Film

To say that Snow White is a classic film is an understatement. In fact, it could be argued that it is one of the most significant films of all time given that it was the first feature animated film ever made and was ground braking in terms of its animation and musical score.

The film forms the foundation of the Disney empire, laying the ground work for all that came after it in terms of the Disney catalogue as well as the theme parks not to mention all of the rest of the animated films from all the studios that followed. It is even claimed that Warner Brothers didn’t give the final go ahead on the Wizard of Oz until the smashing success of Snow White. And a smashing success it was.

The film cost a whopping $1.5 million to make, which was a ton of money back in the 1930′s during the height of the Great Depression. It strained not only the legion of animations employed by Disney to make the film, but Disney’s finances as well. In fact, Disney could have lost it all had the film been the flop that the press pundits at the time had been anticipating. However, Disney’s gamble paid off immediately upon Snow White‘s premiere on December 21, 1937, which met with not only rave reviews but overwhelming commercial success by an adoring public who was craving for just this type of film and the message it communicated.

I can’t image that I need to go into much detail about the story itself, which is now well ingrained into the American collective conscious. Suffice it to say that despite the fact that the film is now over 70 years old, it is still as charming and moving as it ever was. This is a truly classic film if there ever was one and is a release that belongs in the library of every film fan. Very highly recommended.

Video

Quite frankly, the video quality on this release is spectacular. I can’t image it looking any better than it does here, at least given the limits of today’s technology. The restoration work here is every bit as impressive as that on Pinocchio, and really brings the film and characters to life, with details I had never seen before. The animation is not quite as refined as that in Pinocchio and as a result, the image looks just a tad softer than that in Pinocchio, hence the slighlty lower score. This is not the result of the transfer or any digital noise reduction or filtering that I could tell, but is just how the film looks.

While I have never seen the original cells that were used to make the film, this release looks to be completely faithful to the original, with excellent color rendition and excellent levels of detail. Colors are bright and bold and beautifully saturated with excellent black level. It is simply astonishing to me that a film of this age, with animation really at its infancy, looks this good. This is an incredible restoration job by Disney which should thrill all fans of the film. Well done.

Audio

Given the age of the film and the limitations inherent in the state of recorded sound in the 1930′s, I was not expecting to be bowled over by the audio on this release. However, considering the limitations of 1930 audio recording, the audio on this release is much better than one would have expected. Clearly great care went into re-mastering the original sound elements and creating a new 7.1 DTS HD Master Audio lossless soundtrack. For those purists out their, the original mono mix is included as well.

As one would expect, the audio here lacks much in the way of dynamics and depth. While a 7.1 mix is provided, most of the film is very front heavy with only sporadic use of the surrounds. As a result, there is little if any immersive feel here with most of the sound in the front of the room. However, when used, the surrounds are used effectively, to create a sense of drama. If you are expecting deep bass, this also is not the film for you. I wasn’t and hence was not disappointed. Otherwise, the overall fidelity of the sound was quite good breaking down a bit only at reference sound levels, where the sound became a bit lean and bright. The dialogue track is well presented however and all of the dialogue is clear and distinct and easy to follow. Given the age of the film, the 7.1 track included with this release sounds about is as good as one could possibly expect and possibly as good as it may ever sound.

Special Features

As one would expect for such a significant and historic film, this release is packed with extras. The release is a three disc set with one of the discs being a DVD copy of the film which is great as it enables you to take the film on the road and play in your car or laptop or a DVD player in your hotel. Frankly, given the minimal costs involved in the DVD replication process, all Blu-ray releases should include a DVD copy as well. Disney should be commended for including one here.

Disc two includes the feature plus some extras including a featurette in HD about the the newly discovered storyboards found in the Disney faults which hinted at a possible planned sequel to Snow White entitled Snow White Returns. Also included is a music video of Tiffany Thornton performing Some Day My Prince Will Come as well as a sneak peak of Disney’s forthcoming film, The Princess and the Frog as well as an audio commentary.

Disc three contains several extras under the banner Backstage Disney including a more detailed look at the possible planned sequel Snow White Returns, a look at Disney’s Hyperion Studios where the animation for Snow White took place before the studios were moved to Burbank California and the featurette “The One That Started it All”, which details the historic significance of the film both in the history of cinema as well as as the foundation of the Disney empire. The Hyperion Studios and The One that Started it All featurettes are highly recommended and are well worth a look.

The remainder of the extras are those included on the prior DVD release of the film, including Disney’s Wild Mine Ride, Heigh-Ho Karaoke Sing Along and the featurette Disney Through the Decades. The release is also BD-Live enabled allowing you to access What Do You See? to decipher the scrambled image, Mirror, Mirror On the Wall to see what princess you most are like and Jewell Jumble which allows you to test your matching skills.

Final Thoughts

Snow White represents another stunning restoration of a classic Disney classic and belongs in the library of any film fan. Very highly recommended.