Customer Reviews

March of the Wooden Soldiers [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I'm posting the following information for those who were taken by surprise (as I was) at the quiet release of this movie on blu-ray and were curious as to details. It looks like everything on the DVD version has been transferred to blu-ray (no additional features have been added). As far as quality goes, the movie does look sharper in some areas (set pieces, costumes) but still blurry in others (the straw on the Little Pigs hut, cave). So if you're looking for a substantial upgrade, you won't find one. But it is an improvement over the DVD version. If you like Laurel & Hardy and or have fond memories of this film, and have a large screen TV, it's worth the $9.49 upgrade.

"March of the Wooden Soldiers" is a re-issue of the 1934 film "Babes in Toyland." You'll need to search on the later title to find it on IMDB.

Blu-ray Stats: 1080p, Dolby Digital 2.0, 48khz, 192kbps, AVC (except Vintage Toy Commercials), 12 Mbps average.

Menu Choices: Play Movie In Color (01:17:30), Play Movie in B&W (01:17:31), Scene Selection (12), Special Features (12).

No subtitles.

Special Features:

Cartoon (Max Fleischer)(Technicolor)(08:28): Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer.

Theatrical Trailers(5): March Of The Wooden Soldiers in Color (02:08), March Of The Wooden Soldiers in B&W (03:27), A Christmas Wish (02:31), Beyond Christmas (01:48), The Shirley Temple Storybook Collection (03:19).

Laurel & Hardy Short (color)(Department of Agriculture, Forest Service)(4:45): The Tree In A Test Tube.

Vintage Toy Commercials (MPEG-2)(B&W)(08:53): Poor quality, but interesting.

Christmas Toy Shop (B&W)(09:18): Poor quality, low contrast.

Howdy Doody's Christmas Special (B&W)(07:18): Poor quality but better than the commercials.

Christmas '45 Theater Greeting (B&W)(00:53): Poor quality.

A Message From Santa (B&W)(00:36): Poor quality, low contrast.

Merry Christmas (1950)(B&W)(08:49): Poor quality, low contrast.

Jingle Bells (Color)(02:10): Poor quality, follow the bouncing ball and sing-a-long.

'Twas The Night Before Christmas (B&W)(08:05): Poor quality, low contrast.

The Little Rascals Happy New Year Greeting (B&W)(00:28): Poor quality, low contrast.

Stan LAUREL & Oliver HARDY one of the greatest comedy teams of ALL-TIME (a 25 plus year partnership & 105 films) finally comes to Blu-ray and in this 1934 Comedy Opera "MARCH of the WOODEN SOLDIERS (originally "BABES in TOYLAND")

TOYLAND with all your nursery rhyme characters preparing for Santa's arrival and a villian & his evil army of boogey-men, twarted by Laurel & Hardy with the assitance of WOODEN SOLDIERS. A fun filled 90 minutes of action and song!!!!!

This Christmas film is one of their funniest and a great introduction film to ALL, young and old!!! If you have a VHS or DVD copy of this Laurel & Hardy thats great but believe me this Blu-ray version ESPECIALLY IN COLOR has been remastered from an original 35mm Black and White master. This High-definition colorized Blu-ray movie is OUTSTANDING. The color version compliments the Hi-Def picture. (NOTE: the black and white isn't as fantastic and more grainy.)

THE COLOR VERSIONS DETAILS ARE SO CLEAR THAT YOU CAN SEE A HANGING THREAD ON BO-PEEP's LEFT SHOE WHEN SHE AND TOM TOM ARE LOCKED IN THE STOCKS!!! Just one example of this clarity, plus excellent colorization!!!!

This Christmas Opera Blu-ray is wonderful and loaded with many SPECIAL FEATURES like; 1.) TWO movie (blu-ray) versions to include the original black and white plus the new color version. 2.) Original Theatrical Trailer. 3.) Christmas Trailer Gallery (upcoming Christmas old movies being upgraded to blu-ray). 4.) BONUS: Blu-ray version of the Original 1951 Cartoon "Rudolph the RED NOSE REINDEER". 5.) a Laurel & Hardy color featurette. 6.) Holiday Bonus Package with 1950,s toy commercials from Mattell, IDeal, Hasbro, Remco and more. Plus Sing alongs, Night before Christmas short, Howdy Doody Christmas and much more.

This is a must have holiday package. A family Home Theater Collectors Edition. ENJOY!!!!!

"Babes in Toyland" or known to many as "March of the Wooden Soldiers" has been an annual Christmas film that has been shown on television for decades. Many people have grown up with this Laurel & Hardy classic and now, the 1934 film gets its re-released on Blu-ray via two restored versions in its original black and white and utilizing Legend Films colorization process.

As for the two different titles, back in 1934 when "Babes in Toyland" was released, in 1948 for its re-released by Lippert Pictures, the film was edited down to 73-minutes and for years, many people have watched this version of the film. For this re-released version, the version included on Blu-ray is a 77-minute version but instead of using "Babes in Toyland", Legend Films has opted to use "March of the Wooden Soldiers".

"March of the Wooden Soldiers" is based on the libretto by Glen MacDonough and for the film adaptation directed by Gus Meins and Charley Rogers and a screenplay adaptation by Frank Butler and Nick Grinde, the film takes place in Toyland where many fairy tale characters live.

VIDEO:

"March of the Wooden Soldiers" is presented in 1080p (1:33:1) and is the first Blu-ray release from Legend Films. Bare in mind that this film is available in public domain but this is probably the best version of the film to own at this time. I have seen others who have said the MGM Holiday boxset with the film on DVD is much better but seriously, with the Blu-ray release having a much higher bitrate, the Blu-ray version is the better looking of the two.

I've heard people complain that there are no blacks and only grays. I saw blacks but is the contrast perfect... No. Is it fantastic as other bigger companies or the Criterion Collection have invested in their classic films? No, but the fact that Legend Films is getting involved in the Blu-ray scene, with their first release, this is where they get to learn what people want to see on Blu-ray, especially since they have done several classics as I would love to see them bring out "My Man Godfrey" on Blu-ray.

As for the colorization of the film, if there is one thing that Legend Films excels at and that is their colorization process. I tend to dislike black and white films being colorized especially the way Turner did their colorization back in the early '90s but Legend Films uses better technology and so far, watching "My Man Godfrey" on DVD and now watching "March of the Wooden Soldiers" on Blu-ray, I'm quite content with their colorization. They do a fantastic job! Now whether or not the clothing and hair is accurate, I don't know. But I know for "My Man Godfrey", they did the research of what colors the costumes were and I would assume they would have done the same type of research on this release.

With that being said, I still prefer the black and white version of the film.

AUDIO:

"March of the Wooden Soldiers" is presented in Dolby Digital Mono but seeing they put 2.0 mono, I'm assuming that they meant stereo or putting two mono tracks to the left and right speaker. Nevertheless, dialogue and music is clear and heard no major pops or hissing during the film.

You will hear some degradation with some of the classic shorts in the special features.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

"March of the Wooden Soldiers" features the following special features:

* Origintal Theatrical Trailer - Featuring the B&W and color trailers for "March of the Wooden Soldiers" plus trailers for "A Christmas Wish", "Beyond Christmas" and "The Shirley Temple Storybook Collection".

* Christmas Trailer Gallery

* Bonus Animated Movie: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - (8:28) A classic Rudolph Technicolor animated short.

* Rare Laurel & Hardy Short Film - (4:45) A Department of Agriculture Laurel & Hardy environmental colored short from the '50s.

* Christmas Toyshop - (9:18) A B&W Christmas short from the '30s or '40s (part live/part animated). Two kids who are excited about Christmas wakeup to find Santa Claus in their living room.

* Howdy Doody's Christmas Special - (7:18) Howdy Doody and friends in a Christmas short.

* Christmas '45 Theater Greeting - (:50) Christmas 1945 theater greeting.

* A Message from Santa - (:36) A quick message from Santa.

* `Twas the Night Before Christmas - (8:05) A Castle Films B&W short featuring Santa delivering his toys on Christmas.

* Merry Christmas - (8:49) A Castle Films B&W short about Santa Claus and the elves working at Santa's toy workshop.

* Jingle Bells - (2:08) A color classic sing-along .

* Classic Toy Commercials - (8:53) Classic toy commercials that are an interesting but enjoyable addition to this Blu-ray release.

* The Little Rascals Happy New Year Greeting - (:28) Featuring a greeting from the Little Rascals singing "Happy New Year to you".

JUDGMENT CALL:

When it comes to Laurel & Hardy, fans have felt that Americans have gotten the shaft when other countries especially the UK have received wonderful Laurel & Hardy DVD releases (especially the wonderful Universal Laurel & Hardy DVD box set). Sure we have had the lost Laurel & Hardy DVD set (which came out and then made out of print) and there are a few movies released on DVD.

But when it comes to Blu-ray releases, it's one thing to get Chaplin or Keaton on Blu-ray but for Laurel & Hardy, no one ever knows if any of Hal Roach-related releases such as Laurel and Hardy, Harold Lloyd, Charley Chase or Little Rascals releases will ever be released on Blu-ray, so I have to admit that I was a bit surprised and also a bit giddy that there was a Laurel and Hardy film set for release on Blu-ray courtesy of Legend Films. One, we are getting a popular Christmas classic in black and white and color but also, Legend Films are now taking their first step in High Definition.

And I was very surprised to find out that this Blu-ray release was going for less than $10. It's important to note that Legend Films are nowhere near Criterion Collection or KINO status but they do have the potential to become fan favorites for classic movie and TV show fans because of the titles they have released on DVD thus far. In fact, "March of the Wooden Soldiers" is a pretty solid release for its price. Not only do you get a pretty good B&W release, you also get a colorized version and when it comes to colorization, Legend Films excels at it.

Sure, the company has taken on many titles that were released on public domain but compared to other companies that also take on PD titles, Legend Films has a solid track record for releasing solid black and white and solid colorization of restored films. And the fact that they are releasing on Blu-ray does make me happy.

I know that a few people have said that they did not see and blacks and their blacks were grays. In my experience, that was not the case, so I'm guessing depending on your setup, it's all subjective. But compare to the MGM release years ago (from the MGM Holiday Classics DVD box set), I still feel this Blu-ray release tops it in picture quality.

Also, I was surprised to see so many classic Christmas special features added to this release as well and although many have nothing to do with Laurel & Hardy, they do take place around the same time period that the duo were still performing onscreen. Personally, I thought it was cool to see the Little Rascals singing a Christmas message, especially singing the classic Holiday shorts.

Overall, "March of the Wooden Soldiers" was a pleasant surprise as I was not expecting Legend Films to release on Blu-ray but I'm glad they have. Laurel & Hardy's "Babes in Toyland" (March of the Wooden Soldiers) is ingrained in the heads of many generations of viewers as a Christmas classic that it was perfect timing for this Blu-ray release and also to add, a pleasant surprise as I purchased this Blu-ray for under $10.

If you enjoyed this classic, it's definitely recommended on Blu-ray especially at the very low price you can find it for. And I hope that this is a signal that more Legend Films releases will be on Blu-ray in the near future. Laurel & Hardy fans, this release is recommended!

I could'nt believe the quality of this old,old Laurel and Hardy film I saw when I was a kid 55=60 yrs ago. Colourization and black and white were flawless.

I ran right out and bought the goodtimes colorized version of Toyland.... I watched it and was quite suprised in how much I actually enjoyed it...

This Year Legends Films Inc released the Blu Ray with New Colorization....they cleaned up the print and actually improved on the Colorization... The new technology adds new depth and the print itself was crisp....I didn't realise how many objects became apparant with this new edition....

Thanks, Legend Films!

Unfortunately the video is not as clear as when it comes on TV during the holidays. I was hoping it would be clearer than when it is shown on the local channels as it is a Blue ray DVD. It does have the option to be viewed in either black and white or color, but both are not up to standard. Very disappointing, Very bad copy of original.

I never really write reviews for products that I purchase but I felt that I needed to for this one in case anyone encounters the same problems that I did.

First off, let me say that this is a GREAT movie, especially around the holidays (it is a Thanksgiving tradition in my family). It is fun for all ages and this restored version is a HUGE step up from my previous copy which was a very poor quality VHS. I can see what some of the other reviewers are complaining about regarding the lighting and I'm not sure why it wasn't fixed, but overall I still think that this Blu-ray version is a huge step up from previous versions.

So imagine how upset I am when I stick the Blu-ray disc in my player and it doesn't work. The menu loads (slowly), the music plays, but there is no selection animation on the menu and whenever I try to press any of the buttons it freezes and I have to restart the player - rendering the movie completely unplayable. I was ready to send it back (and was quite upset, too, as I was hoping to watch it tomorrow on Thanksgiving) BUT I decided to do a quick firmware update for my Blu-ray player (an LG BD550 in case you are interested) and was surprised to see that it worked! Now, I'm not enough of an electronics expert to tell you WHY it worked, but I will tell you that from what I understand there have been others who have had the same or similar problems playing their disc that were resolved after a quick firmware update. So my advice is this... before you play the movie take a few minutes and update your player. It's usually very simple to do and can save you a lot of trouble!

Enjoyed the film each holiday when I was child. Decided to buy the move to share the experience with my children. We had a blast! Glad I bought the movie. I was familiar with the black and white version but the color version made the experience better. Thanks for the experience.

I'm not the first person to say this, but this version of Babes in Toyland has often been compared to the Disney version, and for the most part the verdict is favorable to the Laurel & Hardy film. And for the most part, I have to agree, now having seen the uncut, unedited version presented here. This is some of Laurel & Hardy's best work. Disney studios obviously studied this film because so many bits of this and that were lifted from it. The march of the toy soldiers is an amazing peice of stop-action work considering that it was done in the 1930's, and almost seems to have been lifted frame by frame by Disney. Of course, in all fairness, MGM's "mouse" is an obvious parody of Mickey, and the three little pigs, plus their theme song, are most certainly Disney's. But Stan and Ollie are in fine form, and very, very funny, and that's what most of us are there for.

The Legend Films DVD release was improperly mastered with both the B/W and color versions overly bright, and that error has been maintained with the mastering the Blu-ray. There are no blacks, just light grays, and the tonal balance is all off and wan. One must significantly lower the brightness on one's display to get an acceptable image. The colorizing looks much better as well when darkened. I'm of the feeling that the image was brightened for colorizing, but then it wasn't darkened again (as it should've been) before final mastering.

As far as the HD upgrade, it is minor. It appears that a great deal of digital noise reduction was used, leaving patterns and edges of objects rather waxy. It also shows up how some of the colors bleed over on different objects. I only paid about $9 fo this Blu-ray, but come on... At LEAST get the brightness issue corrected!

Legend Films - why?!