Disney's Platinum Edition DVD

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Walt Disney Platinum Editions were a line of VHS tapes, DVDs, and Blu-ray Discs released by Walt Disney (Studios) Home Entertainment between 2001 and 2009. The series featured digitally remastered versions of several of the most popular Disney animated features.

History

Overview

Originally, the line consisted of the company's ten best-selling VHS titles and would be released in October of each year. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was the first film released in the series, in 2001. The two following titles, Beauty and the Beast (1991) and The Lion King (1994) were released in IMAX and other giant screen theaters during the holiday season before their respective October DVD release. Due to underwhelming box office results, a planned IMAX release for Aladdin (1992) was scrapped and the practice was discontinued.

In May 2003, Disney announced that it would be adding the next four best-selling titles to the collection. Starting in 2005, a Platinum Edition was released twice a year, one in October and one in February or March. The first eight Platinum Editions, from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in October 2001 to The Little Mermaid in January 2007, were also available on VHS. The last two releases in the series, Sleeping Beauty in October 2008 and Pinocchio (1940) in March 2009, were also released on Blu-ray Disc. In addition to the two discs for the movie and bonus features, the Blu-ray releases also include a DVD of the movie for travel purposes and to lure consumers without Blu-ray players into helping to boost sales.

The original plan for the Platinum Edition was that the films would be re-issued for a limited time, once every ten years. Since then, the interim between each re-issue of a particular film has been shortened to seven years. As of now, all 13 releases in the Platinum Editions line are no longer available in retail stores, and can only be found through specialized sales markets, or websites such as Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, and eBay. Such out-of-print titles usually demand a significant premium given their considerable value to collectors.

Alice in Wonderland (1951), Dumbo (1941), and Fantasia were also originally intended to be part of the Platinum Edition line; however, due to a presumed schedule mix-up, they were all released as special editions that were not part of the Platinum Editions.

Packaging

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was packaged in a double-sized keepcase, and to date has been the only Platinum Edition DVD without a slip-cover. It was released on VHS in Brazil and on DVD in the UK as a Collector's gift set. From Beauty and the Beast (1991) to Cinderella (1950), Platinum Editions were packaged in a dual-disc DVD case with a slipcase, with a book-like velcro flap which, when opened, gave an overview of the DVD's special features. Lady and the Tramp (1955) was the first DVD in the series to use a more standard slipcase without a flap. The slipcase for The Little Mermaid then featured embossed character art, and the releases for Peter Pan (1953) through Pinocchio (1940) featured both holographic artwork and embossing. Only sets sold during the first few months of a Platinum Edition's window of availability are sold with a slipcover.

Discs in the collection have also gone through transformations over the years. The first few releases and One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) were released on standard discs. Cinderella (1950) then featured their main characters upon the discs themselves as did The Little Mermaid. The latest change has been the addition of holographic images used on Lady and the Tramp (1955), Peter Pan (1953), and The Jungle Book (1967).

Beginning with The Lion King (1994), as an option for customers, select Platinum Edition DVDs were also made available in gift set editions, which included the standard retail DVD as well as supplements such as original animation sketches, a film frame, and a companion book. Some titles featured as Collector's Gift Sets are exclusive to certain countries as well, such as The Jungle Book (1967) and One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) in the United Kingdom and Germany only, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Peter Pan (1953) in the UK only.

The VHS releases of the first four Platinum Editions were packaged in white clamshells, while Bambi and Cinderella (1950) had cardboard cases. The Blu-ray Platinum Edition of Sleeping Beauty comes with a slipcover similar to those used from 2002-2005, with a book-like velcro flap and an overview of bonus features inside.

Restoration

Each film in the Platinum Edition series is given a restoration, and generally presented in their original aspect ratios, except for a few exceptions:

Beauty and the Beast (1991) is presented in 1.85:1, matted from 1.66:1.
The Lion King (1994) is presented in 1.66:1, and its opening logo is replaced with the 2000-2006 flashlight logo.
Aladdin (1992) is presented in 1.66:1.
The Little Mermaid, created for 1.66:1, is presented in 1.78:1.
The Jungle Book (1967) is presented in 1.75:1.
Lady and the Tramp (1955), produced in CinemaScope, is also presented in an alternate pan-and-scan version included in the same collection.
Sleeping Beauty, presented in 2.20:1, is presented in 2.55:1.

Despite this, these widescreen films are however presented as cropped pan-and-scan versions as opposed to keeping their widescreen formats (with letterboxing) on their VHS counterparts. Most of the films in the collection are digitally restored from their original negatives, undergoing digital clean-up processes to remove dust, dirt, and scratches. Snow White and Bambi have featurettes detailing the restoration process included on the set as bonus features.

Three of the Platinum Edition releases - Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), and The Lion King (1994) - were produced using Disney's Computer Animation Production System (CAPS), and were instead sourced straight from the digital masters used to create the film. Each of these three films also featured retouched and re-cleaned-up animation, alterations done to prepare the films for IMAX release.

Each film's soundtrack is also remixed into Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound. Earlier films in the series, such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs were originally released with monaural soundtracks (Lady and the Tramp (1955) and Sleeping Beauty were recorded and released with stereophonic soundtracks, and One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) and The Jungle Book (1967)'s music scores were also recorded stereophonically), and the new mixes created for Platinum Edition releases featured a combination of uses of original sound elements used in the original mix and rechanneling techniques. Later films in the series (including two, Aladdin (1992) and The Lion King (1994), which were originally produced in 5.1) featured surround sound mixes specifically tailored to home theater audiences, branded by the company as "Disney Enhanced Home Theater Mixes". For the most part, the original mixes are also included.

Special features

DVDs in this series typically contain a significant amount of bonus material, primarily housed on the second disc of the set so as to allow for a high-bitrate transfer of the feature. Many of the titles feature "making-of" documentaries that run from as little as a half-hour to an hour in length. The three exceptions are The Lion King (1994), Aladdin (1992), and Peter Pan (1953). The Lion King (1994) and Aladdin (1992) both utilize a navigation system of multiple featurettes that can be played individually or together, while Peter Pan (1953) simply re-uses a brief 15-minute documentary from 1998.

Other typical features include audio commentaries (not available on Bambi, Cinderella (1950), Lady and the Tramp (1955), or One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)), art and image galleries, deleted scenes, early storyboard reels, and bonus Disney short subjects. Contemporary publicity material available on each set may include trailers, music videos, radio programs, newsreel footage, and episodes of the Disney anthology television series, although the exact features included vary from set to set. Features aimed at more general family audiences and children are also included, such as set-top games and music video renditions of Disney songs by contemporary pop artists and/or Disney Channel stars.

Music videos

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: "Someday My Prince Will Come" performed by Barbra Streisand
Beauty and the Beast: "Beauty and the Beast" performed by Jump5 in the US & Canada/H & Claire in the UK & Ireland
The Lion King: "Circle of Life" performed by Disney Channel Circle of Stars
Aladdin: "A Whole New World" performed by Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson
Cinderella: "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes" performed by Disney Channel Circle of Stars
Lady and the Tramp: "Bella Notte" performed by Steve Tyrell
The Little Mermaid: "Kiss the Girl" performed by Ashley Tisdale
Peter Pan: "The Second Star to the Right" performed by T-Squad
The Jungle Book: "I Wanna Be Like You" performed by the Jonas Brothers
101 Dalmatians: "Cruella De Vil" performed by Selena Gomez
Sleeping Beauty: "Once Upon a Dream" performed by Emily Osment
Pinocchio: "When You Wish Upon A Star" performed by Meaghan Jette Martin

List of Walt Disney Platinum Editions

#	Film	Release Date	Moratorium	Notes
1	Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)	October 9, 2001 (DVD) November 27, 2001 (VHS)	January 31, 2002	Collector's Gift Set (UK only). First DVD release to contain the 2001-07 Disney DVD logo.
2	Beauty and the Beast (1991)	October 8, 2002 (DVD and VHS)	January 31, 2003	Trilogy box set with Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas and Beauty and the Beast: Belle's Magical World.
3	The Lion King (1994)	October 7, 2003 (DVD and VHS)	January 31, 2005	Collector's Gift Set. The only Platinum film to contain the 2000-06 Walt Disney Pictures flashlight logo (used from Dinosaur). Trilogy box set with The Lion King II: Simba's Pride and The Lion King 1½.
4	Aladdin (1992)	October 5, 2004 (DVD and VHS)	January 31, 2008	Collector's Gift Set. Trilogy box set with The Return of Jafar and Aladdin and the King of Thieves.
5	Bambi (1942)	March 1, 2005 (DVD and VHS)	January 31, 2007	First Platinum film released in Spring instead of Fall. Last Platinum film to be THX-Certified.
6	Cinderella (1950)	October 4, 2005 (DVD and VHS)	January 31, 2008	Last Platinum film released on VHS for the public. Collector's Gift Set. Final Platinum Edition release to contain the 2001-07 Disney DVD logo. Trilogy box set with Cinderella II: Dreams Come True and Cinderella III: A Twist in Time (Japan only).
7	Lady and the Tramp (1955)	February 28, 2006 (DVD) May 16, 2006 (VHS)	January 31, 2007	First Platinum film released on VHS for Disney Movie Club members. First Platinum film released with Fast Play. First Platinum Edition release to contain the 2005-07 Disney DVD logo.
8	The Little Mermaid (1989)	October 3, 2006 (DVD) January 3, 2007 (VHS)	January 30, 2009	Second and last Platinum film released on VHS for Disney Movie Club members and the last Platinum film released on VHS. Second and last Platinum Edition release to contain the 2005-07 Disney DVD logo. Trilogy box set with The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea and The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning.
9	Peter Pan (1953)	March 6, 2007 (DVD)	January 30, 2009	Collector's Gift Set (UK only). First Platinum Edition released with Disney Movie Rewards and the first DVD to contain the 2007-14 Disney DVD logo. Trilogy box set with Return to Never Land and Tinker Bell.
10	The Jungle Book (1967)	October 2, 2007 (DVD)	January 30, 2010	The final Platinum Edition release to contain the 2001-08 Walt Disney Home Entertainment logo.
11	One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)	March 4, 2008 (DVD)	January 30, 2010	Collector's Gift Set (UK, Germany and Brazil). The first Platinum Edition release to contain the “There is only one Disney” promo. Ultimate 4-Movie Collection box set with 101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure, 101 Dalmatians (1996), and 102 Dalmatians. First Platinum film to contain the 2006-22 Walt Disney Pictures logo.
12	Sleeping Beauty (1959)	October 7, 2008 (DVD and Blu-ray)	January 30, 2010	Collector's Gift Set (UK and Germany only). First Platinum film released on Blu-ray Disc.
13	Pinocchio (1940)	March 10, 2009 (DVD and Blu-ray)	April 30, 2011	Second and last Platinum film released on Blu-ray Disc. Last Platinum film to contain the 2006-22 Walt Disney Pictures logo (closing only).