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Jonathan Takiff: A dozen animated films that dazzle on Blu-ray [BC-NEWS2USE-PLUGIN:PD](Philadelphia Daily News (PA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) THE GIZMO: Animated Blu-ray showpieces. MOVIE MAGIC: Whenever a TV maker unveils new high-def sets, seven times out of 10, the screens will display animated movies playing on Blu-ray video discs. What's the deal here? Today's high-tech, feature-length cartoon creations on Blu-ray are an idealized fantasy world in form as well as content. Largely produced on computers then transferred in the pure digital domain, every image remains razor sharp. Scenes demanding blurred backgrounds are also perfectly controlled so that foreground characters seem to pop off the screen. Colors and lighting effects can be perfectly modulated in Blu-ray-mastered cartoons, too. It helps that the BR treatments are encoded at two to three times the data rate of high-def TV broadcasts. Audiophiles listening on multi-channel home theater systems also relish animated films on Blu-ray. For big production 'toons, studios invest a bloody fortune for scoring that lends extra "umph." And the latest, "lossless digital" audio coding formats utilized on Blu-ray discs _ Dolby Digital TrueHD and DTS HD-Master _ push a first-rate speaker system (including the subwoofer) to strut its stuff. So which animated Blu-ray showpieces deserve a place in your permanent library? Here's my current Top 12 list, judged on artistic as well as technical merit. THE GOLD STANDARD: Pixar continues to rewrite the book on animation and storytelling. On Blu-ray, "Ratatouille" is their crowning achievement. While easily winning the 2007 Oscar for best animated feature, I'd argue the saga of a gourmet-loving rodent also deserved consideration for best picture of the year, period. Just out and also a delight is the 10th-anniversary Blu-ray edition of "A Bug's Life," the second feature (after "Toy Story") to emerge from the Pixar factory. Bundled in, for comparison's sake, is the original Silly Symphony "The Grasshopper and the Ants," which partly inspired the saga. Another Pixar project that earns repeated viewing is "Wall-E," predicting a future so bleak you'll feel motivated to change it. This is animated movie making at its most sophisticated. DISNEY DELIGHTS: Kids will appreciate the cute animal characters and young heroine (voiced by Miley Cyrus), while grown-ups will relish the subtle satire of Hollywood TV show creation that is "Bolt." It's Disney Studios' saga of a canine star (voiced by John Travolta) who's been led to believe he really does have superpowers. While it played theatrically in 3-D, the vivid, 2-D Blu-ray version also pops through a high-def TV screen, without the need to wear special glasses! Just a year separated the creation of Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" and "Pinocchio," but the new, 70th anniversary Blu-ray edition of the latter shows it to be quantum leaps advanced. The scenes in Geppetto's workshop look especially detailed in the new edition, and the enhanced color throughout is remarkable. Only the gauzy representation of the fairy who turns the puppet into a real boy and the muted soundtrack reveal the film's age. MORE WORKS OF ART: "The Tale of Despereaux" (Universal) and "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!" (20th Century Fox) stand apart with their unique artwork. While yet another tale of a fearless rodent who saves the day, "Despereaux" has been illustrated like an elegant, European storybook. The Seuss saga shifts between two styles of illustration _ a Rousseau-like jungle atmosphere in Horton's native habitat and a Seussical amusement park world in the micro-land of the Who. grown-ups also will appreciate the amazing set of actors (Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Carol Burnett, et al) voicing the characters. HYPER REALISM: Action adventure fans should get a charge from "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" (Warner Bros) and "Resident Evil: Degeneration" (Sony/Capcom) on Blu-ray. Both are original storytelling experiences that blur the line between CG-enhanced live-action movies and motion-captured video games so well, you'll forget your watching a cartoon! And both blow up real good, with extra-strong sound treatments. GOOD FOR YUKS: The direct-to-home video "Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder" (20th Century Fox) and "The Complete Twelfth Season of 'South Park' " (Paramount) underscore the severe limits of their illustrators' craft in high-def Blu-ray. Yet in a funny way, that rusticism works to enhance the creations' pop-culture-slamming charms. (ASTERISK) E-mail Jonathan Takiff at [email protected]. ___ _ _ E-mail Jonathan Takiff at [email protected]. ___ (c) 2009, Philadelphia Daily News. Visit Philadelphia Online, the World Wide Web site of the Philadelphia Daily News, at http://www.philly.com/ Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. ___ _ _ TO SUBSCRIBE TO NEWS2USE Items in the News2Use package are not included in your MCT News Service subscription. You can subscribe to the News2Use package or purchase the items a la carte on MCT Direct at www.mctdirect.com. To subscribe, please call Rick DeChantal at Tribune Media Services at (800) 245-6536 or [email protected]. Outside the United States, call Tribune Media Services International at +1-312-222-4444or e-mail [email protected]. KeyWords:: BC-NEWS2USE-PLUGIN:PD BC NEWS2USE PLUGIN PD |