Merry
Christmas, Splat
(2013/Scholastic Storybook Treasures DVD)/Snow
Queen
(animated/2012/Vertical Entertainment DVD)/The
Smurfs 2 in 3D (2013/Sony
Blu-ray 3D 2/Blu-ray 2D & DVD)
3D
Picture: B 2D Picture: C+/C+/B- & C+ Sound: C+/C+/B &
C+ Extras: C/C-/C Main Programs: C+/C/C-
Here
are three animated children's offerings with slight differences, but
revisiting charterers we have met before...
Merry
Christmas, Splat
reunites us with the mischievous, hilarious, silly black cat we have
seen in earlier Scholastic Storybook Treasures DVD releases and is
one of four shorts on this new DVD single from the series. It is
also easily one of the best holiday releases we have seen in a major
glut of them. It is accompanied by Snowflake
Bentley
(narrated by Sean Astin), Fleischer
& The Snowflake Christmas
and Owl
Moon.
The best release on this list keeps it simple and delivers some fun
for all ages, even only running 37 minutes in total.
Extras
include Read-Along captions and a behind the scenes look at making
Fleischer.
All
the sudden, we have several versions of the Hans Christian Anderson
tale Snow
Queen,
but this time, we have an animated 2012 version to go with the
disappointing BBC edition we just covered at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/12412/All+Hallow's+Eve+(2013/Image+DVD)/Bounty+Kill
This
version issued on DVD by Vertical Entertainment is not that much
better and wants to compete with larger animated features, but his
one did not stay with me and only outdoes the other production by not
being pretentious, but it is not very memorable and the unknown voice
actors don't add anything special.
Extras
include a copy of the film via VUDU, plus trailers for this and a few
other Vertical releases.
Last
and sadly least is Raja Gosnell's The
Smurfs 2 in 3D
(2013) which should have built on the first CG Animation/Live Action
combo 2011 Smurfs
outing we covered in Blu-ray 3D at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/11335/The+Smurfs+(2011/Sony+Blu-ray+3D+w/Smurf-O
Instead,
we get dumb origins angles and a silly boo hiss villain (Hank Azaria)
taking on the gang in a really dreary, boring, dull plot that plays
it way too safe, thinks it can coast on the love of the characters
and even Neil Patrick Harris cannot change that meaning a good amount
of money was spent overproducing a package deal with no point and
shows the makers have no idea why the first release or the original
TV show in the first place worked. Young children and fans might
like this, but the lack of energy or point is shocking and now I see
why it did not fare so well at the box office.
Extras
include three Blu-ray exclusive featurettes and Smurf-O-Vision 2
functions, Digital HD Ultraviolet Copy for PC, PC portable and iTunes
capable devices, two more making of featurettes also on the included
DVD, Deleted Scenes and the previously reviewed
The
Legend Of Smurfy Hollow
mini-movie we reviewed in its DVD debut at this link:
http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/12347/Adventure+Time:+Jake+The+Dad+(Cartoon+Netw
The
1080p 1.85 X 1 MVC-encoded 3-D - Full Resolution digital High
Definition image on Smurfs
is Mastered in 4K like the new series of Blu-rays Sony has issued of
key catalog titles, outperforming the 2D 1080p 1.85 X 1 digital High
Definition image version of also Mastered in 4K because it was shot
with Sony HD 3D cameras and just plays best that way. In 2D, the
colder nature of the Sony cameras are obvious and the
anamorphically enhanced 1.85 X 1 image is just flat out too soft and
limited. The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 X 1 image (and sometimes
1.33 X 1 on Splat)
can more than compete
As
for sound, the DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mixes on both
Smurfs
Blu-rays are the sonic champs here with solid soundfields, some
impressive surrounds and the occasionally imaginative sound effect.
The lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 on the DVD version is not as impressive
and on the weak side, as weak as the same kind of 5.1 on Snow
Queen,
both so much so that the lossy Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo on the Splat
shorts can more than compete when it should not be able to.
-
Nicholas Sheffo
