One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)

Warning certain Images have been cut from this two-disc edition.........
The original release version has the cigarette smoking from cruella.Disney cut the smoke image from cruella so they would not have to release this special edition as unrated...So you are better off buying the original limited Edition as it was meant to be seen nothing is cut from the original print..........This version is defintely not for collectors of Disney especially with certain Images cut from this great Film.......You have been warned this is a edited version...........not the version Walt would have wanted issued.........

Nostalgia For The Older Fans, Fun For The Newest Fans
In common with many of my fellows of 50 or so years, I have fond memories of 101 Dalmatians as the very first "new" Disney animated film I ever saw. I remember being taken to see it and making my father sit through it twice because I refused to leave after the first showing, and I still have a bedraggled stuffed Dalmatian toy I must have gotten for Christmas that year. I've owned and cherished a VHS copy for years, but I leaped at the chance to get this new DVD version, and I'm so glad I did.

First, the film itself is so beautifully restored its like watching it for the first time. All the characters are magnificently and perfectly depicted, with sharp personalities for each one of the puppies. I love the scenes of parks and streets in London, and the lovely English countryside. (I now realize this film must have been an early encouragement for my rabid Anglophilia, which manifested itself at a young age.) From an adult perspective, I was struck by the "Britishness" of the culture of the film, so to speak. So many of the characters have an air of the old Empire about them, from the name Pongo itself (originally a sort of nickname widely used among British soldiers) through to the innumerable Colonels and Sergeants among the animal characters, right down to the Cockney rhyming slang employed by the brothers who steal the puppies. Its very definitely late 50s early 60s vintage, but it has a timeless charm.

The second disc is very worthwhile, too. I enjoyed the early history of Walt Disney and the story of the making of the film, especially a short piece on Disney's correspondence with Dodie Smith, the author of the book on which the film is based. The film turns out to have been truly revolutionary in its use of new techniques and equipment, including early photocopiers. I also liked the extra songs which were originally deleted from the film but are included here. You can understand why some weren't used, but there's one called "Cheerio, Goodbye, We're On Our Way to London" which I wish had been kept in. Its a lovely tune, and one which (to continue the military theme I alluded to earlier) its easy to imagine British troops singing in 1945. Another really pleasing inclusion is a series of unused trial versions of the "Kanine Krunchies" Jingle, which I can listen to over and over (be forewarned that you'll have it running through your head for the next several hours, though!)

A Dog-Lovers Delight
This tale raises dogs to new heights of man's best friend. A reclusive bachelor owns a Dalmatian. His dog spots a woman walking her own Dalmatian. A perfect setup for a romance--canine and human? Not so fast. As she walks to the park, he still is at his desk. So the Dalmatian cleverly changes the clock to past 5 PM. The bachelor is fooled, and goes out to walk his dog to the park. She is there all right--but they show no interest in each other. The bachelor just sits down on the grass and smokes his pipe. So his dog decides to stir things up. He grabs the man's hat and deposits it on the park bench not far from the woman and her Dalmatian. But she walks away. But the bachelor's Dalmatian has still not run out of tricks. He literally ties the man and woman up. And so it goes...

What would a fairy tale be without a witch, or at least a witch-like person? This is a woman who disparages the Dalmatian pups, complains that they don't have spots (yet), etc. There is a terrible thunderstorm...