Children's Fantasy: 4 Film Favorites [2 Discs]

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 2
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 (Pre-1954 Standard)
• Audio: Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1
• Screen: Pan and Scan, Color
• Subtitle: French, Spanish, English

AWARDS

• British Academy of Film and Television Arts

•     Nominated Best Supporting Actress - 1993 (Maggie Smith)

• Los Angeles Film Critics Association

•     Won Best Actress - 1989 (Anjelica Huston)

• National Society of Film Critics

•     Won Best Actress - 1989 (Anjelica Huston)

• Toronto International Film Festival

•     Film Presented - 2004

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Kenneth Branagh - Uncle Albert
       Noah Hathaway - Atreyu
       Anjelica Huston - Mrs. Ernst/ Grand High Witch
       Kate Maberly - Mary Lennox
       Eddie Izzard - Psammead
       Barret Oliver - Bastian
       Heydon Prowse - Colin Craven
       Mai Zetterling - Helga
       Jasen Fisher - Luke
       Freddie Highmore
       Andrew Knott - Dickon
       Tami Stronach - Childlike empress
       Rowan Atkinson - Mr. Stringer
       Tara Fitzgerald
       Moses Gunn - Cairon
       Maggie Smith - Mrs. Medlock
       Laura Crossley - Martha
       Patricia Hayes - Urgl
       Bill Paterson - Mr. Jenkins
       Zoë Wanamaker

• Director:

  Agnieszka Holland, Wolfgang Petersen, Nicolas Roeg, John Stephenson

• Producer:

  Mark Damon, Bernd Eichinger, Fred Fuchs, Dieter Geissler, Samuel Hadida, Lisa Henson, Nick Hirschkorn, John W. Hyde, Tom Luddy, Günter Rohrbach, Fred Roos, Mark Shivas, Dusty Symonds

• Book Author:

  Frances Hodgson Burnett, Michael Ende, E. Nesbit

• Dialogue Writer:

  Robert Easton

• Screenwriter:

  Susan Martin, Menno Meyjes, Wolfgang Petersen, Allan Scott, David Solomons, Caroline Thompson, Herman Weigel

• Cinematographer:

  Mike Brewster, Roger Deakins, Harvey Harrison, Jost Vacano, Herman Weigel

• Composer (Music Score):

  Jane Antonia Cornish, Klaus Doldinger, Giorgio Moroder, Stanley Myers, Zbigniew Preisner

• Musical Direction/Supervision:

  Milan Bor, Christopher Palmer

• Songwriter:

  Keith Forsey

• Editor:

  Colin Green, Tony Lawson, Isabelle Lorente, Jane Seitz

• Production Designer:

  Roy Button, Stuart Craig, Roger Hall, Andrew Sanders, Rolf Zehetbauer

• Art Director:

  Eddie Anders, Norman Dorme, John King, John Ralph, Peter Russell, Herbert Strabel, Götz Weidner

• Associate Producer:

  Klaus Kahler, Caroline Thompson

REVIEWS:

• Most scary children's films are frightening in a conventional, highly confrontational manner. The Witches has these kind of moments, but it also has moments that are scary in a more subtle, sinister and disturbing manner, such as the sequence involving the child who disappeared into a painting. Nicolas Roeg has done an admirable job of keeping the macabre atmosphere of Roald Dahl's original book, softening it only by replacing the impressively mature ending of the original with a more directly happy (and therefore weaker) conclusion. He also creates a surreal visual quality for the film, aided greatly by Jim Henson's clever animatronic designs for the witches and mice. The cast is uniformly excellent. The coldly imposing Anjelica Huston is a fierce and determined Grand High Witch, creating one of the most memorable and delightfully frightening villainesses in the history of children's cinema. Mai Zetterling is her perfect foil, capturing both the charm of the grandmother and her hidden formidableness. Jasen Fisher never hits a false note, and Jane Horrocks and Brenda Blethyn turn in valuable support. Inventive, entertaining and sprightly paced, Witches was initially a disappointment at the box office but has achieved a greater following in the years since. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
• This dark, disturbing version of a classic family story was directed with great delicacy by Agnieszka Holland. The novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett was first made into a film in 1949, starring Margaret O'Brien. Four decades later, renewed interest in the story prompted two made-for-television films, one in Britain and one in the United States; a Broadway musical; and this 1993 remake. Young Kate Maberly has the central role as an orphan girl sent to live in the creepy mansion of her reclusive uncle, in which a sensitive, disabled cousin resides. This joint British-American production also features veteran actors Maggie Smith and John Lynch. Movie magic provides a redeeming ending when the secret garden blooms; but much of the film can be frightening for younger children. Holland's work is mature, faithful to the original, and unusually challenging for "family" fare. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
• An epic fantasy that combines live action, puppetry, and animatronics, The Neverending Story delivers the goods as a mythical journey for kids. While failing to address a lot of material in the source novel of the same name by Michael Ende, the film version still manages a tense, dangerous adventure story filled with wonder. As the first English-language film for Wolfgang Petersen (director of Das Boot and In the Line of Fire), there seems to be both a sense of typical Spielberg suburban morality as well as deeper explorations into darker themes. The narrative structure makes no attempt to hide the underlying literacy message, as the bookend device of having Bastian (Barret Oliver) read the ancient story line certainly is a positive endorsement for getting kids to read more books and use their imagination. The synth-heavy soundtrack and quality of the special effects sticks this old-fashioned tale firmly in the '80s, making for a good nostalgia piece. The Neverending Story would be followed by two lesser sequels lacking the skilled direction of Wolfgang Petersen. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
• An {\epic fantasy} that combines live action, puppetry, and animatronics, {#The Neverending Story} delivers the goods as a mythical journey for kids. While failing to address a lot of material in the source novel of the same name by {%Michael Ende}, the film version still manages a tense, dangerous {\adventure} story filled with wonder. As the first English-language film for {$Wolfgang Petersen} (director of {#Das Boot} and {#In the Line of Fire}), there seems to be both a sense of typical {$Spielberg} suburban morality as well as deeper explorations into darker themes. The narrative structure makes no attempt to hide the underlying literacy message, as the bookend device of having {%Bastian} ({$Barret Oliver}) read the ancient story line certainly is a positive endorsement for getting kids to read more books and use their imagination. The synth-heavy soundtrack and quality of the special effects sticks this old-fashioned tale firmly in the '80s, making for a good nostalgia piece. {#The Neverending Story} would be followed by two lesser sequels lacking the skilled direction of {$Wolfgang Petersen}. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

CUSTOMER REVIEWS: