Bedknobs and Broomsticks

[James]

The original Bedknobs and Broomsticks was, in my opinion, was pretty good, but could have been better. It wasn't a bad movie at all, but there was a lot more potential that wasn't taken advantage of.

This is the kind of movie that Hollywood should be re-making. The nearly perfect films don't need to be remade, you can't improve on them. It's the movies with missed potential that deserve a second chance.

Good thing Mary Poppins was practically perfect in every way! (Though they did remake it into a stage musical)

[Neal]

I recently saw the Bedknobs & Broomsticks gold collection DVD at Wal-Mart for $13.00. It looked like a good deal, except I guess there's a lot of negativity for the film. People are saying it's not the original film and this version is terrible and the VHS is better.

Can anyone explain what's up and tell me if the DVD is worth it? Thanks!

[Daniel]

I don't own Bedknobs & Broomsticks, in fact I haven't seen it in years, (thought it was so-so) but I've heard the current release - which I thought was a "30th Anniversary Edition" - is pretty good. It's nicely restored and supposedly the version included is the full theatrical release as originally intended. Two bonus shorts and a documentary are also included as supplement features.

Until someone who owns the copy confirms, or knows for a fact, I think that is a pretty good deal and well worth it.

[EricJ]

The Gold collection was the restored Anniversary version (in fact, that and "Sword/Stone" were the very first two "modern" Gold collections that started putting actual extras on their ex-Limited Editions)--
It's never been on DVD any other way, and doesn't seem to be in any hurry for Blu, so...

[Neal]

Here's some of the things I read on IMDb that worried me:

I was sorely disappointed when I threw in my newly purchased copy of one of my favorite movies, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, only to realize it was going to be filled with all sorts of poorly dubbed, frequently unnecessary lost footage dragging the movie to almost interminable length.

I understand it's value as historical curiosity, but couldn't it have been reissued on a DVD containing both the extended edition and the shorter, better version. The market for this movie almost certainly is geared towards those who have seen the movie before, and thus doesn't it make sense to offer the version they know and love and give them the OPTION of the new, reconstructed footage?

Since this is Disney, and they are horrendous at giving the customer what they want and making most of their catalog available, I fear I may never see my beloved short version again.

The horrendos dubbing from actors seemingly scooped off the Disney studio lot and the use of cheap orchestrations, most evident in the opening piano (or bontempi organ) used on 'Nobody's Problems for me'.

It seems all the film historians did their part faithfully restoring it and then Disney screwed it all up by improperly hiring the new voice cast and not paying for proper orchestration.

There seems to be a lot of hate for this DVD. I've never seen it on TV or VHS before, so I want to watch the most accepted version. It seems as if people are down on the DVD!

[Whippet Angel]

Those people are just giving it negative reviews because they're upset (understandably) that the original version of the film is not presented on the DVD.

It probably isn't a big deal if you've never seen the film before.

[EricJ]

There's a documentary on the restoration work, which explains why the new scenes "aren't in perfect condition", and from what they went through, it's a wonder they were able to survive at all...
Yes, a little of "Portobello Road" goes a long way--and the whole uncut number goes a lot longer--but the story at least has a more coherent flow to it if you have seen it before.

[Neal]

So you wouldn't suggest I not get this?

[EricJ]

(works that one out for a moment)

Huh?...Oh, yes!

[Neal]

Sorry! I worded that quite strangely. Bascially I meant other people suggest I not get it, but, contrary to that, would YOU suggest I get it?

...and I'm getting that you said yes.

If I get it for $13, will there be another version in the near future - have we heard any indication as such?

I bought the 101 Dalmatians 2 barebones for $11 and then a few months later they re-released it. It was irksome.

If there's no immediate plan of a new release then I'll get the $13 DVD.

[EricJ]

If I get it for $13, will there be another version in the near future - have we heard any indication as such

If there's no immediate plan of a new release then I'll get the $13 DVD.

It was low-rent Gold when it came out, so let's just assume that's the ballgame for the moment.
(Even "Sword/Stone" getting a later upgrade was unexpected, and "Hercules" isn't the only early-Gold we'd ever like to see make a second appearance...)

[Neal]

Okay, thanks for your help! I'll probably pick it up eventually. I'm more concerned with upgrading my Disney Animated 'Canon' collection at the moment.

I own 31 out of the 47 films on VHS.
I own 24 out of the 47 films on the latest/best DVD release.
I own 1 out of the 47 films on Blu-Ray (can you guess which one?! )

VHS/DVD/Bu-Ray combined means I own 44 out of 47 of the films in some way or another.

I need to get the following in some format:

Make Mine Music
Fantasia 2000
Treasure Planet

... so I'm trying to track down DVDs of those (for personal enjoyment & my 'homage film' project) plus upgrade the remaining 23 VHS's so that I have them on higher-quality DVDs.

I'm halfway there! Woot!

[Ben]

"101 Dalmatians 2 barebones"...there was never such a release. The so called "SE" only adds a new pointless game and reduces the video bitrate to fit it on...you have the better version, just like the Gold Sword/Stone is much better over the new "SE".

Bedknobs for $13 is a heck of a good deal.

Yep, there are those that don't like the 25th Anniversary reconstruction - originally created for LaserDisc - but it does add some wonderful moments back in that were always intended and simply lopped out soon after the premiere.

Luckily, I own both cuts on LD, so never went for the DVD, but my guess would be that any new edition or Blu-ray would only use the reconstructed cut, since that's the one Disney seems to feel was closest to the original intentions.


Make Mine Music, F/2000 and Treasure Planet are all readily available in decent DVD editions.

[Neal]

Ah, okay, thanks for clarifying that! I have tried searching Wikipedia, IMDb and other sites for a comparison between the 101 Dalmatians 2 DVD I have (presumably the original release) and the new SE. No sites had any sort of side-by-side explanation of what the difference was. Now I feel better about having bought the original DVD.

Okay, then I better nab the B&B DVD before it's gone.

Are all of America's box-stores undergoing a re-arrangement process? It's strange but both my Wal-Mart and K-Mart have begun to undergo a major re-shuffling of all their electronics. I believe this is due to the advent of Blu-Ray becoming mainstream. Anyways, my point is, my Wal-Mart has begun to put a bunch of Disney DVDs on the aisle racks - which usually means (in my store) they are pushing it out and won't be getting in a new shipment. B&B, Saludos Amigos, A Goofy Movie, Atlantis and Roger Rabbit have all gotten placed there. They have also seemed to misplaced their The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: Friendship Edition DVDs. There were about 7 copies a week ago, and now following the move, the store claims to not know what happened to them!

Long story short: I better pick this up before it's gone.

Also, does anyone else think that the way box stores arrange their Disney DVDs is really wonky? In my Wal-Mart, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh was in the pre-school section along with Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams. Bedknobs & Broomsticks was in the live action section before going onto the fast-track aisle racks. There is a Disney section with Disney banners and everything, but it seems incomplete. If I walked around I could find several animated classics and hybrids in other places than the designated Disney section. It gets a bit annoying when there's a title you want and you're looking 'all-over' for it (i.e. at other stores) and it turns out that Wal-Mart or K-Mart had it all along, only not in the right section - rather tucked away in an obscure place.

I have seen Make Mine Music at my local Sam's Club and plan to get it next time I'm there. I've never seen Fantasia 2000 or Treasure Planet on DVD anywhere - retail or second-hand. Do you think it's a good idea to wait until F/2000 comes out on the PE DVD in a few years (and just rent the DVD for my homage project), or get it now?

How good of a deal is that Fantasia, F/2000, and the bonus disc of cut material set I've seen online?

You talk a lot about LaserDisc. When was that era? I never heard of it until about a year ago and I only heard of it because of Disney home releases. Can you tell me a little more about how it works/when they came out. Are they hard to track down now and do they require a special player (as in, they can't be played on a DVD player?)

Why was the Sword and the Stone Gold Collection DVD better? Better picture or features or what? I asked earlier which release was the best and everyone said the SE/PE were my best bet, but now with Sword and the Stone and some other classics, people say the original releases were better.

[Ben]

You know a lot of what you ask could be found out if you only went and read our actual frakken site!

We have a pretty good REVIEWS section which would have answered your Dalmatians and Sword/Stone questions, actually.

And forget about LaserDisc...just not worth your time hunting down a player or discs, despite your seeming obsession to have to have every bit of Disney animation in your hands. The big LD era was the late 1970s, when it came out, but the boom was mid-1980s to the late 1990s, when DVD supplanted things.


"How good of a deal is that Fantasia, F/2000, and the bonus disc of cut material set I've seen online?"
-Honestly, you crack me up. It's simply one of the best box set presentations of a couple of Disney features as we're likely to see, and you get some exclusively completed animation (the Clair De Lune short, intended for F/40 but not used) as well as some other rarities. If you're seeing this for anything under $60, grab it.