'The Fox and the Hound 1+2''
(Animation / 2-Disc DVD / NR / 2011 / Disney)
Overview: In celebration of The Fox and the Hound's 30th anniversary, Disney proudly presents a special 2-movie collection of The Fox and the Hound and The Fox and the Hound II! Experience these timeless tales of true friendship, set against a backdrop of comedy and music in perfect harmony.
DVD Verdict: In truth, I don't even remember ever seeing the sequel 'The Fox and the Hound II' so this DVD combo was especially fun to watch. I got to relieve part of my childhood and watch the beloved characters in a sequel. And, being that I was chosen to review it, this time I shared it with my boys!
My youngest son loves dogs and he really got a kick out of watching these movies. While the quality has definitely improved, on both the Blu-ray and DVD versions, it is still a 30-year old movie and the quality is somewhat older looking. I appreciate that though and feel it adds the classic Disney movie touch to it.
'The Fox and Hound' is a great family movie to watch too because of the great lesson it teaches. The movie shows how even though the characters are different that they can still be friends. With my sons both starting preschool next week I want them to start off fresh being friends with everyone and not singling anyone out. The movie also has great songs and the voices of the animals are from some popular stars (Mickey Rooney, Corey Feldman, Kurt Russell, Patrick Swayze, Reba McEntire and more!)
OK, for the record this is NOT a sequel to the 'Fox and the Hound,' rather this is a story that takes place somewhere in the middle of that movie. Tod and Copper stumble upon a country fair in their quaint country town and through a matter of circumstance, Copper ends up being a "star" of the Singin Strays singing dog group.
This leads to turmoil within the band, as one of their own talented divas gets ousted in favor of the newcomer, as well as Tod becomes depressed as he gets pushed to the background as Copper rises to stardom (at the fair though, of course).
This keeps enough conflict to make the movie an exciting journey, told through rich characters, beautiful bright animation, a cornucopia of great country music performed by professional stars from the heartland, memorable voice acting and a decent story to tie it all together.
It's great to see Copper and Tod back together again in their "puppy/cubhood" - something that was perhaps not fleshed out enough in the first film. Yet the real stars of the show are Cash (voiced by Patrick Swayze) and the diva dog Dixie voiced by Reba McEntire. These two have spunk and fire and its great seeing them banter back and forth in their personal and professional relationships (which naturally intertwine). These are both Widescreen Presentations (1.77:1) enhanced for 16x9 TVs and comes with the Special Features of:
The Fox and the Hound 30th Anniversary
Bonus: Passing the Baton: Making of
Bonus: Best of Friends Sing-along
The Fox and the Hound II
Bonus: Making of the Music
Bonus: You Know I Will music video
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