Toon Talk: Peter Pan Platinum Edition DVD
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Disc one, in addition to the “Fast Play�? feature, features the complete film (of course) with two audio options: the 5.1 Disney Enhanced Home Theater Mix or the Restored Original Theatrical Mono Soundtrack (as well as the aforementioned Audio Commentary). Actual bonus material are scarce: Disney Song Selection (with or without onscreen lyrics), the ’02 DVD storybook and an exclusive “sneak peek�? of the upcoming computer animated spin-off DVD, Tinker Bell, which is probably the main reason why this set was rushed into release in the first place.
The bulk of bonus material can be found on the second disc, including the remaining hand-me-downs, plus yet another bit of recycling: the Peter Pan Read-Along (English only), which is the entire film with onscreen read-along captions, previously available on its own separate DVD in itself. This can be found in the Games & Activities section, along with a trio of new, bridged-together games under the banner “Camp Never Land: Train To Be a Lost Boy�?: “Smee’s Sudoku Challenge�?, “Tarrrget Practice�? and “Tink’s Fantasy Flight�?. After a lengthy introduction to the Sudoku game, the remaining two games give next to no instructions at all. When you complete the three “courses�?, you are given a three-figure code that you can use to access a bonus round via an Easter Egg on the main game menu.
(c) Disney
Another activity found on the main menu is “Peter Pan’s Virtual Flight�?, which is just what it sounds like - a 3-D CGI tour of London and a curiously abandoned Never Land. It may sound cool like the “virtual ride�? on the Little Mermaid DVD, but the result is actually lame in execution, complete with an annoying Peter Pan voice.
“Music & More�? includes two unused songs and two new music videos. “The Pirate Song�? is a limp early take on “The Elegant Captain Hook�?; the main find is the truly “lost song�?, titled “Never Land�?. Lyrics for the song, a possible alternative for “The Second Star to the Right�?, were recently discovered in the studio archives, and legendary composer Richard M. Sherman wrote brand new music to accompany it. We here the song, a sweet and simple ballad, thanks to Paige “Belle�? O’Hara in the accompanying video. The other video is another atrocity from the “Disney Mania�? CDs, featuring the multi-ethnic tweeny-bopper group T-Squad performing a pseudo-hip hop bastardization of “Second Star�?.
Quality bounces back in “Backstage Disney�? with a trio of juicy new featurettes. Little Mermaid and Aladdin directors Ron Clements and John Musker introduce the revealing “In Walt’s Words: Why I Made Peter Pan�?. Research uncovered a long forgotten magazine article written by Walt and published shortly after the film’s original 1953 release. The featurette consists of a dramatic recreation of an abridged version of the article, with a convincing Walt sound-alike narrating early childhood memories of his introduction to Peter Pan via a traveling theatrical production of J.M. Barrie’s stage play. Using archival photographs, drawings and film footage as well as newly filmed reenactments of Walt’s early years, including a young actor playing Walt as a boy, the piece is a nicely produced surprise, reminiscent of a similar feature on the Bambi Platinum Edition.
Another nice surprise is all about the pixie. “Tinker Bell: A Fairy’s Tale�? recounts the birth and evolution of everyone’s favorite fairy. Originally seen onstage as only a ball of light, Ms. Bell was first seen in human form in the 1924 silent film version. “Ladies man�? animator Marc Davis brought the character further to life for Disney’s take on the tale, with model Margaret Kerry serving as live action reference (not Marilyn Monroe, as is often reported erroneously). Tink’s career continued to thrive with weekly appearances on the Disney television show and nightly duties as fireworks “hostess�? at the Disney parks worldwide, concluding (of course) with a plug for her new movie "coming soon". (Thankfully left unmentioned is Julia Robert’s bizarre turn as Tink in the dreadful Spielberg pic Hook.)