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Audience Rating: G (General Audience) Binding: VHS Tape EAN: 9780788845116 Format: Animated, Color, Dubbed, Special Edition, NTSC ISBN: 078884511X Label: Walt Disney Home Video Manufacturer: Walt Disney Home Video Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Walt Disney Home Video Release Date: September 09, 2003 Running Time: 75 minutes Sales Rank: 50517 Studio: Walt Disney Home Video Theatrical Release Date: January 29, 1959
Amazon.com: Disney's 1959 animated effort was the studio's most ambitious to date, a widescreen spectacle boasting a gorgeous waltz-filled score adapting Tchaikovsky. In the 14th century, the malevolent Maleficent (not dissimilar to the wicked Queen in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs) taunts a king that his infant Aurora will fatally prick her finger on a spinning wheel before sundown on her 16th birthday. This, of course, would deny her a happily-ever-after with her true love. Things almost but not quite turn out that way, thanks to the assistance of some bubbly, bumbling fairies named Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. It's not really all that much about the title character--how interesting can someone in the middle of a long nap be, anyway? Instead, those fairies carry the day, as well as, of course, good Prince Phillip, whose battle with the malevolent Maleficent in the guise of a dragon has been co-opted by any number of animated films since. See it in its original glory here. And Malificent's castle, filled with warthogs and demonic imps in a macabre dance celebrating their evil ways, manages a certain creepy grandeur. --David Kronke
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - A big "WOW!" to the new DVD
Most new Disney editions have been improvements over what has come before, but this new edition of SLEEPING BEAUTY is an unparalleled improvement on all previous editions. Before receiving the new Platinum DVD copy I dipped back briefly into my old VHS copy that I had for my daughter when she was a child. 4:3 ratio, poor color, in general nothing special.
I then put in the disc for the new Platinum edition. I was utterly and absolutely astonished. Widescreen instead of 4:3. The improvement in the color was unbelievable. Now, I have to offer a disclaimer. I watched the Platinum ... Read More
Rating: - Detailed Remastering Extras Awaken Disney's Stunning "Sleeping Beauty"
Walt Disney's 1958 "Sleeping Beauty" marked the end of the studio's first golden era and, by extension, an era in American filmmaking. Watching this 50th anniversary edition (the most lovingly compiled among these 2DVD resissue series sets), you sense everyone involved - Disney's legendary "Nine Old Men," animators, Walt himself, even the characters on screen - knew it.
For years Disney called his TV show, "The Wonderful World of Color," but in "Sleeping Beauty" he told an admittedly thin story (adapting an opulent Tchaikovsky soundtrack)almost through vividness alone. Sets overflow with ... Read More
Rating: - An unforgettable story becomes even harder to forget
The Sleeping Beauty story never gets old, no matter how old you are or how long ago you saw it. But this Platinum Edition brings out the best in the story with a great-looking digitally restored picture, making it now even harder to forget with colors that jump at you. If you can watch the movie on a widescreen TV you will enjoy it at its fullest as it was the first one that Disney did on 70 mm film.
Alongside the unforgettable tale, there are lots of extra material packing the two discs, such as children games, a great documentary on the making of the movie and even a short on the life ... Read More
Rating: - Reconsidering Walt Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" as a restored classic
I have been trying to remember the first time I saw Walt Disney's "Sleeping Beauty," and I cannot remember if I ever saw it in a theater, caught it on television some time, or never sat down to watch it until it came out on videotape. What I did remember is not being particularly impressed by the movie. Certainly I did not consider it to be a classic Disney animated film like "Bambi" or "Cinderella," which is a way of saying that it was not on my "must have" list of Disney movies. Then I watched this 50th Anniversary Platinum Edition of "Sleeping Beauty" and all I can say is that however I saw this ... Read More
Rating: - Once Upon A Dream
The story of Sleeping Beauty is a timeless classic. And the Disney version is my favorite overall. The demure Aurora is sweet, kind, and innocent and has a simple and understated beauty to her. Her song "Once Upon A Dream" is one of the most beautiful songs in the Disney songbook. The colors used in the film are stunning. And, last but never least, the villain Maleficent is one of the most evil Disney villains ever created with the blackest of hearts. I root for her every time I watch the movie. Who doesn't love someone who gets all mad and exacts revenge just because she's not invited to a party?! ... Read More
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