Customer Reviews

Wallace and Gromit: Three Amazing Adventures

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4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
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This has to be the best DVD of Wallace and Gromit out there today.

When the version that was released to promote the Were-Rabbit movie came out, I was dissappointed to see that none of the behind the scenes features were not included. However, it had the Cracking Contraptions shorts, which the first DVD did not have. As a result, I didn't get either version.

So I was shopping at Wal-Mart when I saw this disc. Imagine my elation when I saw that is combined the best of two previous releases: the behind the scenes of all three films, with two that are specific to the latter two shorts of the first release, plus the Cracking Contraptions shorts of the second release. Plus, there are two episodes of the Shaun the Sheep series. I definitly had to pick this up.

Want one more reason to get this disc? How about the fact that, despite not being made with the fancy animation of computers, these shorts are golden. I recommend these shorts to anyone who likes to be entertained. I personally prefer The Wrong Trousers to the other two, but all three are beautiful cases of great story-telling and animation acting. (Don't believe me on the animation acting part? Then you tell me how else a clay dog can be the most expressive animated character ever with only a pair of eyebrows at his disposal.)

This is the ultimate disc to go with Wallace & Gromit - The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (Widescreen Edition), not the other one. I highly recommend getting this release, plus Were-Rabbit to get the full Wallace and Gromit experience.

In 1989, Nick Park partnered with Aardman Animation and released a twenty-five minute short film that created a worldwide phenomenon. It featured as its protagonists an eccentric inventor, named Wallace and his mute dog, Gromit. Wallace (lovably inept) and Gromit (silent but emotive) would become the cornerstone of Aardman's style of stop-motion animation. Their popularity can be credited to the witty comedic writing, the quaint design of the plasticine models and most importantly to the brilliant animators, whose talents are virtually unlimited. Although Gromit never actually speaks, his facial expressions communicate all of his thoughts and emotions giving testament to the skills of the animation team. Since their conception Wallace and Gromit have starred in three short films, a series of "mini-shorts", a feature-length film, not to mention countless advertisements and commercials (mostly in the U.K. and in Japan).

A Grand Day Out - 1989
Wallace, all out of cheese, decides that his holiday should be at "a place where there's cheese". He decides, rather impetuously, to go to the moon because as he says, "Everybody knows the moon's made of cheese." What follows is an hilarious montage sequence showing Wallace and faithful Gromit designing and constructing a rocket ship in the basement. After its completion he and Gromit take off and eventually land on the moon. There they encounter a patrolling gas oven (who for some reason has an antenna on his head and a police baton) that dreams of skiing. As you can tell, there's little logic or reason in the story but that's what gives it its charm.

The Wrong Trousers - 1993
It's Gromit's birthday and Wallace has spent the last of his money buying Gromit a ridiculously extravagant present. The "Techno Trousers" (a mechanized pair of legs that can take Gromit for "walkies") seem harmless enough but if they were to fall into the wrong hands, they could become a tool for evil. And of course they do. Wallace lets out a room (Gromit's, in fact) to an unscrupulous penguin that turns out to be a professional jewel thief. With the "Techno Trousers" at his disposal, the penguin uses Wallace, involuntarily and unwittingly, to carry out the heist. In the end only Gromit can save the day. This is easily the best of the W&G series.

A Close Shave - 1995
Wallace and Gromit have recently established a window-washing service, which leads them to Wendolene, the owner of a local wool shop. As the country faces a wool shortage and sheep keep disappearing, Wendolene and her dog, Preston are revealed to be more than they seem. Meanwhile Wallace finds an escaped sheep has been hiding in his home and dubs him Shaun (shorn). But when Preston frames Gromit, Gromit is held responsible for the sheep napping, and Wallace and Shaun must break him out of prison. The film reaches its climax with an incredible chase sequence, which concludes in a final showdown between Wallace and Preston. This is technically the most complicated of the W&G shorts but it still has the simple charm of its predecessors.

It's no wonder Wallace & Gromit are beloved characters around the world.

There have been two recent DVD releases of these classic short films. The first DVD release was put out by Dreamworks and features all three short films as well as ten Cracking Contraptions "mini-shorts", a behind the scenes look at Cracking Contraptions and a sneak peek at The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. The second DVD release was put out by 20th Century Fox and Hit Entertainment. It includes the three short films and all ten Cracking Contraptions, an audio commentary track for each of the original three short films, two Shaun the Sheep episodes, The Amazing Adventures of Wallace & Gromit featurette, Inside The Wrong Trousers featurette, and much more.

Also recommended:
Chicken Run
Creature Comforts: The Complete First and Second Seasons
Wallace & Gromit: Aeroplane, Motorbike, Sidecar & Gromit Figures

There is little question that Wallace & Gromit are the best animated duo out there. Gromit is a very intelligent canine who always has to bail out his partner, Wallace, from every contraption mess.

Be careful what version you order. This collection has been released a couple of times, and there are differences. The soundtrack changes bteween them (e.g., "Happy Birthday" vs. "He's a Jolly Good Fellow", and "How Much is that Doggy in the Window" vs. generic instrumental). It fits much better with the older version.

No matter what, this is still excellent fun for the parents and the kids!

This fantastic DVD contains all three of the great Wallace and Gromit shorts:

1) A Grand Day Out (first released in 1991) - When Wallace runs out of cheese, he decides that he must spend his vacation gathering more. Now, what place is synonymous with cheese? Why the Moon, of course! And so, with the long-suffering Gromit in tow, Wallace sets out to get some of that Moon-cheese.

2) The Wrong Trousers (first released in 1993) - After Wallace gets Gromit the latest thing, a pair of Techno-Trousers to take him on walks, he suddenly finds that his finances need a boost. But, when the new boarder shows up, he turns out to be a penguin with a secret - he's really the notorious thief Feathers McGraw! Feathers sees a real opportunity with Wallace and the Techno-Trousers, but he needs Gromit out of the way.

3) A Close Shave (first released in 1995) - When Wallace meets Wendolene Ramsbottom, it's love at first sight. But, there's a wool shortage caused by the activities of a sheep-rustler, and Wendolene has a secret. There's a Frankenstein's monster on the trail of Wallace and Gromit, and it will take brains (oops!) and a lot of luck to see them through this adventure!

This is a great set of movies! It has everything you could want in an animated series - monsters, villains, gunplay, skiing robots, sheep, toy train chases (you have to see it to believe it!), automobile chases, and, of course, cheese. My children and I love these shorts, and we highly recommend them to you!

good quality. Prefer the older versions because of the minor changes such as missing the song--how much is that doggie in the window etc.

It's fascinating to see the development of Nick Parks as a movie-maker in these 3 films. 'A Grand Day Out' shows the promise of Wallace & Gromit, but 'The Wrong Trousers' is where he really hits his stride. Amateur film maker should study the way Parks' use of shadows and music cast a spell in this movie.

'A Close Shave' pulls out all the stops, from an Animation point of view, but 'The Wrong Trousers' is still my favorite of the bunch. The train chase climax is brilliant.

Those who were first exposed to Nick Parks in 'Chicken Run and 'Curse of the Were Rabbit' should really visit these early films. I think they are more personal, and closer to the heart of this gentle, funny man.

As much as I've always loved these thee stories, it's a bonus feature here on this DVD which kills me - "Ten Cracking Inventions.." It's absolutely hilarious and extremely clever. It's two minutes each of crazy inventions our pal "Wallace" invented over the year. Please check that out.

As for the "feature" films, I thought they got better and better as they went on, meaning the third one, "A Close Shave," was the best.

I don't think I ever stop laughing looking at the mouths on Wallace and the woman he likes in this story. Wallace is a window cleaner and "Wendolene" is the object of his affections. Unfortunately, both the woman and her pet dog are not good "people." In fact, her pet dog, "Preston" frames poor Gromit for sheep-rustling and winds up in jail. Wallace must rescue him.

A subplot involves Wallace and his love of cheese, which is seen in a number of W&G shorts.

"The Wrong Trousers" is best at the end with a very funny chase scene inside a toy train set. Earlier, Wallace is trying to invent a pair of remote-controlled trousers. He's a bit short on money so he rents out a room in house. The lodger prefers Gromit's room. Gromit is Wallace's pet dog. The dog is literally put out in the dog house, and is not happy about this.

In a crazy series of events, the tenant - an evil penguin - gets Wallace inadvertently involved in a jewel heist and Gromit has to come to the rescue. It's very silly but the unique animated cinematography helps make this a winner.

The same can be said of the first W&G: "A Grand Day Out." Once you watch this 30-minute short, and then check out the rest, you will be hooked!

Solely applicable to 2005 version "Three Amazing Adventures"

Not dealing with the differences in songs.

The entire film for "The Wrong Trousers" is for some unnecessary reason pitched lower than it should be. Probably not easily noticeable for some, but if you have sensitive hearing for this sort of thing, you'll very clearly notice that Wallace sounds much deeper-voiced and the music almost sounds off-key.

It is a very significant difference. It would have been a great release if not for that.

My journey to W&G fandom is a rare path indeed, beginning with my acquisition of the Ardman/ DreamWorks collaboration feature film Flushed Away. It was scooped up in a binge purchase of CGI animated features and while I enjoyed it well enough, I noticed the special features were packed with references to the stop-motion clay duo that put Ardman and creator Nick Park on the map: Wallace and Gromit.

Nobody seemed to have a negative word to say about the franchise, in fact quite contraire: Many of the personalities interviewed said they came on board the Flushed Away project sheerly out of respect and admiration for Wallace and Gromit. What was this wacky twosome consisting of an absent minded inventor and his silent but super intelligent dog all about anyway? That's what I intended to find out.

Just by luck I happened to order this, Wallace and Gromit: Three Amazing Adventures, which turns out to be a collection of the first three W&G feature films (The Wrong Trousers, A Close Shave, and A Grand Day Out), the behind the scenes (and audio commentary) for all three films, all of the Cracking Contraptions shorts (which are spectacular by the way), and two episodes of the Ardman spin-off series Shaun the Sheep. Serendipitously, I selected the ultimate starting point of this wonderful franchise if, for nothing else, it's unrivaled entertainment value.

A Grand Day Out kicks the whole phenomena off with plans of taking a vacation for our inventor and his dog being influenced by a moment of desperation when Wallace runs out of cheese. Remembering that the moon is made entirely out of the stuff, the decision to build a rocket to transport both he and Gromit to the moon so as to replenish his cupboards.

The Wrong Trousers finds Wallace forced to rent out a room in his house due to a lack of funds. A shady penguin becomes their new tenant and in the process, forces Gromit to take up residence in his doghouse. Turns out said penguin is an escaped convict plotting a diamond heist that only Gromit, and the robotic-legged techno-trousers Wallace gave him for his birthday, are up to the task of shutting down.

Lastly A Close Shave opens with Wallace having created a sheep-shearing machine called the Knit-O-Matic, capable of spinning the wool from a sheep right onto the loom. The trouble is a wool shortage causes our tag-team to seek part-time employment in the window washing industry. While on assignment, Wallace finds himself falling for a lonely wool shop owner. When conspiracy begins cropping up involving the sinister dog Preston, Wallace, Gromit and iconic Shaun the Sheep find themselves in a desperate struggle to save both human and sheep-kind.

If plot summaries don't do it justice, rest assured that as far as charming story telling, simple yet engaging plotting, and timeless appeal, these films set the precedent! Advocates of the theory that big budget, highly stylized visuals are a requisite to entertaining animation need look no further to be proven entirely incorrect.

Nick Park displays a simply uncanny knack for capturing the intricacies of life in his modeling. The patience revealed here in the very filmmaking process is absolutely staggering and yet the finished product has such a natural fluidity (laced with genuine humor) that the 30-minute runtimes of each movie fly by while leaving the viewer begging for more. There were moments when returning to the title screen to select the next film were painful enough, the nearly decade-long wait fans had to endure between releases must have been mind boggling!

Being my first encounter with the legendary duo, I think its safe to say that as much as this DVD captures the essence of what makes this material so enduring throughout the years, it also serves as digitally mastered chronicle of Nick Park's ever-increasing sophistication as an animator. As charming as the initial 1989 film, A Grand Day Out is (even after all these years), the technical bar is raised once more in 1993's The Wrong Trousers, which itself pales against 1995's A Close Shave. By the time you enjoy the Cracking Contraptions shorts, it's clear the Ardman/ Nick Park operation was a well-oiled machine. As if all of this weren't convincing enough, this disc contains a nice preview for 2005's Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit, which, in case you haven't been paying attention, elevates the formula once again.

Suffice to say, I had no idea of the charm and majesty I had been missing out on in my apparent W&G ignorance. I have been gobbling up as much of Nick Park/ Ardman's material since and this collection here has earned a top position on the entertainment center. Very highly recommended!!

This collection includes three W&G 30-minute shorts (this came out prior to Loaf & Death). Two of these are Academy Award winners (The Wrong Trousers and A Close Shave), and actually A Grand Day Out was also nominated for Best Animated Short Film, but lost out to another Nick Park piece.

This collection also includes ten Cracking Contraptions (Wallace's ill-conceived inventions) and a couple Shaun the Sheep episodes. It also has commentaries and some featurettes.

The Wrong Trousers and A Close Shave are excellent. A Grand Day Out is more rough but it's still fun to see the characters develop. FYI the newest one (A Matter of Loaf or Death) isn't so great, so don't worry about it not being on this collection.

Like Mr. Bean, Wallace and Gromit is popular in a *huge* way in Britain but I'm not sure the humo(u)r has ever found quite the same reception here in the States. It should, though.