Just what I expected

Excellent but underrated film

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Ratings out of 10: Movie 8, Video 9, Audio 8, Extras 9This 1939 classic feature film cartoon is still widely reproduced and you can read plenty of reviews of the film online, so I will focus on the technical details of this 2014 Blu-ray release. I received this in the mail yesterday and have watched most of the content, but I probably do not have as discerning an eye as others, nor have I ever written professional Blu-ray reviews. As a final introductory note, the DVD and Blu-ray contents are virtually identical (other than the higher quality of the latter); I will note a couple of differences in the extra features. Steve Stanchfield, chief archivist on the project, has written a detailed review of the restoration and embedded (through his YouTube account) a 2-minute sample of 1080-quality video highlighting each title on this release. http://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/gulliver-comes-to-bluray/VIDEO: With a few minor exceptions, the visual quality of the feature and shorts on this disc are excellent. I am accustomed to Kino and Criterion Blu-ray releases of films from the first half of the 20th century; the high quality of this Thunderbean release deserves to be compared to both of these larger companies. The only obvious problem I noticed was a small green blotch on the left edge of the screen for about three minutes, starting at the 30-minute mark. The 8 shorts are of varying quality, but they were not cleaned up as well as the Gulliver feature.AUDIO: Most likely as good as these releases will ever sound. I don't know if any noise-reduction editing was done, but there is minimal hiss and all the content on these discs sound about average for most films I've seen restored from this era. I noticed at least twice a shift in the sound for a few seconds (one at 40:17). I assume this is probably a transition between film reels; the video is consistent, but there are significant blips in the sound.EXTRAS: There are at least two hours of extra video and audio material on this disc. It is a wealth of Fleischer content. My only (very minor) complaint is the reduced navigational ability of the Blu-ray compared to the DVD on the audio content. I could not fast-forward through the Decca audio content, and some of the image galleries required the use of the Play button instead of the track-advance button.Cartoons (54:34 total): - Modeling (1921) - In My Merry Oldsmobile (1931) - Is My Palm Red? (1933) with Betty Boop (I believe this should be "Read") - The Little Dutch Mill (1934) Color Classic - The Paneless Window Washer (1937) with Popeye - Ding Dong Doggy (1937) with Pudgy - Two for the Zoo (1941) with Gabby from Gulliver - Swing Cleaning (1941) with Gabby from GulliverBonus Features: - Production Artwork (at least 80 images) - Decca Album (8-tracks, featuring Victor Young and His Orchestra and Max Terr's Choristers, audio with photos of each album side) - Guy Lombardo (Decca single of "Bluebirds..." and "It's a Hap...", audio with photos of each album side) - Trailer (2:20) - Books and Publications (43 images) - Publicity Material (43 images) - Radio Broadcast (23:43, Good News of 1940, 12/21/39) - Popeye & Gulliver Pencil Test (0:27) - Toys & other Merchandise (20 images)Booklet (12-page b&w insert), includes various essays on these releases. - Liner Notes by Steve Stanchfield (order of The Paneless and Ding Dong shorts switched in this description) - Gulliver's Travels Notes by John McElwee - The Miami Gamble by Ray Pointer - On Gulliver's Travels by G. Michael Dobbs - Gulliver's Travels: Music to My Ears by Chris BuchmanSUMMARY: This is the first Blu-ray release from Thunderbean and it is clearly a labor of love. The video and audio restoration of Gulliver in particular are the best these releases have ever been on home video, and the wealth of extras alone make this an invaluable set of discs to add to your collection.

As another reviewer mentioned Swift's tale was satire (and a bit of farce) commenting on the social structure of the time, and the absurdity of the system's shortcoming immersed in suspicion and fear. Swift's perspective was that the illogic of favoritism only lent itself to inequity, and who could argue against so fine an observation.But we aren't given the entirety of Swift's saga regarding the humble physician from the English coast, but rather a children's rendition of one of the more popular episodes of Lemuel Gulliver's Travels; i.e. the part where he's a giant among two warring factions of miniature populations.The characters are apt for the audience, and the artwork and animation on all levels comes from a time when labor wsa a bit cheaper and hence more care could be injected into the works produced at the time. It matches a lot of Disney quality art, but even so you can certainly see where Disney's rivals, (Harmon and Ising for example) still lacked a certain something. "Gulliver's Travels", and the short films derived from it, has been mistreated here and there, and forgotten, with poor dupes appearing on UHF and independent VHF stations in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. It's a miracle the print survived to this day so well intact. And thanks to the people at a variety of companies who came together to preserve this masterpiece, the full film can now be seen in all of its original glory, with a color corrected print and remastered soundtrack.Not being a parent, just a film enthusiast (and animation as well), I can't say how well this will hold up to today's offerings for young audiences. I really can't, but, even so, I still think it a fine piece of animated film making, and I think the children will forgive it for not being a CGI experience by the quality of the art and vibrant colorful visuals.Again, the story is essentially an episode of the Swift's saga, but it does entertain on a basic level. Give it a shot, and maybe try watching it with the family.Enjoy.

In 1699 sailor Lemuel Gulliver's ship is caught in a storm. Lemuel is knocked over board, and washes up on shore in the land of Lilliput, where he is a giant in comparison to the locals.Princess Glory of Lilliput is set to marry Prince David of Blefuscu, but when their fathers argue over wedding details, war is declared between the two kingdoms. When King Little of Lilliput is told of the giant on the beach, he sees Gulliver as the perfect weapon to defeat King Bombo once and for all.Released in 1939, just 2 years after Disney's "Snow White," Gulliver's Travels was the second feature length animation ever produced. The film makers, Dave and Max Fleischer are better known for their work on Popeye and Betty Boop. The brothers feature film making efforts were ill fated however, with Gulliver's Travels released at the beginning of the second world war and their follow up "Mr Bug Goes to Town" released just two days before the bombing of Pearl Harbour, were it not for these events, the work produced at Fleischer's studio may be as famous today as that of Walt Disney.The film is an adaptation of the classic Novel by Jonathan Swift, intended as a biting social satire, Gulliver's adventures span four novels. Most well known is the first regarding his arrival in Lilliput, though Gulliver visits several other mysterious places. The book tells the story of a man finding himself in strange lands, while the film approaches the subject mostly from the Lilliputians point of view.On its release the movie was nominated for 2 Oscars for its soundtrack (Best Animated Feature wasn't a category until 2001) The opening song "All's Well" is a catchy number with a great twist, however the tunes are very 'of their time' and may not prove popular with today's children.The film has a certain innocence to it, it keeps a slow, steady pace rather than racing from one set action piece to another as modern films often do. There's a scene of perhaps 15 minutes without any talking as the Lilliputians tie up Gulliver and transport him, unconscious, back to the city and the King's palace. Their methods are ingenious and highly amusing feats of engineering. The extreme differences in size are used to great comic and visual effect, King Little dances with Gulliver's hand, three Lilliputians are trapped in Gulliver's pocket watch and he is able to put out a house fire by cupping water in his hands.A charming film, wonderful for younger children, though perhaps a little gentle and slow for older ones. The film is also a great starting point to discussions about filmmaking and the evolution of animation.

I haven't read Jonathan Swift's story for a long time, but I remember loving it very much. This 1939 animated film mayn't be the best, definitive or the most faithful version, but can I be honest, it's actually my personal favourite. I don't know why, maybe because of nostalgia, this was a favourite of mine when I was a kid and I still love it. It is so warm, entertaining and beautiful, and might I say I consider it timeless too? The animation is actually really lovely, not tedious, undistinguished or dated as it has been criticised as. Instead it is beautiful and colourful. The colours are lavish, the backgrounds are mellow and the character designs are typical Fleischer, while the use of the Roto-Scope is incredibly effective.I also love the story. As I have said it is not the most faithful to the original story, but it is still a great and sweet one. It is one that tells of love, hope, friendship, adventure and even humour, all those qualities that makes an animated film so great. In some ways the first half-hour is better than the rest of the film, however the film is full of charming moments such as when Gabby pleads not to be eaten, when Gulliver brings David and Glory together, "there's a giant on the beach", the interaction between the spies and of course my favourite the really touching ending. There is a bit of Romeo and Juliet too, with the idea of the feuding kingdoms and I think it works.The script is really nice too, I admit I've heard better dialogue but there are much worse as well. Anything Gabby says cracks me up and Gulliver says some interesting things too. In fact, there is a perfect balance of humorous lines and touching sentiment. And I love the characters as well.Gulliver apparently was made to look like a real person, a bold and ambitious move and one that pays off, is it me or isn't he handsome and I love his rich baritone voice, reminds me of Emile from South Pacific. The King of Lilliput is also a nice character, bumbling and humorous, same with Bombo who appears to be rather mean but there is a small part towards the beginning that suggests otherwise. David is someone we don't see much but he is very handsome with a kind presence with a voice that takes you to another world. My favourites though are Princess Glory and Gabby. Princess Glory is absolutely beautiful, and while she has a quivering vibrato(like Snow White does) she has a very limpid and pleasant voice. And what do I need to say about Gabby? There may be times in his cartoons where Gabby comes across as selfish, mean and unapologetic, but we see a different Gabby here. A somewhat funnier Gabby, and in some ways you feel sorry for him too.The voice acting is also top notch for the time. Pinto Colvig, the wonderful voice actor he was, is great as Gabby, and Jack Mercer has fun as the King. Jessica Dragonette and Lanny Ross provide the voices of Glory and David beautifully, while Sam Parker is interesting as Gulliver. The pacing is brisk too, so the film never feels tedious or draggy, and while Gulliver's Travels is short it is very fulfilling.But do you know what my favourite part was? It was the music. It's all an acquired taste of course, but I absolutely love this sort of music, the mellow and rich sounds that are almost reminiscent of Rodgers and Hammerstein. "All's Well" has had me humming the tune for days on end, "It's a Hap Hap Happy Day" is quirky and upbeat and "We're All Together Now" is wonderfully uplifting and memorable. "Come Home Again" is hauntingly beautiful, while "Forever" and "Faithful" are sweet and romantic.In conclusion, beautiful, timeless and I think underrated film. 10/10 Bethany Cox