Thomas & Friends: High Speed Adventures
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DVD details
Artist: Thomas & FriendsBrand: Lions Gate
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: Animated, Closed-captioned, Color, Dubbed, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 46 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-03-31
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Lyons / Hit Ent.
Product features:
- Not for use with Thomas or BRIO Wooden Railway
- For use with your scale model railroad
DVD Reviews of Thomas & Friends: High Speed Adventures
DVD Review: Not so scary as the naysayers would have it
Summary: 5 Stars
Normally I *HATE* CGI but the Thomas animators have done a reasonably good job with the technique. Eyes aren't deadened (they move around and blink), faces don't look overly plastic, and nobody wobbles around like a car dash head bobber (as they do on the CGI-"enhanced" Bob the Builder). The animators have been wisely conservative in keeping the look & feel similar to the older episodes, and minimizing the flashy stuff. Even with the famously grey faces and wooden dialogue, I didn't find the new characterizations any creepier/more uncanny valley than the old ones. Which is creepier, an anthropomorphic engine that moves its mouth when it speaks, or one that keeps the same frozen expression while you're looking at it but MOVES as soon as you look away? (::shudder::) All in all, a good job.
On the other hand, I find the story-telling to be less well-executed. Most stories are trite, repetitive, and predictable (even for Thomas!). Realistic railway details are de-emphasized while engines & their personalities are overly emphasized. I could do with a bit more respect for the Rev. Audry's original vision, and stories that made more sense (are there no tarps on Sodor???? every load is left uncovered and ready for disaster!).
Incidentally, my son wasn't afraid of the moving faces -- in fact he LOVED them. Possibly because he's 3 years old, and developmentally normal? I feel for the parents whose kids didn't like the change, but it looks like they are in the minority. Given that there are more Thomas episodes than there are days in the year -- 25+ years' worth of material, most of it with old skool modeling -- I think the minority can cope. (Not to mention there are tons of Railway Series books to read, and YouTube for DIYers with Tomy models and video cameras!)
Fixing what isn't broken? Well, I'm not sure about that. Besides the points I already made, look at this from a business perspective. Having some insider knowledge of this industry, using actual models is far more expensive than CGI, and even for a franchise as obviously popular as Thomas, the model-making must have been a drain on resources. HIT Entertainment can now make more episodes more quickly for us insatiable Thomas fans, and employ more people to boot.
Description of Thomas & Friends: High Speed Adventures
Join Thomas & Friends? as they speed through the Island of Sodor in these six spectacular stories of fun and adventure. Capture the spirit of 'steamwork' as Thomas learns to share his workload, rescues the water works, and takes on the challenge of a high-speed race! So hop on board and strap on your conductor's hat for this thrilling collection of High Speed Adventures!Bestsellers in DVD
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