The Swan Princess

Although plenty of Disney wannabes enter the feature-length animated sweepstakes few hold a candle to the cartoon kings. The Swan Princess comes pretty darn close. Good animation, snappy writing, and wiggle-your-butt tunes kept this big kid smiling throughout this cute tale about a forlorn princess who's been turned into a swan and the determined beau who sets out to rescue her from the evil one-arm pushup guy Jack Palance. Highly recommended. (R. Pitman)[DVD Review--Mar. 9, 2004--Columbia TriStar, 89/73 min., G, $19.95 each, avail. Mar. 30--Making their debut on DVD, the 1994 children's film The Swan Princess and 1998 second sequel The Swan Princess: The Mystery of the Enchanted Treasure both sport decent if unexceptional transfers and solid Dolby Digital surround soundtracks, but are--disappointingly--also both presented in full screen versions rather than their original aspect ratios. As for extras, both share the “Odette's Book of Wonderful Friends” read-along, with stories on Jean-Bob, Puffin, and Speed. In addition, The Swan Princess: Special Edition includes two games (one a pointless dress-up-Odette-for-her wedding exercise, the other a solid little math game), and five sing-alongs. On The Swan Princess: The Mystery of the Enchanted Treasure, viewers will find a “Two to Tango” featurette, with live-action demonstrations of the tango, foxtrot, samba, waltz, and swing dances. Both films are also available together in a specially-packaged set for $29.95 (which omits the middle film, 1997's The Swan Princess II: Escape From Castle Mountain, a Warner title). Bottom line: although The Swan Princess is a wonderful film, the decision to release it in a full screen version (on a “special edition,” no less) is unfortunate; still you may want to consider purchase. The Swan Princess: The Mystery of the Enchanted Treasure, on the other hand, is not worth picking up unless purchased as part of the packaged set featuring both films.]