Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: slated for release 23rd November (1 Viewer)

[Jools_S]

And it's already available for preorder at my local WHSmiths in the UK.

We may get ours earlier over here.

 

[Ryan Wong]

No details?

 

[Jools_S]

No details yet.

I suspect that it will be like the previous two releases.

 

[Matt Czyz]

Good thing it's handled by Warners. They really know how to do transfers right. (with the notable exception of the first HP movie...that really needs to be re-done without the Softness cranked up to 11)

 

[Matt Naglieri]

I just noticed that dvdanswers has put up the artwork and it appears to be packaged in a 2-disc keepcase. It's nice that warner stopped using the snapper case but they should have stuck with the same packaging as the first two. With this inconsistant packaging they will not look right sitting together on a shelf.

Hopefully they could at least make a slipcase for it.

 

[Zachary Cohen]

Matt: I believe all of Warner's 2-disc digipack editions have been shown as being in keep-cases in press images, but they all later turned up in digipacks. Warner seems to be inconsistent about press images and the actual packaging. I recall seeing many Warner press images shown in keep-cases but later they turned up in snappers.

 

[Patrick Soucy]

The press release picture of the DVD is ugly...

The best poster was this one:



I really hope they will change it.

 

[KyleG]

This movie, hands down, was the best Potter movie yet, and one of the better releases this year. I'd say it's still #2 on my list. I'd really like it if they'd release a kid-friendly version and then a movie-fan version...because the other Potter DVDs are awful. A Cuaron commentary would be just delightful...but I know it won't happen. Oh well...

 

[Herb Kane]

Folks, here is the WB press release:
------------------------------------



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE ATTACHED

"AZKABAN stands alone as a creative triumph." – Richard Roeper, EBERT & ROEPER

HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN

CASTS A SPELL ON DVD & VHS

NOVEMBER 23 FROM WARNER HOME VIDEO


THE $703.1 MILLION WORLDWIDE ($242* MILLION DOMESTIC)

BOX OFFICE SMASH, FROM DIRECTOR ALFONSO CUARÓN, FEATURES THE ENCHANTING HARRY POTTER CAST OF DANIEL RADCLIFFE, EMMA WATSON AND RUPERT GRINT


AVAILABLE ON A 2-DISC DVD LOADED WITH MESMERMIZING SPECIAL FEATURES SUCH AS DELETED SCENES, 360° INTERACTIVE TOURS, CHALLENGES AND MORE!


HARRY POTTER MAKES ITS FIRST HOLIDAY SEASON APPEARANCE ON DVD!


Burbank, CA, July 28, 2004 – The third time is a charm with the holiday release of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban on DVD and VHS on November 23 from Warner Home Video. The most recent installment of the Harry Potter series from director Alfonso Cuarón (Y tu mamá También) and screenwriter Steve Kloves, based on J.K. Rowling’s award-winning novels, takes audiences on another adventure with more mystery and magic than ever before. The $242* million dollar box office smash features the returning Harry Potter cast of Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Emma Watson as Hermione Granger, and Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, joined by Hogwarts professors including Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus Hagrid), Alan Rickman (Professor Severus Snape), Maggie Smith (Professor Minerva McGonagall), Michael Gambon (Albus Dumbledore), David Thewlis (Professor Lupin) and Gary Oldman as Sirius Black.


Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban will be available at $29.95 SRP in a two-disc DVD in both widescreen and full frame formats and VHS will be priced at $22.99 SRP.


Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban enchanted critics across the nation, garnering high praise for Alfonso Cuarón’s innovative direction and for capturing the world that is Harry Potter. The Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan) stated "Azkaban captur[es] the enormously pleasing essence of the Potter books" and Entertainment Weekly called the film "genuinely fun."

USA Today (Claudia Puig) praised Alfonso Cuarón as "a dazzling storyteller with a keen eye for whimsical detail" and thought "the film [was] a visual delight."

"Fans can expect great things from the home video release of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban," said Jim Wuthrich, Vice-President, Marketing for Warner Home Video. "The two-disc DVD will provide viewers with a full, interactive Harry Potter experience and add a new dimension to the film. It offers never-before-seen footage and interactive material that allows audiences to really participate in the magic of Harry Potter. Children of all ages will have fun exploring what the DVD has to offer."

"Harry Potter has been a phenomenon, now it’s becoming a classic." –

Paul Clinton, CNN
DVD ELEMENTS


Jump aboard the Hogwarts Express and join Harry Potter in his third year of magic and mystery. From never-before-seen footage, classroom tours and challenges, audiences will become well acquainted with secrets of the wizard world.

The two-disc edition DVD will include these spellbinding special features:

A selection of mystifying exclusive never-before-seen footage.
Creating the Vision – a revealing interview with J.K. Rowling and the filmmakers.
Three great interactive challenges! Test your memory with "Magic You May Have Missed", help Crookshanks "Catch Scabbers", and go on an unexpected quest with Sir Cadogan.
Self-guided iPIX tours into Honeydukes and Professor Lupin’s Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.
Raucous interviews with the cast lead by Johnny Vaughan and the Shrunken Head.
Meet the animal trainers from the movie in Care of Magical Creatures.
Choir Practice – sing-along with the Hogwarts choir.
Hogwarts Portrait Gallery - get a closer look at the various portraits lining the walls of Hogwarts castle.
Conjuring a Scene – an in-depth look at the making of key scenes from the film.
Theatrical trailers of all three Harry Potter films.
Electronic Arts game preview.
DVD-ROM PC capable features include:

Wizard Trading Cards.
Hogwarts Timeline.
SYNOPSIS

"An entrancing experience for POTTER fans."


Jami Bernard, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS


In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry, Ron and Hermione, now teenagers, return for their third year at Hogwarts, where they are forced to face escaped prisoner, Sirius Black, who poses a great threat to Harry. Harry and his friends spend their third year learning how to handle a half-horse half-eagle Hippogriff, repel shape-shifting Boggarts and master the art of Divination. They also visit the wizarding village of Hogsmeade and the Shrieking Shack, which is considered the most haunted building in Britain. In addition to these new experiences, Harry must overcome the threats of the soul-sucking Dementors, outsmart a dangerous werewolf and finally deal with the truth about Sirius Black and his relationship to Harry and his parents. With his best friends, Harry masters advanced magic, crosses the barriers of time and changes the course of more than one life. Directed by Alfonso Cuarón and based on J.K. Rowling 's third book, this wondrous spellbinder soars with laughs, and the kind of breathless surprise only found in a Harry Potter adventure.


BASICS


DVD: $29.95

VHS: $22.95

Street Date: November 23, 2004

Languages: English, Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Running time: 142 mins

Rating: PG (frightening moments, creature violence and mild language)

DLBY/SURR DLBY/DGTL [CC]

 

[Nick Sievers]

Count me in for this release. I liked the first two Potter films but loved this one. Does anyone have a picture of the coverart?

 

[Matt Czyz]

With the (possible) exception of the JK Rowling interview (not expecting anything too earth-shattering from that), is there one single extra that would interest anyone over the age of 12? Those extras suck, I'm sorry.

 

[KyleG]

Matt, couldn't agree more...this pisses me off...for such a work of art (yes, I think "Prisoner" was art...say what you want, but Cuaron crafted a beauty of a movie), this sure is geared towards the kiddies. That's fine...but couldn't they at least throw a bone to those of us out of elementary school? I guess we're not the target audience though. Gotta appeal to the crowd that's bringing in the money.

 

[Patrick Soucy]

Yep the extra sucks...

Where are the Behind-the-scenes footages? I'm lazy of these little un-funny games... Or I'm too old for loving these books/movies...

 

[Matt Butler]

Im looking forward to the deleted scenes but thats all.

 

[James_Kiang]

I'm not excited about the extra's, though I am curious to see the deleted scenes - word was there were none. As for the childish nature of them, it seems like this has been a complaint since the first movie was released. I'd guess that's pretty much what to expect on future releases as well.

 

[Stephen_J_H]

Best HP movie yet. Will be picking this up, regardless of features. The features for the other 2 sucked; why should this one be any different?

 

[John Alderson]

Warner doesn't care about packaging a series consistently. Look at Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions... theatrically released in the same YEAR, and the spines don't even match. I won't even mention not matching the original's package at all. Oops.

So don't expect HP3 to match 1 & 2 (which don't match each other exactly, anyway... the spines don't really match). Is it that hard to pick a design template and stick to it? Sorry, 'tis a pet peeve of mine because it would be SO EASY to get right.

 

[Dwayne]

The latest entry in the Potter-film series is absolutely brilliant, and based on my girlfriend's impressions from reading the books, it represents a more accurate depiction of the material then the other two films, both of which I have enjoyed as well.

 

[Haden]

What a waste of a "special" edition. I hope WB eventually re-releases these films as proper SEs with significant extras like director/cast commentary, behind the scenes documentaries, etc.

 

[Ernest Rister]

I think the movie is no worse nor no better than the previous two. They're all about even in my mind, all have debits and credits. The long patient scenes with Lupin and the "Rescuers Down Under" HippoGriff flight make up for some rushed elements in other aspects of the film...I still can't believe the significance of the names in the marauder's map was left unexplored, especially since a certain stag seen in the film is pointless without the proper explanation. Don't even get me started on the film's failure to even explain the horrors of a certain prison that features into the movie's title. Best HP movie ever? The book may have the best story and the best characters, but the movie is by no means worlds above the previous two. They're all about even. But maybe that's as it should be. We will always have the books, won't we?