Dr. Syn: The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (Walt Disney Treasures)
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DVD details
Actor: Alan Dobie, Eric Flynn, George Cole, Kay Cole, Patrick McGoohanCinematographer: Paul Beeson
Composer: Gerard Schurmann
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, Limited Edition, NTSC, Restored
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 287 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2008-11-11
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Walt Disney Video
DVD Reviews of Dr. Syn: The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (Walt Disney Treasures)
DVD Review: Dr. Syn: The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this item last November when it came out for $24.99. You are now trying to sale the same DVD for over $100. This is ridiculous. I would like to have another copy for my sister but not until you bring the price back down where is belongs. Shame on you. DVD Review: scarecrow
Summary: 5 Stars
for years i heard my husband talk about this series which i dont remember watching. great surprise for him.DVD Review: Disney does this right. Long live the Scarecrow!
Summary: 5 Stars
It's been a long wait. The picture and sound are great. Thoroughly enjoyed this. Yes, I am one of those who sat with my family and watched this on the Wonderful World of Disney. What a thrill it was back then and even today. Love the theme song. I've read the books by Russell Thorndike about Dr. Syn. I would love to see what they could do today with this character. Now if Disney would release Song of the South and stop sweatin over it. I mean Gone with the Wind is out there?? Anyway, Thanks to the people at Disney for doing a great job and releasing the Scarecrow to roam free again!!DVD Review: Horrible DVD release
Summary: 1 Stars
I am so furious that I was never notified by e-mail that this was released on DVD. Its amazing that there are billions of people in the world and some genius decided to produce only 35,000 copies of this show on DVD. I hope all you greedy jerks that scalped ten of these at a time get stuck with every single copy you bought. It's unfortunate that disney released such a low ammount on dvd and that there are pricks out there that take advantage of these situations. It's to bad you can't give negative stars in the feedback because I would give this product a -5. I don't care how amazing the show is and looks on DVD, the limited release is what puts this product in the negatives for me. Even if I had obtained a copy of this I would still have rated it this way.DVD Review: Five Plus Stars for Content, 0 Stars for Disney's Marketing
Summary: 3 Stars
I remember seeing this as a kid, but did not realize it was coming out on DVD until after it had already sold out, necessitating a purchase from a re-seller. The content of the discs is brilliant - the restoration is excellent, the wide-screen picture is awesome, the sound is incredible (note - if you want the 5.1 surround sound you have to select it from the set-up menu - default sound is mono) and the extra features are interesting. The acting is terrific - Patrick McGoohan is excellent, as is the supporting cast (I especially liked the actors playing the sexton, Mipps, and the villian, General Pugh). I also like the fact it includes all the opening and closing credits from "The Wonderful World of Color" and Walt's introductions to the individual episodes (oddly, though, Walt says Dr. Syn/the Scarecrow was a real person, where he is clearly a fictional character). I don't think I saw it when it first came out in February of '64, as I was only 4 1/2 at the time, and don't think my parents would have let me watch it then, as even though it's Disney, they would have thought it too violent and scary for a very small child, so I must have seen a re-run a few years later. I didn't remember many details apart from what the Scarecrow looked like and the song ("Scarecrow, Scarecrow, the soldiers of the King feared his name . . ."). Even as an adult the story was absorbing - I liked the full, three part three hour version better than the shortened film. It inspired me to buy the Russell Thorndike (also spelled "Thorndyke") "Dr. Syn" series on my Kindle (6 of the 7 original books). The Dr. Syn Series They are old-fashioned "ripping yarns," although much different from the Disney version (warning - they are most certainly NOT politically correct). The Hammer Films version with Peter Cushing ("Captain Clegg" - "Night Creatures" in the U.S.) Hammer Horror Series (Brides of Dracula / Curse of the Werewolf / Phantom of the Opera (1962) / Paranoiac / Kiss of the Vampire / Nightmare / Night Creatures / Evil of Frankenstein) is fairly closely based on the first book (the first book written, but the last in the series, chronologically, as Dr. Syn is killed off at the end - the later books are "flashbacks" to Dr. Syn's earlier life & adventures), "Dr. Syn - a Smuggler's Tale of Romney Marsh" (although they called the main character "Dr. Bliss" due to legal difficulties with Disney, as the 2 films were made around the same time). The Disney film is based upon a later book by Thorndike and Buchanan called "Christopher Syn," which came out in 1960, is out of print and only available at very high prices indeed. (Shout out to Amazon - please get this one on Kindle, too, as well as the book missing from the Kindle set, "The Courageous Exploits of Dr. Syn.") The only negative is Disney releasing it as a "limited edition," which is good for the re-selling profiteers, but not very good for someone like me, who liked the program but does not follow things Disney very closely, and had no idea it was being released until after it was already gone.
Description of Dr. Syn: The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh (Walt Disney Treasures)
Originally airing in three parts on "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color," this thrilling adventure stars Patrick McGoohan as Dr. Syn, a kindly country vicar in 18th-century England. Only a few know that Syn is also the masked Scarecrow, notorious leader of a band of smugglers, who defends the villagers from unjust taxes and oppression by King George III's men. George Cole, Michael Hordern, Sean Scully also star. Includes all three episodes, along with the British theatrical version; 129 min./98 min. AKA: "Dr. Syn, Alias the Scarecrow," "The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh." Soundtracks: English Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital mono."On the southern coast of England/There's a legend people tell/Of days long ago when the great Scarecrow/Would ride from the jaws of hell/And laugh with a fiendish yell." Okay, it may not be as catchy as "The Ballad of Davy Crockett," but anyone who was glued to their TV sets in 1964 to watch the continuing adventures and heroic exploits of Dr. Syn on the Disney anthology series, The Wonderful World of Color, should feel a shiver of excitement that goes beyond mere nostalgia at hearing this theme song again. Old-fashioned to be sure, but The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh is still a ripping yarn and rousing family entertainment with its unforgettable hero, despicable villain, galloping chases and breathless escapes. Grandly produced in England, this three-part miniseries is "a story of high adventure and heart," as Walt Disney states in his folksy and avuncular episode introductions. Patrick McGoohan (known at the time for his iconic role as John Drake on Danger Man) stars as Dr. Syn, who leads a double life as a mild-mannered village vicar by day, and a fearsome avenger known as the Scarecrow by night. The haunting burlap-masked Scarecrow is a folk hero to the villagers, who are overtaxed by King George III, and brutalized by his press-gangs, who violently shanghai men into Navy service. Only two know the Scarecrow's true identity, his sexton Mipps (George Cole), and the local Justice of the Peace's son, John (Sean Scully, from Disney's The Prince and the Pauper). There is a love story between John's older sister and conflicted and compassionate English soldier Lt. Brackenbury (Eric Flynn), but it doesn't slow things down or get too yucky. Over the course of three near-hour-long episodes, the Scarecrow foils attempts by his nemesis, General Pugh (Geoffrey Keen) to capture him, or intimidate villagers into giving him up. Leonard Maltin does his usual sterling job as enthusiastic host, who introduces the series, reflects on its place in the Disney canon, and credits the restoration efforts that made this pristine presentation possible. This two-disc set presents the miniseries as it originally aired, and also includes the widescreen feature film version that was released overseas. Disc one contains an interesting featurette about Dr. Syn's historical and literary origins. Disc two features a segment about the British films that launched Disney's live-action feature film career. This welcome addition to the Walt Disney Treasures line does full justice to one of Disney's most wanted titles. --Donald Liebenson
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