Bolt (Single-Disc Edition)
by Chris Williams; Byron Howard
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: James Lipton, John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, Susie EssmanDirector: Chris Williams; Byron Howard
Brand: Walt Disney Animation Studios
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Animated, Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 96 minutes
Published: 2009-03-01
DVD Release Date: 2009-03-24
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: ABC Video
Product features:
- Let it begin! Get ready for the most totally awesome adventure ever as Bolt, the coolest action hero on Earth, and me, Rhino, his faithful partner and right-hand hamster, set off on a super secret mission! As one half of the Dynamic Duo, I'll let you in on the action. One day I'm watching Bolt on TV, and the next thing I know I'm working alongside my all-time favorite hero in stealth mode! We have
Movie Reviews of Bolt (Single-Disc Edition)
Movie Review: "Are you mad?! You don't know the power of styrofoam!"
Summary: 5 Stars
It's almost unfair for BOLT that it has to follow all these other animated kid classics from Pixar and Disney. Otherwise, I think this film garners even more props. As it is, the word on BOLT is strong and very positive. I personally think it ranks up there with the likes of A BUG'S LIFE, MONSTERS, INC., FINDING NEMO, THE INCREDIBLES, WALL-E and the TOY STORY flicks. BOLT is ideally suited for children, with its flawless visuals, relatable humor, and its sweet message. Yet it's sophisticated enough that the grown-ups will walk away also having had a great time.
The cute opening scene shows us how Penny comes to choose the tail-waggly, slobbery puppy Bolt at the Animal Rescue shelter. Cut to five years later, and Bolt has become a huge television star. His show features him as a super-powered canine caught up in secret agent shenanigans. It's a popular show, but the network wants to amp it up even more. Accordingly, the latest television escapade climaxes with Penny being kidnapped. This gets us to the meat of the plot.
Bolt makes his residence on the Hollywood movie lot; he has in fact never been out in the real world. And here's the thing. Bolt believes that all this secret agent stuff is real, believes that he has super powers and that Penny has been really kidnapped. Frantic to rescue his person, Bolt breaks out of his studio trailer and so plonks himself straight into real life.
From this point on, the movie follows a tried and true storyline, that of the devoted pet finding its way back home, this particular trek adhering to a New York to L.A. itinerary. The existential twist here, of course, is that Bolt is so very convinced that he has these extraordinary attributes; he thinks that he really is super-strong and has laser vision and a super-bark - and it takes most of the film to resolve this identity crisis. There's a lot of fun for the audience as the film at first lets Bolt down easy. Each time he tries to apply a super-power and it fails him, circumstances surface which offer him a credible explanation (the uber-explanation being the sinister presence of styrofoam packing peanuts, which Bolt comes to regard as his kryptonite). The story then also becomes about Bolt gradually relaxing and learning what it's like to be a real dog, so wrapped up was he before in his fake reality. Voiced terrifically by John Travolta (and I didn't even know it was Travolta 'til the end credits rolled around), Bolt is an instantly endearing lead. There's a streak of sentimentality which runs thru the film, but what really lends texture are Bolt's key supporting characters and those side characters, and specifically Bolt's initially adversarial relationship with Mittens, the street-savvy alley cat and Bolt's polar opposite in character traits. Bolt is all optimism and sort of brandishes this sense of entitlement, while Mittens is the cynical, world-weary vagabond surviving on her wits. When we first meet Mittens, she's shaking down pigeons for food scraps. I liked her right away. I guess it's only karma that Bolt and Mittens eventually end up muy sympatico.
Miley Cyrus is good (but underused) as Penny, but the awesome surprises are Susie Essman as Mittens and Mark Walton as Rhino, the enthusiastic chubby hamster sidekick rolling around in a bubble - and both are wicked scene stealers. Mittens is wonderfully snide, while Rhino is, well, the hamster's insane, almost disturbingly so (and yet I couldn't stop laughing at his lines and antics). I couldn't help snickering at one scene, in which Bolt and Rhino, having infiltrated an animal shelter to rescue Mittens, are peeking at a security guard - and Rhino offers to snap the guard's neck. Hah! And if you're looking for more hamstery fun, included in the single DVD is the 4-minute animated short "Super Rhino" which has Rhino gaining super powers. Also fun are that pair of "evil" cats and, omigosh, those New York pigeons (these are the side characters I mentioned).
It's a given that Bolt will reunite with Penny, Disney wasn't gonna mess with that formula. But, to echo that one maxim, the fun is in the journey. The meat of the story is during the road trip, rife as it is with surprises, laugh out loud humor, and some sweet, heartwarming moments. And, because BOLT also caters to adult sensibilities, sly references are dropped regarding Hollywood and its shady citizens (the most absolutely annoying of whom is Penny's agent).
One highlight (of many) is the exhilarating, exquisitely choreographed first eleven minutes which owe something to THE MATRIX and demonstrate Bolt's impressive "super powers" (including an impeccably delivered karate punch *snicker*). The time lapse stuff is very cool, and I even liked that one small touch of an explosion causing a distant soda papercup to slowly keel over. I saw the ending coming a mile away, but by that time the movie had already worked its magic on me, so I didn't even mind the clichéd feel of it. BOLT follows on the heels of exceptional animated children's films and, like those other films, it is slick yet full of heart, is sophisticated yet retains a sense of wonder, is amiably goofy but also witty. BOLT sparks the imagination, but also reduces you to one of those folks who sickeningly go "Gaga googoo" at precious babies or "Aww! Who's a good boy?" at cute puppies. And is that what happened to me during this film, you ask? Ruefully, I say, "Yes, dammit."
Summary of Bolt (Single-Disc Edition)
Bolt (voiced by John Travolta) is the star of the biggest show in Hollywood. The only problem is, he thinks the whole thing is real. When the super dog is accidentally shipped to New York City and separated from Penny (voiced by Miley Cyrus), his beloved co-star and owner, Bolt springs into action to find his way home. Together with his hilarious new sidekicks Rhino (voiced by Mark Walton) ? Bolt?s #1 Fan ? and a street-smart cat named Mittens (voiced by Susie Essman), Bolt sets off on an amazing journey where he discovers he doesn?t need super powers to be a hero.Similar DVD Movies
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