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Product Description

Disney's 1959 animated effort was the studio's most ambitious to date, a widescreen spectacle boasting a gorgeous waltz-filled score adapting Tchaikovsky. In the 14th century, the malevolent Maleficent (not dissimilar to the wicked Queen in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs taunts a king that his infant Aurora will fatally prick her finger on a spinning wheel before sundown on her 16th birthday. This, of course, would deny her a happily-ever-after with her true love. Things almost but not quite turn out that way, thanks to the assistance of some bubbly, bumbling fairies named Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather. It's not really all that much about the title character--how interesting can someone in the middle of a long nap be, anyway? Instead, those fairies carry the day, as well as, of course, good Prince Phillip, whose battle with the malevolent Maleficent in the guise of a dragon has been co-opted by any number of animated films since. See it in its original glory here. And Malificent's castle, filled with warthogs and demonic imps in a macabre dance celebrating their evil ways, manages a certain creepy grandeur. --David Kronke

On the DVD
Sleeping Beauty was the last and most lavish of Walt Disney's animated fairy tales. He told the artists not to hurry and to give him "a moving illustration": The film required almost four and one-half years and one million finished drawings. Instead of the 19th century storybook illustrations that had influenced the look of Snow White and Pinocchio, the artists adapted the flattened perspective and jewel-like colors of 15th century French illuminated manuscripts. The results remain unmatched for sheer visual opulence. However, Sleeping Beauty suffers from a weak story: the vision of an ageless princess slumbering in a vine-shrouded tower was replaced with elements of Snow White and a boy-meets-girl musical. The evil Maleficent and the three Good Fairies (Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather) dominate the film, rather than Princess Aurora and Prince Philip. Sleeping Beauty was originally released in 70mm, and the Blu-ray edition restores the film to its original splendor. (Many earlier releases trimmed the wide-screen images and/or muted the glowing palatte.) The Bonus DVD looks good on a flat screen monitor, but it pales in comparison to the richness of the Blu-ray. In addition to the commentaries and a making-of documentary, the set includes myriad extras that vary widely in quality. Nostalgia buffs will enjoy the recreation of the old Sleeping Beauty's Castle attraction in Disneyland, and the TV program "Four Artists Paint One Tree" provides a welcome showcase for key talents from the film. But the CG animation of the dragon and the voice imitations of the Good Fairies fail to capture the magic of the originals in the "Dragon Encounter"; the "Maleficent's Challenge Game"--a hi-tech Twenty Questions--sounds only vaguely like the redoubtable sorceress. (Rated G: violence) --Charles Solomon




Stills from Sleeping Beauty (Click for larger image)

Customer Reviews:

• Sleeping Beauty
  There is nothing better than a classic Disney movie. Children of all ages will enjoy this movie...more info
• Sleeping Beauty
  It is a great cartoon and one of Disney's best classics. My daughter also loves it, and she is 2....more info
• The Ultimate Dance Movie
  One definitely has the feeling that the Disney producers of this 50th Anniversary DVD release were more than a little strapped for materiel to pad out the movie - which is as short as it is gorgeously visualized, and set to Tchaikovsky's lilting ballet music. It is the ultimate dance move; it seems as if every character, not just the two lovers are dancing, most of the time. The video itself looks quite lovely, clean and crisp, and I am sure the enhanced `surround sound" would have rattled the rafters, if I had the home theater sound system... er... and any rafters to rattle. Even at the length of barely over an hour, the movie enchanted the public almost as much as its creators --Walt Disney himself not the least. The castle in whose highest tower the lovely Aurora slept, waiting for true love's first kiss was being built for real even as "Sleeping Beauty" was in production, to eventually become the landmark and logo for Disney's real-world amusement park properties.
  
  
  One of the extra features is a walk through of an original feature of the castle, in which park visitors peeped through keyholes, windows and doors at various scenes. This feature is long-closed, but was re-created electronically, using some of the still-extant features, which seem to have been just left in the closed up storage spaces within the Castle. There is a very long feature about the "Making of" in which a shout-out is given to just about everyone (living and dead) who had anything to do with the creation of the feature. We half-expected inclusion of the janitors who swept up and emptied out the trash baskets, since this kind of animation must have meant tons of it. There is also the usual collection of discarded story-boarded but never animated scenes, an alternate opening... and the Disney short about Grand Canyon, set to Ferdy Grofe's music. Not sure what that was doing there, maybe for the classical music element.
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• Masterpiece deserves a master treatment
  The Blu-Ray remastering is simply breathtaking. I owned the remastered DVD and there's no comparison, especially on a big screen HDTV (with its full Cinemascope glory). The clarity and the details of the images look even better than I remember in the theater. The remastered soundtrack adds gorgeous 5.1 surround sounds and brings out the impressive score. The result would please Walt Disney himself -- it's as if the film was made in 2009! Truly a masterpiece for all ages. They don't make animation like this anymore....more info
• sleeping beauty
  The video arrived intact and in new condition.The price was very reasonable. I'm very satisfied....more info
• Timeless classic for all ages
  This DVDis wonderful for every age. A great movie to watch together as a family....more info
• Sleeping Beauty
  Bought this set for my 7 yr. old granddaughter for Easter. She loved it....more info
• Sleeping Beauty (Platinum Edition + Standard DVD and BD Live) Blu-Ray
  This is probably my favorite of the classic princess stories produced by Disney because Prince Philip is actually a character and doesn't just ride up at the end to sweep the girl off her feet. He has his own trials to get through before all ends happily ever after.
  
  This is a beautiful edition on blu-ray and the aspect ratio is a big part of that. It just looks more sweeping than prior editions. Color is spot-on throughout, and the audio is lovely. The fight with the dragon is gorgeous. I haven't had a chance to go through all the extras or the bd-live yet, but I hope to in the near future.
  
  I am also happy to have the standard DVD included so I can watch the movie on other DVD players or let relatives without blu-ray machines borrow it. I wish more blu-rays included this option instead of just digital copies.
  
  All in all, a beautiful addition to your blu-ray collection....more info
• Brought me right back to the first time I saw it in NYC!
  As wonderful and magical as it was the first time I saw it with my big sister, feeling very grown up and traveling to NYC to see this fantastic movie. ...more info
• Great Classic
  One of my favorite Disney classics, and my daughter's! So glad they re-released this movie!! ...more info
• kid at heart
  I'm old enough to remember this movie when it was first released. Loved it then, love it now. One of Disney's best....more info
• Sleeping Beauty
  gift to my grandchildren for Easter, have not heard anything from them about the movie yet, But I am sure they will like it as much, as their parents did...more info
• Sleeping Beauty
  One of the best and my favorite Disney movies.
  Great to watch over and over....more info
• a classic
  I love this movie~ Sleeping Beauty is a must-have for any disney collector and this is a great edition to have!...more info
• Sleeping Beauty
  It's Disney . . . what more is there to say. Product came to me in excellent condition....more info
• The best in Blu-Ray
  This is yet another reference Blu-ray title from Disney! I've come to expect nothing less than the best from them and they keep delivering. I have owned Sleeping Beauty, in VHS, Laserdisc, DVD Platinum and now Blu-ray format. It has never come close to looking or sounding as good as it does now. Disney Blu-rays are an automatic purchase for me! ...more info
• EXCELLENT
  iT IS A CLASIC MOVIE, THE PROBLEM IN HE OFFER, NOT SPANISH SUBTITLES, ONLY IN ENGLISH...more info
• A VAST IMPROVEMENT!
  This latest edition of "Sleeping Beauty" is MUCH better than the older one released several years ago. I did an A & B comparrison & the difference is very obvious. Bright beautiful colors & superb sound make this "Platinum Edition" well worth getting - Although the Disney organization keeps coming out with "improved" versions of releases that really aren't very old & it's becomimg suspect ($$$$$)!...more info
• The Perfect Christmas Gift For Any Prince or Princess
  Disney's classic fairy tale SLEEPING BEAUTY is timeless. It is as lovely today as it was in 1959. Full of warmth, saturated colors, and an enduring story, SLEEPING BEUATY continues to enchant princesses of all ages.
  
  We purchased this DVD for my three year old as a Christmas gift, but could not resist a sneak peak at Grandma and PawPaw's house over Thanksgiving. The animation was stellar in 1959, and I must say, it certainly holds its own against any animation of today. The vibrancy, detail, and charm still capture the imagination, submerging the viewer the fairy tale world. The story itself is eternal: good triumphs over evil and love, true love, concurs all. The music is a perfect accompaniment to the tale, and "Once Upon A Dream" ranks up there as one of the all time best Disney songs.
  
  I very much enjoyed watching this with my two girls and the rest of my family. It was a beautiful way for the entire family to spend a small part of Thanksgiving week doing something memorable together. I was surprised about how much of this movie I did not remember from when I saw it 40 years ago, and I was surprised how much detail my 11 year old remembered from the first time she saw it. The three year old was simply enchanted by the entire movie; from the fairies to Princess Aurora. She was enraptured the magic and the majesty of the story.
  
  I highly recommend this dvd as a treat for the entire family. Little ones, teens, parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles will all have a wonderful time together. It will make your time together a little happier and a little brighter. And that is what memories are all about.
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• On the Blu-Ray Edition
  I rented the remastered standard edition dvd a while back and was not impressed while watching with my six year old daughter. In fact, I was probably catching up on something else when it was playing.
  
  After I popped in this blu-ray addition, wow! The colors and detail, especially the background images were amazing which made the overall movie more enjoyable. This is probably how people felt when it was released in the theaters. Every scene just made me want to grab a screen shot and make it my wallpaper on my computer or something.
  
  The sound was great in that the musical score didn't sound monotone and dated like these movies often due. While it supports 7.1, the surrounds weren't really engaged. My left surround seemed louder than the rest which made me think I needed to calibrate my receiver or it could have been the movie itself.
  
  The only flaws in the movie itself was the fact that the fairies didn't know how to make a cake or dress after taking care of Aurora for 16 years? Also the prince got way too much help from the fairies in my opinion. Will be using that as a lesson somehow for my daughter in the future. Don't count on no prince charming, etc.
  
  You got to get this disc, it's like watching it for the first time....more info
• Thanks
  It was a gift for my niece. She loved it. It was she wanted for Christmas....more info
• HD Jaw dropper
  First the bad...the front of the package says "LIMITED TIME ONLY" Includes bothe 2 disc blu-ray and 1 disc DVD. OK so I open the package and I see two blu-ray discs, but no DVD. Not a big deal as we are a home theater family, but it would have been nice to send the DVD to a neice or nephew.
  
  That being said I must insert another con....too many Previews and In Theaters now at the beginning of the movie. Almost ridiculous, thank goodness for the PS3 skip feature.
  
  Finally the movie....oh man the movie. I saw this as a child back in the mid 80's as a re-release in theaters, and thought it was pretty amazing then, but on a Home Theater 96 inch screen, with full surround sound (which is fantastic in DTS BTW) set at a humble 720P was almost geek heaven. The clarity was amazing, the colors were amazing, it was like getting a new book that was done by a master painter, and it was if you watch the movie with the commentary on. Absolutely worth it IMO!
  
  Well let's just say that any future release of any of the other classic Disney movies will be met with the sound of my credit card being swiped immediately! ...more info
• Better than I thought it would be
  I was actually impressed with this movie in Blu-Ray format. Extremely clear and colorful, it really is a masterpiece from the old Disney studios! Maybe better than the original??...more info
• Sleeping Beauty
  The defect with the Sleeping Beauty DVD is that the movie only shows in the middle 3rd of the TV. We have viewed 3 separate DVD's and the all do the same thing. Amazon sent us the 3rd movie free but it still has the same defect as the other 2 DVDs. If you have a Sleeping Beauty DVD that does not have this defect, we would like to receive a new DVD without the defect. Sandra Hurley...more info
• Sleeping Beauty
  This is one of my favorite Disney films from their classics. I had a great experience purchasing it from the third party seller and would purchase from them again....more info
• Disney knows how to do blu-ray
  This movie looked wonderful in blu-ray. The colors and contrast were amazing. Disney definitely knows how to restore their older classic films for a new generation to enjoy. Now, if they would just redo Little Mermaid, my wife and daughter would be thrilled....more info
• Blu-ray...stunning picture
  While the story and songs of Sleeping Beauty don't live up to Disney's best, the animation is wonderful. And in HD, simply stunning. I rented this movie just to take a look and ended up watching it twice, the second time with "Cinemagic", which uses PIP to display various stills and clips as well as the commentary track(which is quite interesting with Maltin and Lassiter and another Disney animator). Can't wait to see Pinocchio on Blu-ray....more info