Cheap Somewhere in Dreamland (DVD) (Dave Fleischer) Price

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Customer Reviews of Somewhere in Dreamland

Fantastic Voyage to Your Childhood
This 2 disc DVD set features all but one of the "Color Classics" that were released by Paramount Pictures in the 30s and 40s. These cartoons were originally shown in theaters between features. In the 50s through the 70s, these cartoons were shown on TV. In the 80s and 90s, with the cartoons in the public domain, they were put on VHS and sold cheaply by various companies. Now they are available on DVD.

As all of these cartoons are in the public domain, and these prints are made from the best available copies, these prints have faded, scratches and in some cases poor soundtracks. However being the only DVD release of all but one of the "Color Classics" makes this a well worthwhile buy.

The DVD has audio commentary for some cartoons, one with a commentary by Betty Boop herself. There is also an artwork gallery showing some original conceptual sketches for certain cartoons. Some prints of cartoons have been digitally enhanced, and some of these prints are the best quality that I have seen thus far, or at least until the original studio makes prints from the original negatives.

It's a worthwhile buy to relieve your childhood.

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Pretty good compilation
Despite "OK" video quality and rather vanilla audio commentaries, this is the only DVD I know of that took the effort to preserve these rare master works. Good for kids or animation collectors.

3/5

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An Essential Fleischer Collection
Republic Entertainment should be indicted for cultural crimes since they refuse to release first-generation prints of Max and Dave Fleischer's "Color Classics" series. As a result of this neglect, VCI and Kit Parker Films have compiled "Somewhere in Dreamland" -- a fine collection of public-domain Fleischer cartoons from 1934 to 1941. Most of the "Color Classics" are represented in this two-DVD set, with the print quality ranging from excellent to poor. The series is decidedly uneven, but it contains several Fleischer gems, including Betty Boop's "Poor Cinderella" (1934), "The Kids in the Shoe" (1935), "The Cobweb Hotel" (1936), "All's Fair at the Fair" (1938) and "Ants in the Plants" (1940). Though influenced by the success of Disney's "Silly Symphonies," the Fleischer spirit is evident in many "Color Classics," particularly the lesser-known entries such as "Chicken Ala King" (1936), "A Car-Tune Portrait" (1936) and "Hold It!" (1937). The DVD set also features two Oscar-nominated shorts, "Educated Fish" (1937) and "Hunky and Spunky" (1938), which are enjoyable but do not represent the Fleischers' best work. Until Republic gets its act together, "Somewhere in Dreamland" will remain the definitive "Color Classics" collection and is highly recommended to aficionados of vintage animation.