Bedknobs and Broomsticks blu-ray on August 12 (1 Viewer)

[Ethan Riley]

Me too...

 

[MatthewA]

That's disturbing, and if what they say is true I will boycott both this disc and the studio that made it (and I mean it this time; no Blu-rays of other movies, no tickets to other movies, no ABC, no theme parks, no pins, nothing).

They restored it on film. They made a HD transfer of the long version from that film source. All they would have to do to make it baseline quality was just clean up that transfer. This news sounds doubly insulting considering their Blu-ray plans for Muppets Most Wanted (not one, not two, but THREE cuts via seamless branching)

The ability to turn people into rabbits would come in handy right now.

 

[darkrock17]

Disney must hate this movie now, to give it a release like this one, I'm with MatthewA on this, Mary's 50th was a shambles, and I would of expected better from a company such as Disney. Disney's had all the time in the world to give this film it's due, but unless another studio does it, this and tons of Disney films will never get the treatment they so justly deserve.

 

[MatthewA]

Disney must hate this movie now, to give it a release like this one, I'm with MatthewA on this, Mary's 50th was a shambles, and I would of expected better from a company such as Disney. Disney's had all the time in the world to give this film it's due, but unless another studio does it, this and tons of Disney films will never get the treatment they so justly deserve.

Disney's attitude towards this film is comparable to a bad parent who is constantly saying "Why can't you be more like your older sister?" Notice the SEVEN times they mentioned That Woman in the text compared to the three times they actually mention this film by name.

 

[darkrock17]

Disney's attitude towards this film is comparable to a bad parent who is constantly saying "Why can't you be more like your older sister?" Notice the SEVEN times they mentioned That Woman in the text compared to the three times they actually mention this film by name.

I only counted six, but you're right Disney only really cares about it's Animated Classics these days, because if they really did love Mary, she would of had one of the best 50th Anniversary's of all time rivialing Oz and GTWTW back in 1989.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I am very disappointed in Disney for the lack of what could have
been done with this film.

It is one of the most important live action films in their library, and
an effort could have been made to really knock this Blu-ray release
out of the ballpark by offering both the Theatrical and Extended version.

 

[Patrick McCart]

Actually, I'm more interested now that the theatrical cut is on there and the roadshow scenes are in extras.

The extended cut is very good, but it doesn't work as a movie. Between the really awkward pacing and badly dubbed voices (except for Lansbury), it should have been kept as a supplement in the first place. Of course, I don't see why it couldn't have been seamlessly branched since it was clearly finished on film rather than video.

 

[SFMike]

I'll hang on to my extended DVD version. As far as how Disney makes decisions regarding their releases, they completely lost me with their schizophrenic 3D release of Oz The Great And Powerful and non-3D release of Frozen. Oh right, it’s going to be a fall “special” triple priced release. Maybe a special special complete bluray version of Bedknobs will come out next year.

 

[classicmovieguy]

I was going to keep the DVDs regardless, but this is very disappointing news. I have grown to prefer the extended version, despite growing up with the shorter theatrical cut. It fills out the characters' backgrounds and the pacing feels better, overall. If Disney has once again chopped the film down and included the other scenes only as "bonuses" it will be very sad indeed.

This reminds me of when "Darling Lili" was released on DVD in the States as the shorter 'Director's Cut', but the longer original cut was released in the UK and Australia.

 

[Bryan Tuck]

I'll hang on to my extended DVD version. As far as how Disney makes decisions regarding their releases, they completely lost me with their schizophrenic 3D release of Oz The Great And Powerful and non-3D release of Frozen. Oh right, it’s going to be a fall “special” triple priced release. Maybe a special special complete bluray version of Bedknobs will come out next year.

Obviously, every movie requires a unique approach, but they do seem to be making arbitrary decisions on some of these releases. Three different cuts for Muppets Most Wanted? Yet they couldn't be bothered to offer the option of watching Muppet Christmas Carol with that one extra scene?

As for Bedknobs, I do prefer the shorter cut. However, with a film like this, where you have two distinct versions, and either one arguably could be considered "official," why not take advantage of the possibilities offered by the format? Obviously, Bedknobs was never a huge hit, but it has become something of a cult classic over the years, one that warranted the reconstruction in the first place.

 

[MatthewA]

I can no longer watch the theatrical cut after seeing the restored version, which I strongly consider to have superior pacing, plot and characterization (including and especially the complete "Portobello Road," despite the fact that they had to remove transitions to reinstate dance material), and the songs that were restored are crucial (frankly, I disagreed with the decision to leave out "A Step in the Right Direction" despite the absence of film footage). Supporting characters who just showed up out of nowhere now have a reason to exist. My only regret is that they didn't find more than what they already found. The dubbing would not have been an issue had the film never been subjected to such cuts in the arbitrary way it was. There is no excuse for not using seamless branching. None whatsoever.

The Sherman Brothers practically disowned the theatrical cut in Walt's Time. There was some level of bitterness over it; when they appeared on The Disney Channel's Disney Family Album, this film didn't rate a mention at all. Here's what they had to say:

When Bedknobs and Broomsticks was completed, the film ran almost two-and-a-half hours. We thought it was delightful. The film was booked into Radio City Music Hall as part of their big Christmas show — a terrific honor, to be sure. Unfortunately, the Radio City booking came with the stipulation that the film's running time had to be less than two hours so it would fit into their big combination stage and screen show.To play at Radio City, Bedknobs would have to be shortened by more than thirty minutes. And the easiest thing to do, the Studio decided, was to cut our songs.So they cut "Nobody's Problems," they cut "With a Flair," they cut "A Step in the Right Direction," and soon we were saying, "We're going to cut our wrists." They even cut part of "Eglantine," the first song we had played for Walt. And as the songs were removed, so too was much of the dialog — scenes that provided the heart, the color, the personality. We were sure that Walt would never allow this to happen.Most of the warmth was taken right out of the picture. Where Mary Poppins had love and tears, Bedknobs had schtick and funny dialog. These wholesale cuts were made because, as we explained earlier, Walt had been replaced by "The Committee." We called them "The Board of Indecision." It's often been said that a camel is a horse created by a committee. Well, here the camel was doing the thinking, and nobody could make a decision — except to cut our songs.There were so many sparkling moments in the original edit of Bedknobs and Broomsticks, but for some reason The Committee was afraid of releasing a big, beautiful musical. Bill Walsh had to go along with the committee, since the majority rules. He said to us, "Fellas, that's show business."It was another one of those curves Dad [Al Sherman, their father] warned us about.Bedknobs and Broomsticks might have become a tribute to the courage of the English people, a statement about human values, a story oflove. But without Walt, the picture became a gimmicky special effects display and what remained of our original songs — with the exception of "The Age of Not Believing" — were the trivial, fun numbers. Although it made money, the film was not the great hit it might have been. In its heavily edited version, Bedknobs lacked a message, a reason for being, a heart.Despite all our disappointments in the version that was released to the theaters, Bedknobs and Broomsticks received a special honor: it was the only Disney feature, live-action or animated, to win an Oscar between Mary Poppins in 1964 and The Color of Money in 1987. The well-deserved award went to Alan Maley, Eustace Lycett and Danny Lee for their wonderful special effects. We received our fourth and fifth Oscar nominations — a Best Song nomination for "The Age of Not Believing," as well as a nomination with Irwin Kostal for Best Adaptation and Original Song Score. The 1971 Best Song award went to "Theme from Shaft" by Isaac Hayes — and we realized these were different times indeed.But now, the story of Bedknobs and Broomsticks has a happy new chapter. Thanks to Disney's film restoration expert Scott MacQueen and his dedicated staff, almost all of the deleted footage has been restored in a special 25th Anniversary version of the film, which was released on laserdisc in 1997 and began showing on The Disney Channel in August 1998.

What I wouldn't give to get my hands on a shooting script. That Radio City stage show better have been really good, even though less than 1% of everyone who ever saw this film saw that show.

As for "The Committee," (isn't this the same thing Pixar is doing now with its Brain Trust?), they said earlier:

During our years with Walt, we were all cogs in the wheel of his organization. But we never resented it because the love we felt for the man was so vast. It was a very personal, magical thing.After Walt, we no longer had any control over or influence on our work at the Studio. He had been our champion, and it just wasn't the same. The phone in our office stopped ringing — hardly any new assignments came our way. We wanted to keep busy, but this inactivity was painfully frustrating.In his absence, the Disney Studio's major creative decisions were all being made by "The Committee," a management group comprised of seven executives and producers.It was a different way of running the studio, and based on our experiences with The Committee, not a good one.Ironically, it was Walt himself who often said "a studio cannot be run by a committee. Somebody has to make the final decision."After much heartfelt thought, we made our own final decision: it was time for us to leave the security and comfort of the Studio and once again head out on our own.

This reminds me of when "Darling Lili" was released on DVD in the States as the shorter 'Director's Cut', but the longer original cut was released in the UK and Australia.

That and Wild Rovers are why S.O.B. happened.

 

[classicmovieguy]

I agree Matthew. The shorter version robs the characters of their depth. I love the extended conversation between the children and Eglantine during their first meal together, where Carrie reveals that their guardian had been killed in a bomb-strike. The film truly is a better experience, dramatically and musically, in the extended version.

 

[Brandon Conway]

Obviously, every movie requires a unique approach, but they do seem to be making arbitrary decisions on some of these releases. Three different cuts for Muppets Most Wanted? Yet they couldn't be bothered to offer the option of watching Muppet Christmas Carol with that one extra scene?

New release title vs. catalog title. They are just not looked at the same in most home video companies.

 

[SFMike]

I always found it odd and disappointing the the song "The Fundamental Element" was cut from the film as it totally explained what was missing in Eglantine's character and magic. When I heard this song on the restored album it boggled my mind this wasn't in the picture as it explained so much of what was going and suddenly a lot of the plot made more sense. Well, thats Hollywood and the bad part is that it's a lot worse now.

 

[MatthewA]

Here's a list of companies I won't be supporting for awhile.

I always found it odd and disappointing the the song "The Fundamental Element" was cut from the film as it totally explained what was missing in Eglantine's character and magic. When I heard this song on the restored album it boggled my mind this wasn't in the picture as it explained so much of what was going and suddenly a lot of the plot made more sense. Well, thats Hollywood and the bad part is that it's a lot worse now.

That was cut long before production began. I would love to see Disney Theatricals do a stage version of Bedknobs, and that song would be perfect for it.

 

[classicmovieguy]

My grandmother often remarked to me, whenever we watched "Bedknobs" (and we watched it a lot), that it would make for an ideal stage production. Especially now that Disney has mastered all their technical wizardry for stage productions like "The Lion King" and "Beauty and the Beast".

 

[MatthewA]

My grandmother often remarked to me, whenever we watched "Bedknobs" (and we watched it a lot), that it would make for an ideal stage production. Especially now that Disney has mastered all their technical wizardry for stage productions like "The Lion King" and "Beauty and the Beast".

It would be nice if they do it while Richard M. Sherman is still around to be a part of it. He and his late brother were legally screwed out of the stage version of their biggest commercial hit, and this would be the perfect way to make up for it.

 

[darkrock17]

I'd love to see Bedknobs on Broadway, it would easily walk of with a couple Tonys.

 

[MatthewA]

Hopefully, it would do better than Newsies, which just posted a closing notice.

But as for the film itself, what the studio subjected it to——and apparently is okay with today with their across-the-board Original Theatrical Cuts Only policy, regardless of how that cut was achieved——was nothing less than artistic vandalism. It didn't even stop for years after the film came out! I bet if Disney had made Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, they'd have made cuts there, too. And even after the Sherman Brothers left Disney, some of their films still got subjected to cuts. The Slipper in the Rose barely got seen at all in this country, and it, too, was first seen in a heavily cut version, but what a comforting thing to know that its Blu-ray shows it in all its uncut glory.

Here's an article from Disney Magazine about the de-committeefication of the film (note there is no mention of how you could see it, as the laserdisc was the only way to do so until The Disney Channel, around the time its Zoogification began, showed it):

 

[darkrock17]

I have the taped 25th Anniversary special that aired on The Disney Channel's Vault Disney late night block in the summer of 1997, I think. That special has the full making of documentary, that the DVD's only had half of, as well as behind the scenes triva during the commerical brakes.