25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great movie, disappointing DVD, November 5, 2002
This review is from: The Powerpuff Girls - The Movie (DVD)
"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.
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Powerpuff Girls Rock!, July 6, 2002
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.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome!, July 4, 2002
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.
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