Disney's Fantasia / Fantasia 2000 [Blu-ray] [1941]

Blu-ray Specifications - Case Type: Two standard U.K plastic blu-ray cases (14mm spines) in one card slip case Disc: both 50GB, MPEG-4 AVC Encode. Regions A,B and C (The 'Fantasia' case incorrectly states Region B only). Video: Both films presented in 1080p/24fps. 'Fantasia' is in its original theatrical 1.33:1 aspect ratio in a 16:9 frame (black bars appear on the sides of the screen) and 'Fantasia 2000' in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio (with the exception of 'The Sorcerers Apprentice' segment which was taken from the first film). Colour. Audio: 'Fantasia' - English DTS-HD 7.1. Spanish and Dutch DTS 5.1. Portuguese, Polish and Hebrew Dolby Digital 5.1. 'Fantasia 2000' - English DTS-HD 7.1. Spanish and Dutch DTS 5.1. Portuguese, Polish, Belgian and Hebrew Dolby Digital 5.1. Subtitles: Both films contains subtitles for the following languages - English (standard and for Hard of Hearing), Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish and Hebrew. Supplements: 'Fantasia' - Three Audio commentaries. Disney Family Museum Featurette (4mins). The Schultheis Notebook: A Disney Treasure featurette (13mins). Interactive Art Gallery. 'Fantasia 2000' - Two Audio Commentaries. Musicana Featurette (9mins). Dali & Disney: A Date With Destino documentary (82mins). 'Destino' 2003 short film (7mins). Disney Virtual Vault (Blu-ray live required) - contains the material found on the previous U.S Region 1 dvd release (documentaries and featurettes etc..). Censorship? - Yes. 'Fantasia' was slightly censored in the 1960's to remove a character known as 'Sunflower' during the 'Pastoral Symphony' segment. The shots can be found here - [...] The character was considered a racial stereotype and in case the film caused offence the Disney studio decided to remove any sight of poor little 'Sunflower'. Shots have either been digitally altered or zoomed in. Sadly we may never see an uncensored version. Deems Taylor's original dialogue has been replaced and dubbed over (not really noticable though) as most of the original dialogue was in poor condition and Disney decided to simply replace all the dialogue. 'Fantasia' was also cut numerous times to shorten the running time upon its re-releases over the years. This blu-ray presents the full length feature complete with intermission. 'Fantasia 2000' has no censorship. The BBFC passed both films without cuts as Universal and suitable for all. This is one Disney film that you will either love or hate. No dialogue during the animation segments just simply classical music. Some will find it a chore to sit through and find it boring, others (including myself) will enjoy the music and beautiful animation. The film was ahead of its time and for a 1940 film it doesn't feel dated at all. The sequel is adequate and enjoyable (some may actaully prefer it to the original) and contains some exceptional animation. both films are recommended if you're an animation film fan. The transfers are excellent and i've yet to encounter a Disney blu-ray with a mediocre transfer. Very sharp with deep colours and blacks. Obviously 'Fantasia 2000' looks the better one as its a more recent film but the original does look very good indeed. Audiowise both films have a cinema quality to them and sound superb. I cannot find any flaws what so ever - very impressive. The supplements are pretty good with loads of commentaries, a few featurettes, a documentary, a short film (all in HD). If your player is connected to the internet then you can access the Disney Virtual Vault on the 'Fantasia 2000' disc. Plenty of goodies can be found (it takes a while to load up though) and includes a brilliant making documentary. One cult classic animated masterpiece and its sequel thrown in as a bonus. A fine package and one that i can easily recommend. If you wish to have both blu-rays and Dvds then i suggest you purchase the U.S release (Regions A,B and C) as it contains both formats in the package. This U.K release contains only Blu-rays.

Disney have out-done themselves with this restoration of Fantasia. It would appear that all the original live-action footage and narration have been restored and (other than the removal of the "racist" character from the Pastoral Symphony) Fantasia has finally been returned to how it played back in 1940. The animation has been cleaned up to a sparkling shine and the 4:3 aspect ratio has been retained (so no awful 16:9 stretching or cropping!). Disney even thought to include a feature that replaces the "pillarbox" black strips with custom borders that reflect each scene of the film, which actually manages to enhance the viewing experience. The restoration is so good, in fact, that I think Fantasia 2000's visuals actually pale in comparison, though are by no means poor. As for bonus features, there's a lot on offer if you're a fan of behind-the-scenes documentaries and Disney history (which I personally love) but not so much for those who want deleted segments or anything from the abandoned Fantasia 2006 project (which doesn't seem to even get mentioned). The best bonus is definitely the Salvador Dali collaboration film Destino and its accompanying feature-length documentary "Disney and Dali: A Date with Destino". The short film itself is a moving work of art that I could watch again and again and never tire of; the documentary is a very interesting insight into the lives of Walt Disney and Salvador Dali and how they came to work together. There's also a brief look at "Musicana", an abandoned spiritual successor to Fantasia that was dreamt-up but then abandoned in the 1970s. (It should be noted that all of the above features appear on the Fantasia 2000 disc so may not be available in the stand-alone Fantasia release - just a word of caution.) All-in-all, a fantastic restoration of a timeless masterpiece and a must-have for any animation fan.

In terms of the quality of this realease, it ticks all the boxes. 1080p presentation of both films in their original aspect ratios, each with an incredible 7.1 DTS-HD Master audio soundtrack that truly hightens the experience that Walt wanted to give. The films are both packaged with a huge variety of bonus features, with the best probably being Destino, a shelved collaboration between Walt and Salvador Dali that was completed over 50 years later using new technology. Seeing the idea brought to life using techniques that couldn't even be imagined back then gives it a strange feeling when watching. When it comes to my opinion on the films, Fantasia is an undisputed classic that stoll holds up. Fantasia 2000 on the other hand has some low points that makes it weaker than the original. The Rhapsody in blue segment however, makes it worth watching all by itself. Overall I highly recommend this release, despite Fantasia 2000 being a disappointment in my eyes when compared to the original :)

Fantasia is magical. It's the very first movie I can remember seeing as a child and I never tire of watching it. It unequivocally gets 5 stars. I haven't watched the 2000 version yet so can't comment on it. An oddity: The Fantasia 1940 disk is labelled region B but appears to be region ABC, effectively region free. I originally trusted the labeling on the disk and that my region free player allowed me to play it. I've now tested the disk in a region A player (standard for the USA) and it plays with no trouble.

Edición inglesa en Bluray. Oportunidad especial de adquirir en un sólo estuche las dos FANTASÍAS (1940 Y 2000). Imagen y sonido restaurados (posibilidades sonoras de 5.1 y 7.1, la más reciente). Castellano doblado y también con subtítulos (pinchen y zoom en la parte trasera de caja). La magia, la viveza, la sencillez y espontaneidad de la primera Fantasía (1940), donde no se debe olvidar la aportación excepcional de uno de los directores de Orquesta más importantes del S XX (Leopold Stokowsky), que con la ya entonces fabulosa Orquesta de Filadelfia, pocas veces como aquí ha interpretado con ese magnetismo y sonido único (en cuanto a la calidad artística), que tenía según los críticos antiguos, la oportuna selección de piezas clásicas que parecen nacidas para los dibujos que ilustran. Acompaña la Fantasía 2000, que como su año indica, ya es realizada con medios técnicos más idóneos, igualmente muy buena, aunque seguramente sin aquel estigma o aroma especial de la entonces juvenil y pionera de 1940. Las ilustraciones y montaje de las imágenes gozan de similar nivel a pesar de que muchos aficionados veamos el primer Disney como más fresco e innovador. El acompañamiento musical es también de categoría, donde una nueva selección de piezas clásicas es interpretada por los también famosos James Levine y la Orquesta Filarmónica de Nueva York, que, aunque sobresalientes, en mi modesta opinión no alcanzan el estratosférico nivel de los primeros (Stokowsky imprimía un sello único a lo que dirigía). Sí se mejora el sonido, lógicamente. PD.- La Fantasía de 1940 es interesante incluso para aquellos aficionados que solo les interese escuchar dirigir a Stokowsky en buenas condiciones sonoras. No se conservan en CD muchos documentos de esa época con esa calidad. Más recienes sí pero no todas sus grabaciones alcanzan este nivel con Filadelfia.

We were worried that although the package said international it wouldn't play on our Sony DVD player in Canada but it was perfect. We simply selected the language and hit play. Absolutely beautiful compared to the Fantasia and Fantasia 2000 we originally had on video. Still a classic with incredible animation and for the most part, excellent arrangements of many of the classical pieces. As classical musicians, it can be irritating to hear pieces chopped up, but it was the norm in the first half of the 20th century for conductors to "arrange" their own versions of well known pieces. Firebird on 2000 is my favorite, but I don't love Stokowski's version of Stravinky's "Rite." I'm just being picky :) Still moved by both of these Fantasia's after many years. Well worth the purchase!

ces 2 blu ray sont vraiment magnifiques, ils regroupent de petits dessins animés tournaient sur des airs de grandes musiques classique composés par les plus grands tel que Techkovski par exemple. l'image et le son sont vraiment parfait, de pures merveilles

Comentario sobre "el pack" de las dos películas (FANTASIA y FANTASIA 2000 ) proveniente del Reino Unido...absolutamente recomendable, imprescindible más bien. Es igual los adjetivos que le queramos poner...¡ES FANTÁSTICO! Sorprende más el trabajo de "remasterización" de la primera, obviamente porque han pasado 75 años desde su realización, se dice pronto. Sonido e imagen inmejorables...de "FANTASÍA"...nunca un título fue más apropiado. Muchos extras. Presentación sencilla con las cajas por separado de las dos películas. No os cansaré con más información, todo está más que comentado, así que yo no puedo aportar nada que no se haya dicho ya, solo decir que no veo nada negativo en esta edición sobre estas dos "obras maestras" del "séptimo arte". Veamos si MICKEY "achica" o no todo el agua...bueno, si es que no, salimos volando como las ballenas. Os deseo muchas y buenas notas... y fotogramas