Bedknobs and Broomsticks

Disappointing

     

While the remastering of both video and audio of this movie is excellent, it is the content of this movie which I find to be disappointing. One of the bonus features talks about the painstaking efforts made in an effort to find old and discarded footage (which was originally cut for the initial theatrical release), remaster all of the lost pieces of film and then reinsert them in an attempt to make a more complete film experience, as well as paying respect to the original vision of the filmmakers of this movie. However, after all of this talking about finding and restoring the lost footage, when it comes to the movie we are presented again with the original theatrical release.

I’ve seen the restored version of the film, and while some of the dubbing in that version of the film is poor, the story is really fleshed out in ways I never imagined. We come to better understand the primary characters, and even the secondary players are given more screen time. Watching this shamefully edited theatrical version was not only irritating, but I felt like I was watching a misrepresentation of the characters and story in this movie.

While the remastering of this movie is superb, I can say with great confidence that I will not be watching this version again. I’d rather stick with the movie with the subpar video and audio, but with the better told story.