Beatrix Potter-The World of Peter Rabbit and Friends-Volume 2 (1993) |
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General | Extras | ||
Category | Childrens | Main Menu Audio | |
Rating | |||
Year Of Production | 1993 | ||
Running Time | 103:26 (Case: 100) | ||
RSDL / Flipper | No/No | Cast & Crew | |
Start Up | Ads Then Menu | ||
Region Coding | 1,2,3,4,5,6 | Directed By |
Geoff Dunbar Dianne Jackson Roger Mainwood Jack Stokes |
Studio
Distributor |
Roadshow Home Entertainment |
Starring | Niamh Cusack |
Case | Amaray-Transparent-Secure Clip | ||
RPI | $19.95 | Music |
Colin Towns Martin Wiseman |
Video | Audio | ||
Pan & Scan/Full Frame | None | English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) | |
Widescreen Aspect Ratio | 1.29:1 | ||
16x9 Enhancement | No | ||
Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
Original Aspect Ratio | 1.29:1 | Miscellaneous | |
Jacket Pictures | No | ||
Subtitles | None | Smoking | Yes |
Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
Action In or After Credits | Yes |
Beatrix Potter wrote what are probably the most loved children's stories of all time, certainly in the western world. She was born in London in 1866 and her first book was published in 1902. Just about everyone had the books as children and as you watch this DVD memories come flooding back. This DVD contains the final four episodes of what was a 9 episode series made in 1992 for English television, featuring Niamh Cusack as Beatrix Potter. I previously reviewed the first disc containing five episodes. You can find that review here. Niamh Cusack is probably best known as Dr Kate Rowan in Heartbeat, another English television series.
The format of each episode is a live action introduction featuring Beatrix Potter writing a letter to a child she knows, including an illustrated story, followed by an approximately 20 minute animated version of the story and concluding with a live action epilogue. The live action portions are actually filmed at the farm which Beatrix Potter owned and lived in for many years, Hill Top Farm. The live action segments are different on this disc than those on the first disc. The animation is very consistent with the look of the books and is well done. It is great to see that the original stories and pictures have been maintained rather than trying to modernise them or make them more politically correct. Some episodes contain only one Beatrix Potter story whereas others include two different stories, combined together.
The episodes included here are:
This is a lovely series, very well presented and kept faithful to the original stories.
The video quality is good but not perfect, reflecting its heritage as early 1990s television.
The feature is presented in a 1.29:1 aspect ratio non 16x9 enhanced which is the original aspect ratio.
The picture was generally clear and sharp throughout, with no evidence of low level noise, although there was some light grain, especially in the live action sequences. Shadow detail in the live sequences is quite good.
The colour was very good throughout with no issues to report.
Artefacts were fairly minimal and included some white specks in the live action sequences and some black & white specks and lines in the animation. These were occasional only and not distracting.
There are no subtitles and there is no layer change.
Sharpness | |
Shadow Detail | |
Colour | |
Grain/Pixelization | |
Film-To-Video Artefacts | |
Film Artefacts | |
Overall |
The audio quality is very good.
This DVD contains one audio option, an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s.
Dialogue was clear and easy to understand.
The music by Colin Towns is good and suitable to the whimsical nature of the stories.
The surround speakers add atmosphere such as bird noises when played with Dolby Pro Logic II.
The subwoofer is not used.
Dialogue | |
Audio Sync | |
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts | |
Surround Channel Use | |
Subwoofer | |
Overall |
The menu is simple and includes the ability to select episodes or Play All.
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
This series is available in Region 2 in quite a different format. The nine episodes are split over three DVDs and are available either separately or in a box set. I think the Region 4 releases represent better value.
The video quality is good.
The audio quality is very good.
The disc has no extras.
Video | |
Audio | |
Extras | |
Plot | |
Overall |
Review Equipment | |
DVD | Pioneer DV667A DVD-V DVD-A SACD, using Component output |
Display | Sony FD Trinitron Wega KV-AR34M36 80cm. Calibrated with Digital Video Essentials (PAL). This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 576i (PAL)/480i (NTSC). |
Audio Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials. |
Amplification | Pioneer VSX-511 |
Speakers | Bose 201 Direct Reflecting (Front), Phillips SB680V (Surround), Phillips MX731 (Center), Yamaha YST SW90 (Sub) |