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    • BLU-RAY REVIEW

    Tale Of Despereaux, The

    Featured In Issue 140, May/June 2009

    Picture5+
    Sound5
    WSR Score5
    Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
    (Studio/Distributor):
    Unapix Home Entertainment
    (Catalog Number):
    61106210
    (MPAA Rating):
    G
    (Rating Reason):
    (Retail Price):
    $39.98
    (Disc Type):
    Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
    (Widescreen Edition):
    Yes
    (Full Screen Edition):
    No
    (Running Time In Minutes):
    94
    (Color Type):
    Color
    (Chaptered/Scene Access):
    Yes
    (Closed Captioned):
    Yes
    (Regional Coding):
    Not Indicated
    (Theatrical Year):
    2008
    (Theatrical Release):
    Yes
    (Direct-To-Video Release):
    No
    (Disc Release Date):
    04/07/09
    (THX® Digitally Mastered):
    No
    (Director):
    Sam Fell & Rob Stevenhagen
    (Screenplay/Written By):
    (Story):
    (Music):
    (Director Of Photography):
    (Production Designer):
    (Visual Effects):
    (Costume Designer):
    (Editor):
    (Supervising Sound Editors):
    (Re-Recording Mixers):
    (Executive Producers):
    (Co-Producers):
    (Producers):
    (Academy Awards):
    (Principal Photography):
    (Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
    (Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
    (Disc Soundtrack):
    DTS HD Lossless 5.1, DTS 5.1
    (Theatrical Sound):
    (Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
    (DTS Bit Rate):
    (Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
    (Additional Languages):
    (French Language):
    (Spanish Language):
    (Chinese Language):
    (Subtitles):
    (Cantonese Language):
    (Mandarin Language):
    (Japanese Language):
    (Italian Language):
    (German Language):
    (Portuguese Language):

    Based on the book The Tale Of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo, the story takes place in the faraway kingdom of Dor. There a brave and virtuous mouse lived with comically oversized ears who dreamt of becoming a knight. Banished from his home for having such lofty ambitions, Despereaux (the voice of Broderick) sets off on an amazing adventure with his good-hearted rat friend Roscuro (the voice of Hoffman), who leads him on a very noble quest to rescue an endangered princess and save an entire kingdom from darkness. (Gary Reber)

    Special features include a sneak peek of Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey!, the featurette The Tale Of Despereaux: A (Mostly) Non-Fictional Making Of (HD 11:41), two deleted songs: "It's Great To Be A Rat" and "Soup," five scene progressions (script, storyboard, layout, animation, final lighting) (HD 35:08), the Top Ten Uses For Oversized Ears (HD 01:20), Make Your Own Soup Game, a Card Creator, U-Control picture-in-picture Bonus View, plus BD Live interactivity.

    The 2.35:1 1080p VC-1 picture is wonderful! Resolution is incredible, with every pore, whisker, and texture finely resolved. Colors are nicely saturated and warmly hued. Contrast is excellent, with deep, solid, inky blacks and superb shadow delineation. The imagery is very dimensional, and widescreen visuals are impressive. This is an amazing animated rendering that is reference quality and is sure to fully engage your visual perception. (Gary Reber)

    The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack features a fully engaging and dynamic orchestral music score, with a wide and deep soundstage that wraps aggressively into the surround, for an impressive holosonic® surround experience. Every instrumental timbre is distinctly heard. Atmospheric sound effects and Foley are well produced and provide enhanced directionalized sound. Sigourney Weaver's narration is perfectly executed. ADR dialogue also is well recorded and is perfectly intelligible, exhibiting no bloated sonic character. Bass extension is deep at times, extending in the .1 LFE channel to below 25 Hz. This is an absolutely sonic delight. (Gary Reber)

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