Bolt

Post by **Tyler_Legrand** » March 13th, 2009, 11:45 am

Maybe but Penny thought the guys on the show were butts

Post by **Once Upon A Dream** » March 13th, 2009, 12:21 pm

Well,there were pretty dumb people like her agent,but still,I thought that Bolt will be back on the show only that now he knows that it's not real.

Post by **Sullivan** » March 15th, 2009, 1:34 am

Bolt wasn't interested in the show. He only wanted Penny. Once Penny was safe, there wasn't anything in the world that he wanted other than to be her dog.

Post by **Whippet Angel** » March 15th, 2009, 2:11 am

And I thought that was the perfect ending. ^___^

Post by **Once Upon A Dream** » March 15th, 2009, 12:13 pm

But he could still be on the show,or he doesn't like the show anymore? also how Penny left the show sorta reminds me of how Miley Cyrus wants to leave Hannah Montana (For completely different reasons thought).

Post by **Tyler_Legrand** » March 17th, 2009, 9:59 am

Once Upon A Dream wrote:But still,he could still be on the show,or because they lied to him,and how Penny was a show and decided to leave sorta reminds me of Miley and Hannah Montana...

I don't quite follow.

Post by **Daniel** » March 20th, 2009, 3:25 pm

I just got a email from DMC for a $10 off coupon for the Blu-ray*!! YAY!

Unfortunately, there will be no freebie at Best Buy, which I was hoping would have a plush or something. Space Buddies did... However, if you buy any version of Bolt with L&S, you save $6! The bargain hunter in me thinks this will be the best deal.

Don't know what Target or Wal-Mart will be offering, so they might have something. Just a reminder, it comes out this Sunday! Though I wonder if they'll have L&S on the shelves, to you know go with the deal. Hmm..

*They also included a $5 off coupon for the DVD.

Post by **Once Upon A Dream** » March 22nd, 2009, 1:43 pm

The Super Rhino short is for the DVD and Blu-Ray? it's weird but funny

.

Post by **Dacey** » March 29th, 2009, 10:58 am

It was alright. I felt that it took a clever concept but didn't go with it all the way. It should've been more, you know, "awesome."

Post by **Whippet Angel** » April 5th, 2009, 10:15 pm

Ben's Blu-ray review is up!

I must say Ben, I'm quite surprised you gave the main feature a 6/10. I actually thought you'd have liked it a bit more.
Just a few points I'll make:

I totally agree that Cyrus was completely wrong for the part (not only did she sound way too old, her lines did sound pretty flat and lifeless). Despite this, I still found her character's relationship with Bolt to be believable. As a dog (and cat) owner, I totally know what it feels like to be attached to an animal and then lose it, or have it taken away. As a child, this especially can be heartbreaking (this happened to me a few times as a child, and it SUCKS). That's why I completely understood how Penny felt despite not really knowing much about her character.

I loved the way Bolt was animated. My dog is a shepherd mix, and has very similar features. The animators clearly did their homework, because Bolt really looked and felt like a shepherd.

As for the lack of plot diversions, I didn't really think any were needed here. It's a simple story about a dog learning how to actually be a dog. I really loved those scenes where Mittens teaches Bolt how to do "dog things." While chasing sticks, and playing with water Bolt looked as happy as my dog does when he does those things. As a dog owner, I totally "got" those moments, and each one made me go "awww.."

Eh... I guess you have to be a dog person to get the maximum enjoyment out of this film.

Post by **Randall** » April 5th, 2009, 11:17 pm

I love dogs, being the past owner of a golden retriever, but for me the movie was just a nudge above mediocre. It's good, but far from great. Toy Story Redux. It takes more than a few cute dog moments to impress me in this era of animated films. (However, I'm not arguing with anyone who really liked the movie. I can see someone loving it. It just didn't do it for me.)

I was surprised too that Ben only gave it a "6/10," but it looks like we had similar reactions in general, if not necessarily in specifics.

Post by **Ben** » April 6th, 2009, 7:22 am

That 6 was nearly a 7, but a 7 just felt a little <I>too</I> much in its favor, and I wanted to make the point.

So many of our reviews for "a nudge above mediocre" titles seem to get the 7 score, which doesn't leave a lot of scope for the films that <I>really</I> get it right.

Perhaps if Bolt had maintained more of a high-end feel then it would have secured the solid 7, but as it was, plus with the technical drawbacks inherent in the production, I reduced it to a 6 so that the "nudge above mediocre" aspect was clear.

I might agree that you need to be a dog person to fully get the most out of Bolt. I've had my pets in my time, but I've never been a dog person, which is maybe why I was more drawn to Mittens as a cat person. But I did get the emotion there between Penny and Bolt...just that Cyrus' uninspired readings left those emtotions pretty, um, emotionless.

I'm all for simple story too, but this just didn't have anything to supplement it. The characters were pretty bland, and even Bolt's realisation that he was just a dog and not a superhero was short and not very well explored. I just felt for the potential they had with even a basic plot, it was all Pixar-sugarcoated and sweet as opposed to anything multi-layered.

Sounds like Rand and I had about the same reaction...again the score was making the point that it does indeed "take more than a few cute dog moments to impress me in this era of animated films".

Post by **Whippet Angel** » April 6th, 2009, 9:13 am

I totally get what you're saying. I guess this film just had a greater effect on me personally, as I suspect it did with a lot of other people. It was far from perfect, but it managed to strike that emotional chord for me (the last film that did that for me was probably Ratatouille).

I'm honestly more of a cat person myself btw.

Post by **PatrickvD** » April 6th, 2009, 12:59 pm

Whippet Angel wrote:I totally get what you're saying. I guess this film just had a greater effect on me personally, as I suspect it did with a lot of other people.

I'm allergic to all animals and I LOVED Bolt. It was funny, heartwarming and it overcame predictability with strong, clever and interesting characters.

There's also lots of fun inside humor in Bolt. I mean, when Penny is recast and they explain her change in appearance within the context of plastic surgery, that was awesome. Particulalry because the surgeon was called "Dr. Forrester" and was voiced by Ron Moss. That's the funniest metaphore for a show "jumping the gun" ever.

I see Bolt as Great Mouse Detective or Emperor's New Groove type of film. Critically acclaimed, but easily forgotten by most.

Post by **Sunday** » April 6th, 2009, 1:49 pm

Whew, I finally saw this a few days ago. Despite feeling like a re-tread through terrain forged by Truman Show and Toy Story 1 & 2 I can admire the straightforward manner the story played out. K.I.S.S., eh? Every human character was jarring and awkward (particularly the agent, whose antics felt strained to the breaking point and not in classic cartoon fashion) but thankfully this was balanced by fantastic critter animation.

Only other hitch was in nearly every Rhino scene of dialogue I could feel the recording session taking place. I wish I could articulate that point more soundly -- maybe contrast it to Shifu/Hoffman or Woody/Hanks, where the well known actor is almost completely forgotten in the dialogue of the character.

I'd go along with the 6/10 assessment, due mainly to the warmth and humor that is present in the animal side of the story, which is the reason we're watching this anyway.