Even though their direct to DVD sequel business is finally dead and buried with the release of The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning, Disney has plenty of DVD releases planned for 2009. Walt Disney Home Entertainment has just announced the release dates for two of it’s most beloved animated films.
Pinocchio: 70th Anniversary Platinum Edition on DVD and Blu-Ray
Release date: March 10, 2009
Pinocchio will be the second Blu-Ray release for Disney, following the successful sale of Sleeping Beauty: Platinum Edition. Walt Disney will release this 70th Anniversary Platinum Edition on 2-disc DVD and 2-disc Blu-ray on 3/10/09. The DVD ($20.99 at Amazon) will include audio commentary with Leonard Maltin, Eric Goldberg and J. B. Kaufman, song selection, a Pinocchio’s Matter of Facts trivia text track, 2 deleted scenes and an alternate ending, deleted songs, the No Strings Attached: The Making of Pinocchio documentary, live action reference footage, art galleries, The Sweat Box featurette and the Pinocchio Puzzles interactive game. The Blu-ray Disc ($26.95 at Amazon) will add the Cine-Explore option, BD-Live features (Movie Chat, Movie Mail, Movie Challenge and Disney Movie Rewards Live) and the Pinocchio Knows Trivia Challenge game. The Blu-ray will also include a bonus version of the film on standard DVD. Great news indeed! Personally, we can’t wait for The Lion King and The Jungle Book on Blu, but it’ll probably be a few years. It will be very interesting to see the transformation this one makes from the original film version. I’ve only seen this on VHS and I remember it being very dark and grainy looking. This is the perfect film to utilize Blu-Ray technology.
Oliver & Company: 20th Anniversary Edition
Release Date: February 3, 2009
Oliver & Company ($20.99 at Amazon) is one of my personal favorite Disney animated films. This is the story of a little orphan kitten Oliver who finds friends on the street who help him adapt, then help him find a home: the posh home of a lonely little girl named Jenny (hmmm…wonder why I like it so much?). With voices that include Billy Joel and Bette Midler, the music is sensational. The rest of the cast includes Cheech Marin, Dom Deluise, and Joey Lawrence. This is the perfect 80’s Disney film!
Source: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
