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Dr. Seuss Horton Hears A Who! - Special Edition
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray A - America - Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Noor Razzak (15th March 2009). |
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The Film
 “Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!” marks the fourth CGI feature film in the Blue Sky cannon, and the first which is an adaptation, as previous entries into the CG animated pool were all original films. Starting off with the popular “Ice Age” (2002) and it’s sequel “Ice Age: The Meltdown” (2006) and in between there was “Robots” (2005) all of which were fairly successful. For their most recent film, the animation studio chose the beloved Dr. Seuss story about a curious elephant that hears voices from a speck on a flower. The film does a fairly decent job of faithfully adapting the classic children’s story and also adds their own touches to the film to appeal to modern audiences. As mentioned above, the film tells the story of Horton (Jim Carrey) whom one day starts to hear voices from a speck that has landed on a clover. On that speck is another world, the world of the whos, that live in whoville and is presided over by the Mayor Ned McDodd (Steve Carell). Suddenly Horton has to help find a safe place for the flower so that the citizen of Whoville can live in peace without danger. But that task is much harder than it seems as the jungle has many immediate dangers, to make matters worse the Kangaroo (Carol Burnett) thinks that Horton has gone mad for hearing voices and gets in his way to prove her point. As far as an animated film goes, the CG looks good and retains the ‘Dr. Seuss look’ which quite unique and immediately recognizable, I’m sure those that grew up with the story would have been slightly annoyed had the filmmakers change the look and style of the world in which these characters live in. The animation is also quite lively and energetic, nice touches are added to the characters to humanize them and make them more relatable to the audience. Horton’s facial expressions alone seem to channel the rubber-faced persona of his voice actor, as does the Mayor of Whoville. Furthermore there are a couple of traditional animated sequences in the film that are a lot of fun and add to the overall sense of wonder the film achieves. I was pleased that for the most part the filmmakers remained faithful to the original story, although there are many elements of humor added to modernize the story; these include pop culture references that not only seem out of place and would immediately date the film in years to come but really cheapen the storytelling capabilities of Dr. Seuss. Despite this, the film features some wonderful sequences that’ll leave you with a smile. It’s a film the kids will definitely enjoy and there’s something for the grown-up kids as well… the voice acting is quite good, I especially enjoyed the supporting cast including Seth Rogen voicing the tiny Morton and also Will Arnett voicing Vlad, a particularly funny character. “Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!” is an acceptable entry into the already over-populated CG animation category and is certainly worth at the very least a rental.
Video
Presented in the film's original theatrical ratio of 1.85:1 and in high-definition 1080p 24/fps and mastered using AVC MPEG-4 compression. This being a CGI film the image transfer was created from the original digital source, and the result is terrific. Creating a transfer from a digital source means there's no blemishes, no dirt, no specks, no flaws. It's a crisp, sharp beautiful transfer that shows off the unique animation look and the wide array of colors and visual cues that make up this film's aesthetic. Detail is excellent, character detail as well as foreground and background detail, right down to grass and plants, water and even the clouds in the sky look good. This is both a testaments to the animators and the disc producers that made this transfer possible.
Audio
In usual Fox style the studio has included an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track mixed at 48kHz/24-bit as well as standard Dolby Digital 5.1 surround tracks in both French and Spanish. This being an animated film set in a fantastic jungle and also the environment that is Whoville there is plenty of sounds that are used to create this unique and immersive mix. Starting with the clear and distortion free dialogue, the subtle ambient and environmental surrounds make excellent use of the surround channels, the film's music is lively and never too overwhelming, furthermore the film's fun action moments feel weighty but lack a little bit of depth (the only negative thing I've found regarding this track), otherwise it's a solid surround sound track. Optional subtitles are included in English, French, Spanish, Cantonese, Mandarin and Korean.
Extras
Fox has released this film in a 2-disc 'Special Edition' version with an audio commentary, a series of deleted scenes, animation screen tests, eight featurettes, a short film, interactive game, bonus trailers and a digital copy of the film as well as a picture-in-picture feature. Below is a closer look at these supplements. DISC ONE: First up is the feature-length audio commentary by directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino. These two likable filmmakers take through the creative process of adapting a Dr. Seuss children's story for the big screen. This includes the animation style and how the original illustrations influenced the look, the voice casting and various creative decisions that were made. These two hardly take a rest and provide a fun and informative track for fans that's certainly worth listening to even if you have a slight interest in audio commentaries. Next up are a collection of deleted scenes, which are broken up into three sections, the scenes are preceded by an introduction with directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino that runs for 25 seconds. The scenes are: - First up are "Storyboard Versions" of deleted scenes which included optional audio commentary by directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino as they talk about the various scenes that didn't make the cut, and include: -- "Mayor's Work Commute" runs for 3 minutes 9 seconds, in this scene we see the Mayor on his way to work. -- "Jojo's Auditorium Speech" runs for 1 minute 30 seconds, in this scene Jojo is nervous about his speech but goes through with it. -- "Horton's Nightmare" runs for 1 minute 22 seconds, Horton has a bad dream about being tormented in the jungle while on his way to save the citizens of Whoville. -- "Jungle Chase" runs for 2 minutes 24 seconds, in this scene Horton is chased across the suspension bridge by monkeys. -- "Burning the Hut" runs for 1 minute 2 seconds, Kangaroo orders the monkeys to burn down Horton's hut. -- "Horton Gets Lost" runs for 36 seconds, in this scene Horton is lost in the jungle. -- "Jojo Hears Horton" runs for 1 minute 58 seconds, Jojo catches his dad talking to Horton, and he makes up excuses why he's talking to Horton through a horn in his office. -- "Inside Katie's Head" runs for 26 seconds, in this scene little Katie daydreams about being a monster eating villagers. -- "Alternate Ending" runs for 2 minutes 18 seconds, in this original ending the characters go there separate ways. - Next are the "Rough Animation Versions" and includes optional audio commentary by directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino as they talk about the various scenes that didn't make the cut, and include: -- "Mayor Brushes His Teeth" which runs for 44 seconds, in this scene The Mayor goes through his morning routine. -- "Mayor Proclaims to Council" runs for 1 minute 54 seconds, The Mayor busts in on the council and proclaims the council is out of order. - Finally we get the "Almost-Final Versions" and also features optional audio commentary by directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino as they talk about the various scenes that didn't make the cut, and include: -- "Mayor's Coffee Gnome" runs for 33 seconds, in this scene we see more of The Mayor's morning routine. -- "Wide-Awake Snoring" runs for 35 seconds, in this scene The Mayor is freaked out by Horton's snoring and can't get to sleep. Next up are a series animation screen tests, that are also split into three character sections and are preceded by an introduction with animator Nick Bruno that runs for 43 seconds letting us know what to expect in this section of the disc. These are all tests created by the animation department to get down subtle character traits and movements, the tests include: - The "Horton" section features ten clips: -- "Original Horton Short" included optional audio commentary by directors Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino and runs for 49 seconds, this is the original short used to pitch the studio into making a feature version. -- "Perfect 10" runs for 10 seconds, and features Horton diving into the water. -- "Enjoys Dive" runs for 21 seconds, and feature Horton enjoying his massive dive into the water. -- "Jumps on Lily Pads" runs for 12 seconds, Horton jumps on a lily pad only to fall into the water. -- "Coconut Cocktail" runs for 11 seconds, Horton enjoys a coconut drink. -- "Crawls" runs for 12 seconds, Horton crawls across the jungle. -- "Hot Lava" runs for 16 seconds, Horton walks in the jungle pretending to avoid hot lava. -- "Watches Insect Carry Clover" runs for 10 seconds, Horton follows a bug as it carries a clover across the jungle. -- "Snaps Tree" runs for 10 seconds, Horton breaks a tree accidentally. -- "Swims" runs for 11 seconds, Horton takes a relaxing swim. - The next section is "Mayor" and features eleven clips: -- "Tip-Toes" runs for 10 seconds, The Mayor drags his chair by his tip-toes towards his desk. -- "Drives Wagon" runs for 11 seconds, The Mayor drives his wagon down the street. -- "Jumps in Wagon" runs for 14 seconds, The Mayor humorously climbs into his vehicle and drives off. -- "Gets Scared" runs for 24 seconds, The Mayor is frightened by Horton's voice. -- "Messes with a Who" runs for 21 seconds, The Mayor fixes up a fellow Who's appearance. -- "Sits Around" runs for 35 seconds, The Mayor sits at his desk and procrastinates. -- "Preps for Public Speech" runs for 24 seconds, The Mayor gets ready to deliver a speech. -- "Phonograph" runs for 22 seconds, The Mayor plays around with a phonograph in his wagon. -- "Nervous" runs for 26 seconds, The Mayor displays a series of nervous expressions while in bed. -- "Flexibility Test" runs for 18 seconds, The Mayor stretches out in his clip. -- "Facial Expressions" runs for 14 seconds, The Mayor shows off a few of his funny facial expressions. - The final section is "The Whos" and features two clips: -- "Who-Unicycle" runs for 8 seconds, a citizen of Whoville rides around on a unicycle. -- "Who-Bike" runs for 14 seconds, a citizen of Whoville rides around on a bike. "Bringing the Characters to Life" is the first featurette and runs for 5 minutes 29 seconds and takes a look at the animation department as they develop and create the various characters for the film as well as the voice cast that help bring the character to life and help define their personalities. Although short this provides a neat insight into the creation of these characters. "The Elephant in the Room: Jim Carrey" featurette runs for 4 minutes 52 seconds and should be retitled to "The Appreciation Of..." clip as it's a video pat on the back to the awesomeness of Carrey and his comedic sensibilities and how that made it's way into the film. "That's One Big Elephant: Animating Horton" is a brief featurette that runs for 8 minutes 8 seconds and takes a closer look at the animation process and what it takes to develop a completely CGI character. This clip features additional interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. "Meet Katie" is the next featurette which runs for 3 minutes 49 seconds, this clip takes a look at the small supporting character and her development and creation. The animators talk about finding the personality for the character and were inspiration was drawn to create the character as they talk about a deleted sequence where Katie daydreams about being a giant monster. "Our Speck: Where Do We Fit In?" follows next, this featurette runs for 4 minutes 1 second, in this clip we get an explanation of the world on a speck as explained by kids. "Elephant Fun: The Facts" is another featurette on the disc, which runs for 5 minutes 28 seconds, on this clip geared towards the kids, we get some fun facts about elephants from an elephant expert into their personality, feelings and sense of humor among other things. Next up is "A Person is a Person: A Universal Message" featurette that runs for 3 minutes 42 seconds, and takes a look at the message the story communicates as the cast and crew comment on the themes, values and how it's all universal and that everyone can relate to this film. "Bringing Seuss to Screen" is the final featurette that runs for 8 minutes 14 seconds, and arguably the better of the featurettes on the disc as the cast and crew take us through the development of the film, the way the story lends itself to the screen and animation, the expansion of the characters and story elements among other things. "We Are Here!" is the interactive game for kids, the purpose of this game is to play the various instruments by selecting the correct order to make the music that helps save Whovillle. "Surviving Sid" is an "Ice Age" short film featuring the beloved furry sloth and runs for 7 minutes 59 seconds, in this short Sid is a camp councilor and takes a few young kids out into the wilderness. The disc also features a couple of bonus trailers for: - "City of Ember" which runs for 1 minute 43 seconds. - "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs in Digital 3-D" which runs for 1 minute 53 seconds. Finally the disc features a Blu-ray exclusive extra, this is "Watch 'Horton Hears a Who!' With a Who" interactive picture-in-picture commentary for profile 1.1 payers or greater. Jojo pops-up while you watch the film and takes you on a neat interactive journey. DISC TWO: The second disc features a digital copy of the film for portable devices.
Overall
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