Blu-ray Review: Bolt

By Samantha Clark -- Video Business, 3/23/2009

DISNEY
Street: BD March 22, DVD March 24
Prebook: now
> Bolt matches adventure with stunning visuals on Blu-ray.

Animation is perhaps the best-looking type of movie on Blu-ray, as its picture is shown as it was created, and Bolt is no exception. Every hair on the courageous Bolt stands out, and the scenes from across America are stunning. Bolt’s super bark explodes out of the speakers. Following the releases of its Pixar movies, Disney has packed the Bolt Blu-ray with extras, including a fun short film starring the movie’s Rhino hamster. Featurettes also explore the making of the film from the animation to John Travolta and Miley Cyrus voicing the two stars. It’s a shame the deleted scenes are just animated storyboards and not fully rendered animation.

Shelf Talk: Disney is using this release to encourage families to invest in Blu-ray whether they have a player or not. The three-disc Blu-ray package includes a downloadable digital copy and a standard DVD that can be played if the owners don’t already own a high-def player. The title also is being released two days earlier than the single DVD ($29.99) and two-DVD ($32.99) versions, to entice fans to go Blu. Consumer spending cutbacks could thwart those efforts, however, unless retail discounts the Blu-ray version heavily.

Family, color, PG (mild action), 96 min., BD $39.99, reviewed on a PlayStation 3 with 118-inch Carada screen, Sony VW60 projector and HDMI connection
Extras: film short, deleted scenes, featurettes, game, digital copy, BD Live
Directors: Byron Howard, Chris Williams
First Run: W, Nov. 2008, $114 mil.