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In an odd twist for a Disney film, Penny is then held captive on a marooned triple-decker river ferryboat (of all things) in a swamp close to the sea cave. Medusa's bumbling assistant, Snoops, and a pair of salivating alligators guard Penny, she of shaky voice and forlorn slouching, but she still mounts a brave but failed escape. It is these scenes that resonate the most in The Rescuers, with Penny's parents expressive longing producing some truly sad and touching moments. (It is certainly manipulative, but it's Disney, right?) Medusa continues to hold Penny captive, and as the kidnapping plays out the rescuers of the title are put into play.

This film is "Suggested by 'The Rescuers' and 'Miss Bianca' written by Margaret Sharp," and to their credit, Disney produces an entertaining film here even if the rodent qualities of our heroes are never integral to the story. There has always been much debate about Disney's strange reliance on the animal personification of human qualities, and indeed The Rescuers would still work just as well if the rescuing party were human instead of rodent. As it is, our heroes are always funny, always warmhearted and the growing attraction between the two lead mice very amusing. It is especially hard not to be won over by the leads, voiced by such stars as Bob Newhart and the fun-loving, very feminine Eva Gabor. But even they can't complete with Madame Medusa, as Geraldine Page absolutely rips into her dialogue to such bipolar extremes that it is almost scary! These talented actors make the drama even more fun.

As cute as it is, The Rescuers isn't one of the crowning achievements in Disney history, at least compared to other high- profile films like Snow White. But it's certainly better than it's sequel, and for whatever reason it was my favorite as a kid. I still think it's well crafted and filled with the beautiful animation one expects from Disney, even if it is not that highly regarded. And at long last, fans are in for a treat with this eagerly awaited DVD release.

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

I remember seeing this film during a re-release circa 1992, and it wasn't pretty: dull colors and a weak source print made for less-than- impressive results. Well, someone over at Disney got smart and sported for a "snappy new remastering," and indeed fans should be pleased with this new DVD.

The film is presented in its original 1.78:1 theatrical aspect ratio and anamorphically encoded. If any Disney flick needed a decent transfer, this was it. The New York backgrounds were of a grimy variety, yet this transfer reveals many details never before visible on previous home video releases. Blacks are very deep aside from a few scenes that reveal a bit of fading. Color reproduction is quite good, with the screaming reds and oranges bursting onto the screen with great clarity and consistency, especially Madame Medusa's fabulous wardrobe. This transfer is also nice and detailed, with the animation even revealing some brush strokes and great sharpness. No edge enhancement was detectable, so the only real disappointment was a few artifacts now and then. This is a very respectable transfer.

Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

Originally a RCA Photophone Sound Recording, the audio is presented here in a new Dolby Digital 5.1 surround remix. However nice an upgrade it is, however, it still sounds a bit more like 4.1. The front soundstage comes with dialogue generally centered in the middle, and some nice effects make good use of the fronts for decent stereo imaging. Frequency response is average but better than expected, with the music being the biggest benefactor and generally warm and full. .Surrounds come to life occasionally and even manage to impress on a few fly-overs, but you can forget truly discrete split activity and a full frequency response in the rears. Surprisingly, the .1 LFE is pretty forceful and really come to life when the drums play at the "mouse convention" near the beginning. This is a good mix that should leave most pleased.

Additional Dolby 5.1 dubs are available in French and Spanish, along with English subtitles and Closed Captions.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

Typical of most non A-list Disney titles, there are a number of extras here but most geared towards the littlest ones.

The Water Birds featurette is about 30 minutes and the quality is weak, the transfer littered with artifacts and lots of grain. It does offer interesting stories and documents the story of birds that live in the ocean, lakes or rivers, but seems a bit out of place given the pure entertainment of the movie. Then we have the vapid Under the Hat Villains featurette that is only a minute and a half. The flick's creators talk about the importance of villains, and, well, that's it. Do most audiences not know this already?

"The Ultimate Case" Detective Game isn't that challenging, with a mix and match, weak CD-ROM feel to it. The next is an odd, real-life addition. Then we have a sing-along to "Someone's Waiting for You," which was nominated for an Oscar. This isn't simply an excerpt from the film, but more of a collage with rough segments. Not impressive. Next up is the Three Blind Mouseketeers cartoon running about 5 minutes. Despite being from 1952, the animated feature holds up quite well with bold, clean colors and energetic pacing. Probably the best and most relevant supplement is the The Rescuers Scrapbook still gallery. Behind- the-scenes photos, premiere shots and interesting conceptual designs make for about 45 to 50 images total. Seeing Eva Gabor with and without a wig is priceless! Fans will definitely enjoy this. A narrated featurette with these stills would have been a bit more interesting, but this is good stuff nonetheless.

Lastly are six trailers including The Lion King and Sleeping Beauty DVD promos, plus Air Bud, Jungle Book 2, Piglet's Big Adventure and the direct-to-video Stitch: The Adventure Continues, all in 5.1 and full frame except Jungle Book 2, which is in anamorphic widescreen.

DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?

No ROM extras have been included.

Parting Thoughts