BLU-RAY REVIEW

Bambi II

Featured In Issue 167, May/June 2012

Picture5
Sound4.5
WSR Score4
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):
Walt Disney Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
106603
(MPAA Rating):
G
(Rating Reason):
(Retail Price):
$29.99
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
72
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A, B & C
(Theatrical Year):
2006
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
08/23/11
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Brian Pimental
(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
(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):

Following the tragic loss of his mother, the young fawn reunites with The Great Prince (voiced by Patrick Stewart), who must now teach Bambi II (to) understand the ways of the forest. Their adventure together helps them overcome their initially awkward relationship, and allows father and son to discover in each other something neither expected: family. Inspired by the book by Felix Salten. (Suzanne Hodges)

Special features include three interactive "Friend Owl's Forest Fun Games"; the "Sing The Day" deleted song; The Legacy Continues featurette (SD 08:17); trivia facts; the "Disney Sketch Pad," which is a tutorial on how to draw Thumper (SD 03:43); Thumper's Hurry & Scurry Game; sneak peeks; up-front ads; a digital copy; and the DVD.

Originally reviewed in Issue 107, the anamorphically enhanced 1.78:1 DVD was beautifully rendered. On this new 1.78:1 1080p AVC Blu-ray Disc™ the animation is beautifully presented in its true glory. Color fidelity is superb. Hues can be pale and pastel for early morning sunrises, or vivid and vibrant as the forest animals play in the snow. Images are nicely detailed and impressively dimensional. On some occasions, the picture can seem a bit soft but that appears to be the creative intention. The picture is clean and solid, with a pristine look. The movie's young target audience will be thrilled with the visuals. (Gary Reber)

With well-recorded dialogue and an aggressive surround mix, the remastered DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack significantly betters the Dolby® Digital and DTS® Digital Surround™ 5.1-channel encodings on the previous DVD. The sound is enjoyable, with excellent fidelity. The LFE channel is used nicely to accentuate the more intense effects, helping heighten the drama of the scenes. Effects are phantomly imaged well around the room, creating a detailed environment that brings the story to life. The music score is nicely recorded with a wide and deep soundstage presence that extends effectively to the surrounds, for an immersive sonic experience. Dialogue can sound slightly forward, as is the case with most animated features. Pans around the room are believable, rounding out this impressive soundtrack. (Gary Reber)