Rating:  Summary: Disney's 17th Animated Masterpiece! Review: To refresh the Disney Company from the financial failure of Sleeping Beauty, the company released 101 Dalmatians, a some sort of plot-less story that kind of started a weak plot era which continued until the great storyline designed in The Rescuers. Back to the film it is the story of Pongo, a dog who falls in love with Perdita and they together have 15 puppies that later become kidnapped by the evil Cruella Devil, who wants the puppies to make herself huge furr coats. The film is nicely animated although the characters aren't exactly the most memorable ones ever but I guess I enjoyed this film more than I thought.Like all the other Limited Issue DVDs, this DVD brings very little or not any bonus features. Luckily this film has been officially announced to be part of the Platinum Edition line, which will give 101 Dalmatians, the treatment it deserves.
Rating:  Summary: Worthy Compliment to the Original Classic Review: Turning the animated classic into a live action movie was a big gamble, and it worked! The actors take on the personalities of the original animated characters, including Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil, who is wickedly over the top. The quality of the DVD is excellent , with sharp picture and very good sound. The only weakness in the movie was the lack of extras. Only a trailer, no outtakes or commentary. Disney should be able to bring better value to it's DVD's!
Rating:  Summary: Calling all dogs, we must find the puppies! Review: We purchased the cartoon version at our first opportunity, and this has been a heavily watched movie by our kids, especially when they were pre-kindergarten. This is still my 6 year old daughters favorite movie and the family voted it #8 of 41. Not quite up to the production standards of other Disney movies, this one was popular with all 5 children and is very watchable with repeat viewings. It narrowly beat out Fox and the hound for the 8th spot. Cruella De Vil sees the 15 puppies of Pongo and Perdita and decides that she needs to make a polka dot Dalmatian coat with their fur. Her henchmen kidnap 86 puppies from around London and with these 15 she has 101. Pongo and Perdita call upon their doggie friend to search for the lost pups in hopes of engineering a rescue. We had a lot of fun by gathering the family together to rank the 41 Disney movies we have that include some cartoon work. All the kids, ages 6 to 27, participated along with mother and dad. Peter Pan is no Codfish, we rank it #2. Lion King was selected number 1 of the 41 as the family favorite, but narrowly. Peter Pan was 2. Pete's Dragon 3, Beauty & the beast 4, Sleeping Beauty 5, Snow White 6 and Robin hood 7. These 7 movies all received a 5 star rating from us and complete our magnificent 7.
Rating:  Summary: It was wicked! Review: When I say wicked, I mean evil. This was a funny film, but some of the scenes involving Cruella De Vil are scary, and might frighten young children. Such as, when she falls in the mollasses and suddenly burts out of it roaring looking like a mud monster. The puppies are cute. They save the whole picture. Horace and Jasper are two bumbling idiots, and that Mr. Skinner character is another human monster. Glenn Close has been put through a lot in this film. If you want to disagree with me, go ahead. You'll like this film, but watch out for Cruella!
Rating:  Summary: BEWARE- Not For Easily Scared Children. Review: While I thought the animated old version was adorable and funny, this remake is far from that..........I bought this video for my daughter when she was 4, and after watching it, she became upset for months about Cruella and scary robbers. This movie gave her her first nightmares, even though we hadn't even finished the film. While we were watching, she started to get tears in her eyes. I asked her if I should shut it off, and she said yes. She saw enough dark gloomy scenes in the castle, evil dialogue from the robbers, and Cruella talking about smashing the puppies heads in and skinning them to traumatize her for quite awhile............I was so angry about this being considered a movie suitable for all ages, that I e-mailed Disney with my angry thoughts. No response. I read a review of one parent saying they watch this repeatedly with a 18 month old and he loves it. Beware, he is responding only to the visual stimuli, not absorbing the plot. An older child between 3 and 8 might find this quite frightening. ..................Disney movies aren't necessarily heartwarming or innocent. Everyone loves a great villain, but when they are played by real people and not cartoons, a young child WILL find them frightening. There's too much violence and cruelty in 101 Dalmatians, and this film should only be for children over 8. By that time, they have a better understanding of reality and fantasy. No matter how bright, (my daughter is gifted), below the age of 8, their emotions are not ready for this film. ...............As much as Cruella is a great character, can't deny that...she's not for the young and impressionable. Know what you are showing your child ahead of time if you have any reservations about possible inappropriate content by previewing alone first. I learned the hard way, but worst of all, my daughter didn't have to if I'd known. Robbers, stealing, killing, assaulting and gloom are not pleasant at any age, but for your child? Consider this carefully, also factor in your childs age and temperament before allowing this "Disney Classic" onto your roster.
Rating:  Summary: 101 Dalmatians Has Been Re-Born! Review: While the live action version doesen't have the same charisma & spark as Disney's classic it still is perfectly made. I have to join with everybody when I say that the casting of Glenn Close as Cruella De Vil was nothing short of genius. She brings Cruella to life in frightening form, acting with an Acadamy Award winning portrayal of Disney's most famous villan. Jeff Daniels also gives a good performance as Rodger, Pongo's proud owner & Joely Richardson's brillant portrayal of Anita nearly steals the show from the villianous Close while Joan Plowright turns Nanny into a classic Disney character. The dalmatians as well as the rest of the canine cast prevail proving many wrong when they said the dog performances would screw this one up. But for the slap-stick comedic relief the kids feel has to be alive in the film isn't left out. Cruella's bumbaling sidekicks, Horace & Jasper are not left behind & many of their hilarious antics will have your kids rolling.
Rating:  Summary: Cute, but nowhere near as charming as the animated movie. Review: Yes, Glenn Close is perfect as Cruella De Vil. And, yeah, it's neat to see a small army of puppies roaming the screen. But that's probably not enough for most audience members, and it wasn't enough for me: The live-action "101 Dalmatians" substitutes slapstick for heart, plot and ... well, everything. I don't doubt that small children will get a kick out of bicycles crashing into ponds, dogs biting people on the rear end, dogs urinating on floors and people getting an electric fence to the crotch. But adults will almost certainly notice that they haven't gotten anything in the way of more sophisticated jokes, plots or fully developed characters to entertain them. This is a rental, except for families with young, slapstick-loving children. I suggest parents have a book nearby for "family movie time," though.
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