Toon Talk: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Special Edition DVD
Page 2 of 5
Audio Commentary:
Introduced by Roy Disney, the audio commentary contains excerpts from several audio
interviews with Walt Disney, culled from over three decades of material found in the
Disney archives. Animation historian John Canemaker provides additional material, as well
as context for Walt's quotes.
As one would might imagine, hearing Walt himself detail such now legendary anecdotes as the casting of Adriana Caselotti in the role of his princess and the trials and tribulations of the notorious "sweat shop", provides a unique opportunity for die-hard animation fans and the casual viewer alike to not only hear about, but to get an actual feel of what it must have been like at the Disney Studios during the making of this motion picture classic, straight from the man who was responsible for it all.
The Top Ten Things We Learn from this Commentary:
Famed dancer Marge Champion was the live-action model and film legend Janet Gaynor was used as inspiration for the character of Snow White.
Silver screen actress Deanna Durbin auditioned for the title role, but was deemed to sound "too old" by Walt.
Walt claimed that "we would have made more money if The Three Little Pigs had been a feature."
"For years later I hated Snow White" (for being constantly compared to his later works), Walt confesses.
The filmmakers were unsure about naming the last dwarf Dopey for fear that it sounded to "modern". References to the name in Shakespeare alleviated that problem.
Snow White was one of the first to use Technicolor. A muted color palette was used because the filmmakers were concerned that audiences would be unable to sit through ninety minutes of such "bright colors".
Grumpy represented the cynics in the audience, those who dubbed the film "Walt's Folly".
The Queen's dungeon was inspired by the works of classic horror directors James Whale (Frankenstein) and F.W. Murnau (Nosferatu).
The musical style of the film was inspired by the popular operettas of the day, but Walt wanted to avoid contemporary influences to maintain the timelessness of the songs. Snow White was one of the first film musicals to incorporate the songs into the actual story. They were used only if they conveyed the personalities of the characters or moved the story along. Of over twenty-five songs written for the film, only eight made it to the finished version.
The Ink & Paint girls applied actual blush to the top of the individual animation cels to help Snow White's facial features to appear more natural.
Goddess of Spring:
Produced in 1934, this Silly Symphony animated short was an early test run for the
Disney artists in animating the human form. The advancements from the rubber-limed
Persephone to the graceful Snow White just three years later is impressive.
The short itself is obviously of it's time, especially with it's Jeanette MacDonald/Nelson Eddy vocals for the title character and her unwanted suitor, Satan himself, the most unlikely Disney couple of all time.
Sing-Along "Heigh Ho" and Karaoke:
Same ol' sing-along available for years on video, with a second version, sans vocals,
for karaoke. As with other features on the disc, the footage is not from the restored
print and half the on-screen lyrics are missing. Very much an after-thought.
Dopey's Wild Mine Ride Game:
The object of this game is to help Dopey find the other six dwarfs, lost in their diamond
mine, and rescue Snow White from the Wicked Queen. But the Queen has placed a spell on the
mine, forcing you (with Dopey) to answer trivia questions in order to continue your quest.
Visually fun, with a virtually created 3-D mine shaft and film clip clues, some of the questions are actually quite challenging. Do you know what instruments the dwarfs played in the "Silly Song" sequence?
Barbra Streisand's "Some Day
My Prince Will Come" Video:
An ersatz music video, culled from film footage and containing nary a site of La
Streisand. Not a complaint at all, all you need is to hear that voice.
Avoiding any oversung melodramatics that she is prone to more often then not these days, Streisand magically recreates this timeless classic; you'll listen to it as if hearing it for the first time.
Arguably one of the best Disney song covers ever recorded, it has yet to be released on compact disc. (It is not on the recently re-released Snow White soundtrack.)
(We are thankfully not subjected to the Baha Men's current Radio Disney single "Who Woke Snow White Up?", which is available on CD.)
DVD-Rom:
Features accessible through your computer's DVD-Rom drive.
Guided Tours:
Again hosted by Lansbury, only necessary if your are not planning on viewing the disc as a
whole or are a bit overwhelmed by the sheer volume of materials presented. The disc one
tour includes segments from the "making of" documentary and the audio
commentary, as well as direct access to the Silly Symphony short, sing-along and
game segments. The disc two tour is a brief overview of it's features.