high definition Archives

Peter Pan Diamond Edition on Blu-ray Combo Pack arrives on 2/5

A few years ago, I got burned by the Disney Vault. My sister and hubby and I were working on a Peter Pan themed “Neverland” mural on our play wall and we needed an aerial image of the island to work off of. The problem was that after 6 book stores, we could find exactly one picture of Neverland as a whole, and it was the background of the table of contents page so it was hard to see much of anything.

While we ended up just finishing up the mural using a very loose representation of Neverland, I would have loved to have a copy of Peter Pan to pop in so we could merely pause it over the aerial view. More than that though, I would have loved to get into the spirit of Neverland by watching the film as we painted, but unfortunately, it was locked away in the Disney Vault.

You’d think with a pirate-themed play area like this, that my kiddos would be all about Peter Pan, right? Ironically, they had never seen the movie and didn’t understand just how cool their little “scrog pit”* is.

Luckily, Peter Pan has recently come out of the vault to celebrate his 60th anniversary, and has been restored in high definition just in time for my kiddos to really appreciate it. We got to check out the new Peter Pan Diamond Edition Blu-ray Combo Pack and it was a very big hit. The timing of the film arriving was perfect as it’s been cold and rainy for almost a week now and we really needed to snuggle up and have a family movie night.

E.T. The Extra Terrestrial Anniversary Edition Blu-ray and DVD Combo Pack

Before this week, I had never seen the movie E.T. Sure, I knew of it and that it was about a little boy who eats Reese’s Pieces and turns into a googl-y eyed monster with a glowing finger that scares Drew Barrymore. Then through the kindness of others and the determination to win, he eventually … Read more

5 New Disney Releases on Blu-ray: Mice, Dogs, Cats, Tigger, and History – Oh My!

My family has a long tradition with Disney movies. Always the first to see them in the theatres, then snatching them up as soon as they were released for home viewing, we’ve watched and enjoyed them all. Having amassed a huge collection of Disney movies myself on VHS, they were basically the only reason I still owned a VCR in the early 2000s, and why I held out from going to DVD for so long.

But, then when Blu-ray was introduced a few years ago, I knew I couldn’t wait any longer to upgrade some of those old VHS tapes that were virtually unwatchable after years of kids handling them. Not only was it time to trash the VHS, it was time to get a better film format that wouldn’t break down with wear and show its age.

And, I think I made a great choice on when to start my upgrade process because the quality of Blu-ray is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Rewatching old movies restored in Blu-ray quality is like watching them for the first time ever with all the color and vibrancy of the original drawings.

I have been eagerly awaiting the release of all of my favorites on Blu-ray and making a point to collect them all while I can to replace their worn out VHS. I was thrilled when I heard the announcement that 5 titles would be released on August 21st and even more excited when I heard that 3 of them were ones that I had loved growing up.

On August 21st, 5 new movies are finally going to be viewed in high definition Blu-ray: THE RESCUERS: 35th Anniversary Ed & THE RESCUERS DOWN UNDER – 2 Movie Collection, THE ARISTOCATS: Special Edition, LADY AND THE TRAMP II: Scamp's Adventure – Special Edition, POCAHONTAS & POCAHONTAS II: Journey to a New World – 2 Movie Collection and THE TIGGER MOVIE: Bounce-a-RRRific Special Edition.

As you can see, there's a little something for everyone in the new Blu-ray releases. Which are you most excited about?

Lady and the Tramp Diamond Edition Blu-ray + DVD

I have always loved Lady and the Tramp and I vividly remember watching the VHS over and over with my sister when we were young. I think we must have sung the “The Siamese Cat Song” {AKA “We Are Siamese”} every day from kindergarten to 5th grade and even to this day I can’t help but smile as I remember how much we adored the film.

The one thing that wasn’t vivid was the quality of the tape from our youth that had seen its better days and hadn’t been treated as it should. Seeing the Lady and the Tramp this past week in all its restored glory on Blu-ray was definitely the way it was meant to be seen. Bright and vibrant in HD, the film’s hand-drawn artwork doesn’t show its age at all and even my husband thought it was decades newer than it actually is.

My daughter, who knows nothing of VHS tapes, will only ever know of Lady and the Tramp in its beautifully restored Blu-ray release and she was completely blown away. In fact, it’s her new favorite movie, even surpassing her “princess movies” and she’s asked to watch it every single night since it arrived. And, watching it again with her, I had forgotten how great of a movie it really is.