Wallace & Gromit: The Complete Collection
It’s the three shorts AND A NEW ONE!!
Tags: Wallace & Gromit Categories: DVD/TV Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Daniel "monk" Pelfrey on Oct 13th, 2009
I don’t remember exactly when it was, but I do remember seeing my first Wallace & Gromit short. It was the second, The Wrong Trousers and I was completely taken with the claymation technique as well as the story and characters. Yes, I had seen claymation before, but not in this way for a long time.
There were three shorts produced, two of which would win Academy Awards for animation. The characters would prove to be so popular that a feature film would be made and a series of 2 minute shorts would be created for the internet. There’s even a spin off series featuring one of the supporting characters from the third short.
Then, finally, a 4th.
There have been numerous releases of the three shorts, either separately or apart. This latest collection, Wallace & Gromit: The Comlete Collection, collects the four films (A Grand Day Out, The Wrong Trousers, A Close Shave and A Close Shave) and packages them with a large number of extras that makes for an attractive package for those that haven’t picked up these shorts yet, or have one of the more “bare bones” offerings. Besides, this is now on Blu-ray, so there’s an excellent reason to upgrade.
As for the heart of the release, the shorts, it is virtually impossible not to recommend them unless you absolutely are unable to enjoy animation. These shorts are not simply animation shorts for the sake of being extended cartoons, but the claymation and stop motion effects are simply tools to tell a story, which is why these work so well.
The weakest of the bunch is the first, A Grand Day Out. In it Wallace is looking for a snack, and since the moon is made of cheese, a rocket is created. There are plenty of sight gags and comedic bits that would continue to be in-jokes for fans as they watch the further exploits of the duo.
A Matter of Loaf and Death has the due working with dough, which in itself can lend to a number of sight gags – and it does. Oh, and there’s a string of murders and apparently Wallace could be next. Coming on Blu-ray, it’s a real treat to be able to see all of the details present on the screen, from the subtle expressions to the titles of books – all packed in with humor. Nick Park is clearly very comfortable with the format and characters, so he is able to do more. While it may not be the best of the 4, it ranks right up there.
The first three shorts have been released several times on DVD and VHS, but this is the debut on Blu-ray. Thankfully, all of the special features from the previous stellar DVD release has been brought over. The various shorts that start Wallace and Gromit that were created for the internet that feature new inventions each lasting about 2 minutes or so each are included here.
Each short comes with an audio commentary and behind the scenes featurette. These are well worth looking into, especially for fans. Also included is an episode of the spin-off Shaun the Sheep. Frankly, I’m less enamored with this than I should be, because this is more of an advertisement for that series than anything else. I did like the scrapbook though which provided blueprints and a photo gallery of some of the inventions.
Fans of the duo will certainly want to upgrade because the new short is worth owning, and the upgrade of the previous three to Blu-ray brings them … well, to Blu-ray. They look great, but more importantly, these shorts hold up over time.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
+ Great humor + Wealth of extras |
8.9 |
| What Doesn't | |
| - Maybe a little too "British" and self aware for some | |
| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| If you know the duo, you should upgrade to Blu-ray. | |
[ Post the first comment | View related posts ]
Tags: Wallace & Gromit
Posted by Daniel "monk" Pelfrey on Oct 13th, 2009 and is filed under DVD/TV Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
