Customer Reviews

The Powerpuff Girls

5 star:		(42)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

"From the voice that brought you great lines such as 'The city of Townsville... is under attack' comes this menu to the ultra-deluxe Powerpuff Girls movie DVD" enthuses the familiar voice of Tom Kenny, better known as the Narrator on the Powerpuff Girls. And brother, I'd love to be able to tell you that this DVD lives up to that promise... but I've got to say, WHAT SELF-RESPECTING "ULTRA-DELUXE" DVD IS ONLY AVAILABLE IN PAN AND SCAN?!

There used to be a time when all theatrical motion picture DVDs were available *only* in their original, widescreen, theatrical aspect ratio. No questions asked, no apologies made. But clearly, Warner Brothers has decided that this DVD is strictly a release for children, and thus decided to eliminate those "pesky black bars" on the top and bottom of the screen - and in the process a good chunk of the movie's picture along with them - because apparently kids are too dumb to realize that TVs and movie screens are different shapes!

But let me back up here a bit. For anyone who's a fan of The Powerpuff Girls TV series, you'll know that this is so much more than a children's show. Despite what the media, marketing, and critics would have you believe, the Powerpuff Girls are *not* the creation of some soulless corporate committee designed to sell a 'girl power' positive-role-model message to the Barbie set. Oh no. They were created by a talented up-and-coming animator named Craig McCracken because, well, he thought the idea of little girls with extreme superpowers was funny. And over the years of the show's evolution and success, it has stayed true to its original intent: to be funny.

The Powerpuff Girls Movie is a shining example of a funny movie created by animators for animation fans. Compared to the already-excellent TV series, the colours are more vibrant, the effects are more spectacular, the music just plain ROCKS (why isn't there a soundtrack available?!), and the action is truly a sight to behold... even on a TV screen in pan & scan format! Which really honks me off because a movie with such striking visuals such as these deserves to have the whole picture on the screen.

Adding insult to injury are the deleted scenes, and practically all the clips used in the various DVD special features, that actually ARE presented in widescreen! There are scenes where you can literally compare the two and see for yourself just how much of the feature's image is being cut off. But hey, to see fully completed deleted scenes (minus only the sound effects) from an animated movie is not something you see every day and is a very nice touch! Still, it would have been nice to have director Craig McCracken explain why these scenes ended up being cut in the first place.

Other special features like the interviews with the "actors", the director's and character's commentaries, and the test reel are all very nice features indeed. Though I was disappointed by the single theatrical teaser trailer included. If you spent any time at all watching Cartoon Network while this movie was in theatres, you no doubt saw some of the myriad cool promos that were made (check out the PPG movie promo feature at toonamiarsenal.com). If they'd thrown even just a handful of the best ones on this DVD, I'd have been happy.

This was quite possibly my favourite movie of the year, and this shabby treatment on DVD is not only a slap in the face to the hardcore fans, but also to Mr. McCracken and the talented team at Cartoon Network Studios. Warner Bros. may do stupid things like this sometimes, but they do occasionally listen to their customers. We got the uncut version of Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, we're getting a special edition DVD of The Iron Giant pretty soon, and if we're vocal enough, we may just see a widescreen release of The Powerpuff Girls Movie.

4 stars still go out to this DVD just for being a wicked-cool movie. And a fair amount of effort and care did go into the DVD's production and special features (except for the trailers). Pick up this DVD if you're like me and just can't live without it, cropped or not.

I am forty-years old and have been a PpG fan since day one back in November of 1998. I LOVE THE PPG MOVIE! Some people do not understand that this is the prequel to the TV series, so of course it will not have all the villains in the movie. Craig McCracken wanted to balance out the film where fans of the show, and people who have never seen the PpG, can enjoy it. The movie is just like the TV series.
I am happy to see that Craig did not make any improvements to the characters as other films do that go from TV to the big screen. He kept the characters the same as they are on the show. The animation is a little better.
The movie makes references to such films "Planet of the Apes," "Conquest of the Planet of the Apes," "The Wizard OF Oz," and "King Kong."
My favorite scene is where the girls are playing tag in Townsville. The girls are having a ball playing tag around Townsville. They do not realize how rough they are playing and in the process, they are destroying the town.
This film makes you laugh while other animated shows take themselves too seriously. The PpG reminds me of the Cartoons I used to watch when I was a kid. Cartoons like Atom Ant, The Beatles Cartoons, Spider-Man, Top Cat, the Impossibles, and the campy 1966 Batman TV series.
It is not only the animation that makes the movie great; it is also the talents of the voiceover actors that bring the characters to life. E.G. Daily, Tara Strong, Cathy Cavadini, and the rest of the cast make these characters laughable, loveable, and believable. Everyone has done an excellent job on this movie.
I hope Cartoon Network and Warner Brothers decide not to get rid of the cast of this fine and unique series. The show will lose many fans if CN and WB do decide to get a new cast. The cast was almost replaced before the voices were recorded for the movie. CN and WB did not want to pay the cast all the money that the cast were supposed to get for the TV series, the movie, and the PpG merchandise. I am happy to hear that things worked out for the film.
I was not disappointed with the PpG movie. I love the show more now after seeing the movie. I plan to see it again. I cannot wait of this movie on DVD.
If you only see on animated movie this year, see the Powerpuff Girls Movie. If you are not a fan or have never seen the PPG, you will be come a fan.

I'm 47 years old, and it takes a LOT for a cartoon to impress me. I became hopelessly addicted to the Powerpuff Girls in 1995, and this movie just renews my love of the franchise.

The movie was everything I expected and much more from Craig McCracken and the entire PpG staff that put this wonderful movie together. If this movie doesn't become a cult anime classic, I'll eat my entire PpG comic book collection!

This is indeed the best cartoon movie I have seen in years.

Last summer's _Powerpuff Girls Movie_ was, hands down, the most interesting animated feature in years. In terms of graphic design, it's the film UPA might have made, if it had had the chance.

Sadly, it was relegated to kid-flick purgatory and ignored by the public, which may explain why Warner Bros. has botched its DVD release. Although the film's trailer is presented in widescreen, the film itself is not available in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Image cropping is noticeable, especially during split-screen sequences.

A nice round-up of extras doesn't help much under these circumstances. Still, because I enjoyed the film so much in theaters, and because I think the animation is really good, I promise to rewrite this review and raise my rating once Warner Bros. releases it in widescreen.

For now, shame on Warner Bros.

Warning to parents: This film is extremely violent, and many of the visuals could be deeply disturbing. As with the television series, the _PPG Movie_ is not for children.

This dvd has been ruined by being in a full-screen format. Full Screen crops the theatrical picture to 4:3 ratio which is the shape of a standard (non-widescreen) TV screen. There is no letterboxing, but up to a third of the original picture is lost. WIDESCREEN preserves the original theatrical picture ratio of the film which will appear in "letterboxed" format on a normal TV screen. If anyone has an all-region dvd player, I recomend going to Amazon UK and ordering the region 2 PAL Dvd version. It Is in widescreen

I see a recurring theme here in the negative interviews: too violent, not for small children, no redeeming moral value. First of all, this movie is rated PG for FRENETIC ANIMATED VIOLENCE. If you missed that before you took your children, then it's not your place to place the blame elsewhere for your own carelessness.

I've been a huge Powerpuff Girls fan since the original animated shorts on the Wot a Cartoon show, so when I heard a movie was coming out, I couldn't wait. After seeing some previews and trailers, I was going in expecting to be disappointed. The impression I received was that Craig McCracken had decided to cater to those who had never seen the show before and ignore the die hard fans. Still, I greatly anticpated attending. When I finally was able to catch it (they only had morning/early afternoon showings around here) I was pleasantly surprised. This movie is the perfect introduction to the entire series, and sets many background elements that did not exist before. After viewing, I did feel that it seemed to be more targeted at the college aged crowd, with more dramatic sequences and a deeper plot than the daily series. The obligitory 'parent-aged' jokes were ever present (much like the old Warner Bros/Hanna Barbara cartoons) and kept the movie entertaining the whole way through. There are several lengthy sequences, and given the attention span of the average American these days I can understand why those who may be used to life in 15-minute segments (tops) may have become bored. To me, these segments were a refreshing change from the sometimes too episodes. To those who have seen Samuri Jack, there are also some of the extra slow motion dramatic scenes that populate that series. Needless to say, and without giving away too many plot points to those who are PPG fans and have not seen it, this movie was absolutely fantastic, and stuck to the tv series storyline religiously. I can't recommend this enough to parents who are sick of the moral relativism so evident in so many cartoons today. This movie does have some serious moral value, it has a very clear cut view of good and evil, and good triumphs in the end.

To the individual who referred to Sara Bellum as the buxom redhead with no face representing the misogynistic views of the creator, if you had watched the show you might have realized that she is in fact one of the smartest characters, if not the smartest and turns out being a great role model for young girls.

I must confess that I'm a little baffled by other comments many other reviewers are making - such as calling the humor in Powerpuff girls 'cheap', the dialogue 'cheesey', and the film itself bereft of plot. Though I highly disagree, I suppose all of the following could be true, depending on what level you choose to consume 'The Powerpuff Girls' at.

The script, I thought, was truly the wittiest part. There were many little snickets of pun humor that I found to be very amusing; not the sort of humor that sends you reeling in helpless paroxysms of laughter, but a more subtle brand of entertainment. For example, when addressing the professor, the narrator ventues: "I must profess, sir...(etc)", or perhaps when Mojo Jojo explains about how, as a rule of thumb, humans have always had the advantage of power over apes, he calls his brothers to arms to 'oppose this thumb' - both of these and many, many other such sayings were littered throughout the film, and I do believe that that is one of the primary reasons of why I enjoyed this movie so immensely.

The plot, I must confess, is not designed for the littler children that enjoyed the original show. As many reviewers have already said, from a small child's vantage point, this film will be a great, long bore. The subtleties of this movie are what, in my opinion, make it so wonderful - and many of those subtleties small children are less than likely to catch.

So, in my opinion, the Powerpuff Girls movie is a wonderful, delighting work of the cinema. But depending on how you slice it, it could come off as a great, hyper-hyped deflation. It depends on mental age, maturity, and patience as to whether or not 'The Powerpuff Girls' will agree with you.

The first thing to say about this film is that The Powerpuff Girls on TV are different from the Powerpuff Girls on the big screen. In both media, they are cute and funny and silly, but in the theatre, they are a lot darker.

PpG, The Movie, felt more like a film for adult fans of animation, not small children. There is enough violence (and bodies) to maybe scare some very small children. But for the fans who are older, this film has it all. PpG, The Movie, gives the background to the origin story that the series alludes to, and, although short, is a great one-off adventure for the girls.

The animation was strong and the film moved at an excellent pace. The best part, though, I must say, was the score by James Venable. His work with the series is good, but the incidental music in the film has the perfect level of darkness and light to fit each scene. The breakbeat background in the Tron-like tag sequence was more energizing than any chase music I've heard in ages.

Maybe not recommended for the littles, but for 8 & up, The Powerpuff Girls are great on the big screen.

"The Powerpuff Girls - The Movie" is my first exposure to The Powerpuff Girls. Lacking cable, I have never seen the show on The Cartoon Network, nor have I seen any of the other DVDs available. Of course, I knew the characters but only from the various merchandise.

With that in mind, I really enjoyed the flick. It has pretty much everything I want from a film like this; good, stylistic animation, well-paced, clever multi-level humor, cute character design, and a plethora of monkeys. A really good movie overall! I am pleasantly surprised, and will probably check out some of the Cartoon Network DVDs now. The animation and story is not up to the level of Samurai Jack, but it is great for what it is.

As to the DVD, it is a little lackluster, but not too bad. For any theatrical film, a widescreen presentation is expected, and pan-and-scan is never welcome. The character interviews are great, maybe one of the funniest extras I have seen on a cartoon DVD. All in all, a fun DVD to have.

I love this movie. I can't even begin to express how much. i have seen the Powerpuff Girls as a new feminine revolution, they teach young girls not to let themselves get pushed around (not to mention bathing and being responsible for their actions) if you are a girl, you were a girl, you have a girl, or you like girls, go see this movie!