty of extras to watch and browse through that will appear to film buffs, kids and casually interested viewers. They also include BD-Live or, as they are called by Disney, BDisney-Live. Oh, and each includes a code for a free admission (up to $8.50) to Toy Story 3.
As Toys Evolve
Both movies do look great in high definition but, while that means amazing quality and a level if detail you may have never experienced with these films before, it also means the disparity between the two movies is a bit more obvious when watching them back-to-back at home.
Since Toy Story was the first full-on animated feature, we’re getting what is essentially the first-gen high-end computer generated animated feature. While it looks great and tys do look real, the human characters now seem a bit chunky and even some of the toys’ animations look more mechanical than organic. This become most obvious for Woody who has some awkward facial expressions that are completely smoothed over in Toy Story 2.
Humans also get a bit of an upgrade which was pretty necessary since at least is a major character (Al McWhiggin voiced by Wayne Knight) in the second movie. You can see the improvement in later Pixar creations as well, with human-ish people looking less clunky and more believable.
Of course, this doesn’t make either film any less enjoyable. It simply means we can expect a new level of realism in Toy Story 3 as it will benefit from Pixar’s years of experience and technological improvements.
Take Me Home and Play (With) Me
There’s really no reason not to get either of these fine films on Blu-ray. Having them in high-def in your home means you can enjoy a new level of depth in each, seeing the tiny crinkles, plastic-y shimmers and tiniest textures of even the smallest toy.
Both stories remain rather timeless with heart-warming stories, action and toy-appropriate humor. Get them both, crack open that plastic and enjoy them over and over again.
Photo Gallery [Toy Story 1 & 2 @ Gamertell] Read [Alternate Disc-Tractions @ Gamertell] Site [Toy Story]
Related Posts