The post-holiday DVD scene can be hit or miss—do you want those must-have titles to come out in time to stuff stockings, or to pop up on shelves to tempt the gift card carrying and slightly exhausted January crowds? One tail-wagging offering should be topping everyone’s list this week: Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie [Disney, $29.99], out today.
Filmed in classic black and white, the stereoscopic 3-D, stop-motion animated frightfest centers on young aspiring scientist Victor Frankenstein (Charlie Tahan) who is inspired by a class demonstration on electricity to reanimate his beloved dog Sparky after he is tragically hit by a car … with harrowing results! Voice cast also features Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, Martin Landau, Winona Ryder, Atticus Shaffer, Robert Capron, Conchata Ferrell, James Hiroyuki Liao, Tom Kenny and Frank Welker as Sparky. The DVD comes with a featurette inspired by the Art Of shows, “Frankenweenie Touring Exhibit”; plus the “Pet Sematary” music video by Plain White Ts. With both the two-disc Blu-ray/DVD set ($39.99) and four-disc Blu-ray 3D combo pack ($49.99) you get additional goodies “Miniatures in Motion: Bringing Frankenweenie to Life,” which goes behind the scenes at the London set to show the artists at work; Burton’s original Frankenweenie short and the brand-new animated short Captain Sparky vs. The Flying Saucers. The film is also available for download and On Demand. [January 8]
Also out today:
Star Wars – The Clone Wars: Return of Darth Maul [Warner, $14.98] The final four eps. of season 4 of Cartoon Network’s hit CG series presented as an 88-minute movie and featuring the return of the black and red baddy.
Tiny Toon Adventures: Crazy Crew Rescues! [Warner, $19.98] Steven Spielberg’s beloved junior Looney Tunes crew returns to shelves in a 17 episode, two-disc collection.
Dinotopia & Journey to the Center of the Earth Fantasy Double Feature [Mill Creek Ent., $9.98] Double pack boasts over 7 hours of adventure fare with Emmy-winning Dinotopia’s adventure through a lost continent and Journey’s harrowing quest into a mysterious underground realm.
Monsuno: Destiny [Shout! Factory, $14.97] Join Chase Suno on his courageous 2D animated adventures to discover the secrets of the Monsuno. Five episode set.
Pajanimals Play Date [NCircle Ent., $9.99] Join Jim Henson’s fuzzy friends for songs, games and pre-k friendly adventures. Five episodes.
Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! Eater Two-Pack [Anchor Bay Ent., $14.98] Two full length seasonal features starring Nick Jr.’s beloved character: Wubbzy’s Egg-Cellent Easter and Wubbzy Goes Green.
