Rating: 
Summary: The best movie to mix live action with animation....ever!!
Review: Who Framed Roger Rabbit is the best film ever that mixs animation with live action. Lame movies such as Cool World and Space Jam have tried to be like Roger Rabbit but have failed. Roger Rabbit has been framed for murder by an evil toon and only one man can save him, the former detective for toons Eddie Valent. Eddie Valent used to take cases for toons until one killed his brother. He has to come face to face with his past in-order to save Roger. Bob Hoskins is great as Eddie Valent as is Christopher Lloyd as the villain. It's the special effects that are the real star in Who Framed Roger Rabbit though. They're flawless and you get the feel that the actors are really talking and interacting with the toons. I really would of loved if they made a few sequels but it's a little late for that now since you don't really see Bob Hoskins around anymore. He had much more star power then than he does now as well. The only problem that I still have with the film is that it has a very adult theme to it and isn't as much for kids as a movie with a bunch of famous cartoon characters should be. There's one point where Donald Duck calls Daffy Duck a really bad prejudice word for instance. You have to listen hard to hear it but it's there. Still though Daffy versues Donald is so much fun that I wouldn't mind a sequel just to see go at it again. The dvd for this movie is a dream come true for me. When they released that no feature version on dvd I was really disapointed. This dvd totally makes up for it though. It's one of the best dvd's of this new year for sure. I've only seen the Roger Rabbit short Tummy Trouble but this dvd gives you the chance to see all 3 of his shorts. It's just an awesome dvd. It's a must have for every Roger Rabbit fan.
Rating:
Summary: Hours and hours of spectacular fun!
Review: As soon as you open the "briefcase" of the new Vista Series Roger Rabbit, you can tell it is going to be a first class adventure. Everything about this set is all about fun. Hours and hours of fun, from the multitude of extras on both discs, down to all the menus and insulting cab comments. I haven't seen the previous DVD version of this, so I can't compare the two. I can say however, that this is a much better and more enjoyable presentation than the special edition CAV Laserdisc (even as nice as that was). The picture looks great, the 5.1 mix is great, you have more choices of how to spend your time with this set than a barrel full of weasels. You really couldn't ask for much more. I wish all DVD releases had this much thought and effort put into them. I won't go into a review of the film, there are plenty of those already. I've loved it since it first jumped from the cinema screens. I still love it today. Even as good as computer art has become, there is a special magic sometimes from brush and ink that can't be replaced. Adding in the incredible live action interactions makes Roger hard to top. This film will live on long after the next "new and improved" way comes along to put toons to film. This Roger is a winner all the way around, spread the word...ppllppllpplleeeeeaaaaaasssse!
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Have Disc For Collectors And Fans
Review: like the film itself, the vista series of WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT is designed for the enjoyment of both children and adults alike. i was 11 years old when this movie was first released, and i remember being completely blown away by it. this movie only could have come from the 1980s! the special effects would not have been possible previously, and there's no way disney would allow all the cursing and violence if it were being made today. when i watched this dvd, i had not seen ROGER RABBIT since i was a kid. as an adult and avid movie fan, i was still completely blown away! this movie is not only a technical achievement (no computers were used, all animation was hand drawn) but it succeeds on levels of creativity and entertainment as well. it really is a great flick. disc 1 is for the kiddies, it contains the full-frame version of the movie and a couple extras that briefly go over how the movie was made and so forth. disc 2 is for longtime fans and film buffs (the people dvds were made for in the first place). it contains the widescreen version of the film, plus tons and tons of supplemental material on the making of the movie. through interviews, rough cuts, on-set footage and more, you get to see every stage of production and all the info you could ever want on what went into making such a visionary film. this disc is loaded and will not disappoint. WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT is a classic because they just don't make movies like this anymore. this isn't a children's movie, it's a movie period. it doesn't insult the intelligence of its viewers and wasn't made to cash in. it has withstood the test of time, because i loved it as a kid and now with this special edition, i can enjoy it on a whole new level as an adult. my kids can watch the first disc and be completely entertained as i was, then as they get older they can dip into disc 2 and who knows? maybe they'll be inspired to get out there and bring their imagination to life the way these filmmakers did.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, the Rabbit gets his Due! :-)
Review: This film was released in 1988, and told the story of adorable and whacky cartoon characters spilling over into the "real" world as studio contract players. It's basically a buddy cop noir detective story between a hard boiled detective (Bob Hoskins) and a fuzzy white animated rabbit he is helping. Amazingly enough NO CGI was used at all - 840,000 hand painted cells were overlaid onto live action! It's amazingly real, and hasn't really been topped before or since. Previously ROGER RABBIT was released as a bare bones single DVD without any extras, bells or whistles. Buena Vista corrects this oversight with a stunning loaded new package which contains two DVDS. The first is labeled the "Family Friendly" version, and contains the pan and scan version of the film and a kid friendly documentary about the movie. Also included are three cartoon shorts featuring Roger and Baby Herman previously only seen in theatres. There is a rather remote intensive game included as well that should keep youngsters entertained, but not quite up to their Playstation standards. The second disc is for ENTHUSIASTS, and contains more in-depth technical information and the widescreen version of the film. Commentary and pop up factoids round out this disc for all of us DVD lovers who like these features. It is well worth the investment! Stunning presentation in a handsome package, and whimsical menus that reflect the movie. I love it! :-)
Rating:
Summary: Exhaustive bonus materials will keep you busy for days
Review: If I had to write a one-word review of this deluxe 2-disc treatment of the landmark film WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT?, it would be. . ."Wow!" Much like director Robert Zemeckis' BACK TO THE FUTURE trilogy, time has done very little to tarnish the charm of this amazing fantasy film. It's all the more impressive when you realize it was made without ANY computer animation. Every cell of animation (all 80,000 of 'em) was done the old-fashioned way: by hand. But enough about the film itself. It looks and sounds great. The Vista Series release gives you 4 options for viewing the film. In addition to watching the film in your choice of widescreen or full-frame, you can choose from two informative supplemental tracks. One is an audio commentary from the filmmakers, the other is a "Pop Up Video"-style feature which provides a constant barrage of on-screen tidbits about the film. The pop-ups do tend to digress (yes, we know that Tex Avery influenced the style of Roger Rabbit, but do we really need Tex's biography here?), but they are nonetheless informative and often amusing. A well-done half-hour documentary takes viewers behind the scenes. And Charles Fleischer (the voice of Roger) hosts a more kid-friendly featurette that nicely evokes the irreverent style of its subject matter. Plus, there's a fun "Toontown" game you can play with your DVD player's remote control, and a few other featurettes on various technical aspects of the production. Oh, and the 3 original Roger Rabbit shorts that were shown with selected Disney films in the late 80's and early 90's. A very impressive, exhaustive presentation that will answer every question you ever might have about this wonderfully fun and original film.
Rating: 
Summary: Very good movie, entertaining DVD
Review: I am a big fan or Roger Rabbit. It's silly. It's fun. Bob Hoskins is entertaining. I was surprised to watch it again and discover just how well the combination of the animation and the live action photography has held up. It's not completely seamless, but it's not really meant to be. It looks good -- vibrarant -- and it's really neat to watch cartoons manipulate live action props. I had always wondered how that was accomplished. That's what the DVD is for. It will answer that question and any others you may have. It also shows you extensive footage of the live action characters reacting to nothing, reacting to stand-in puppets, and reacting to electronic devices that do some of the animators' work for them. The supplemental material is interesting and well organized. The first disc is essentially for kids and passing fans. It has a full screen version so that little kids won't cry upon seeing black lines. The second disc is for more interested adult spectators. It has the widescreen version and the commentary. I would recommend the DVD for its extras as much as for its actual film content. There is even a fun set-up where you must search for some of the special features. Silly as this sounds, it ended up being kind of fun, partly because they had the good sense to make it an actual search, fraught with disappointing leads that bring you nowhere. And, by the way, open the vault -- it's weird. You'll know what I mean when you get the DVD.
Rating:
Summary: That's what I call one seriously disturbed Toon......
Review: One of the great joys of movie-going is to see a concept, that on-the-face-of-it is so goofy and off-beat that it should never work, but, in the end, does work and works in spades! So it was for me with Who Framed Roger Rabbit. This Vista Series DVD brings the film to us with a crisp & clean picture, THX sound, and a beautifully packaged set of extras that include a very clever interactive menu, plus loads of goodies presented smartly, with humor and surprises. Seeing the film again reminded me how impressed I was with the audacity and accomplishment of Bob Zemeckis and his collaborators on bringing off with care and intelligence, a sharp & funny film that plays to both children & adults. Who would have thunk it? Taking a Chinatown-like story of early Los Angeles with some basis in fact (destroying the Red Line to make way for freeways) complete with murder & intrigue & marrying it to the screwy conceit that cartoon figures, aka Toons, actually lived and worked as live actors and inhabited a section of LA called Toontown is such a manifestly dopey idea that it would take enormous inspiration, intelligence and attention to detail to make it even nominally work. All of those qualities were present, as the extras demonstrate, in abundance here, and the result was movie magic. Made prior to CGI coming into its own, the characters were brought to the screen brilliantly. As one of the animators pointed out, even early CGI was rejected because the film-makers wanted the characters to maintain their cartoon look, only brought into 3 dimensions. The hows and whys of what they did to achieve this magic are worth a look. Anchored by the great casting of Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd and Joanna Cassidy and Charles Fleischer, brilliant technical work, and a clever story strung through with great good humor, dialogue and jokes for kids and adults, this film has some cherished, favorite lines, from Baby Herman's "That's my problem, I've got a 50 year-old lust, and a 3 year-old dinky.", to Jessica Rabbit's: "I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way.", to Eddie on the wayward bullets "Eh, Dum Dums!" This is great stuff. "Toons, gets em every time!" Some kind of classic here, and well worth your while.
Rating:
Summary: The Rabbit Gets Some Justice
Review: Filmmakers have been combining animation and live action since the days of silent film--but 1988's WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT not only bested everything done previously, it set a standard that is unlikely to be surpassed. Although it has been available on VHS and in a mediocre DVD release for quite a few years, the film finally gets the star treatment in this "Vista Series" double DVD release, which includes the film in both pan-and-scan and letterbox formats and an assortment of extras, many of which are quite interesting. The concept and story are well known: cartoon characters are not drawings, but are living entities who work in the film industry, and when Maroon Cartoon star Roger Rabbit is accused of murdering Marvin Acme (Stubby Kaye), he turns to private detective Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) for help. Trouble is, Eddie hates "Toons." After all, one of them offed his brother, and Eddie hasn't been sober since. The concept is a clever one, and the story could have gone in any number of directions--but ROGER RABBIT hops down a completely unexpected trail. Set in 1947 Los Angeles, the film uses classic "noir" elements (and references everything from THE MALTESE FALCON to CHINATOWN); it also makes considerable sly social commentary on racism, with the "Toons" performing in a Cotton Club-like nightclub, literally working for peanuts at the studios, and more or less confined to living in "Toontown," which might easily be read as social ghettoization. And all of these sidelights are interesting and entertaining. But the most attractive thing about ROGER RABBIT is that it is just plain fun to watch. Part of that fun comes from the marvelous performances of Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd (as the evil Judge Doom), and Joanna Cassidy (Valiant's sidekick Delores), who lead the live action cast. Another chunk of the fun is the way in which the film cameos a host of famous cartoon characters, ranging from Betty Boop to Bugs Bunny and the Warner Bro.s gang to Dumbo--and animation buffs will love the fact that Betty Boop and Bugs Bunny, to name but two, are voiced by the artists (Mae Questel and Mel Blanc) who created the character voices in the first place. But the big deal here is the extremely believable way in which the "Toons" fit into the real world. They rendered with astonishing detail and remarkable three dimensionality. It's just an amazing thing to watch. The overall DVD package is a bit odd, for it offers less in the way of bonuses than one might expect. The first disk includes a pan-and-scan version of the film, three Roger Rabbit/Baby Herman shorts, a kid-friendly documentary, and a CD-ROM game; the second disk offers the letterbox film with extras that will appeal to more mature viewers, most particularly on-set shots and a nifty documentary called "Behind the Ears." The upshot is really a one-disk release that has been expanded to two by the trick of cramming both pan-and-scan and letterbox versions into a single package. That's annoying--but even so, this is easily the best release of this film to date. It at gives the rabbit some justice at last, and I give it five stars on that basis.
Rating:
Summary: So good, it could only be better if it was free!
Review: "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" Vista Series Edition is one of the best DVDs in my collection. I was fortunate enough to obtain an advance copy, and I can honestly say: anyone with a TV should get this DVD. Also, a DVD player. I've watched "Roger Rabbit" over and over again on VHS, but I can tell you this: watching the Vista Series Edition was like seeing a whole new movie. The widescreen presentation (enhanced for 16x9 televisions) perfectly showcases the movie's incredible special effects. The razor-sharp image makes the interaction between live-action and animated characters seamless, and you find yourself sucked even deeper "into Toontown" than ever before. The DVD packaging is also top-notch. The Vista Series Edition is made for serious movie fans, and the packaging (with its holo-foil cover and cool "leather-notebook" interior design) makes this DVD a real premium item. There are two discs, just packed with goodies. You'll watch the bonus material as often as you watch the actual movie--I certainly have! Run, don't walk, to buy a copy of "Who Framed Roger Rabbit." Or better yet, just stay here and click "Add to Shopping Cart." But make sure you're getting the Vista Series Edition!
Rating:
Summary: Finally, a comprehensive DVD on Roger Rabbit!
Review: If you haven't seen Roger Rabbit, it's probably because you weren't alive when this movie was first released in 1988. An incredible live-action and animation combination, containing special effects never before attempted in any film, Roger Rabbit took the country by storm and became the must-see hit of the summer. But things weren't so rosy prior to it's release. In fact, Robert Zemeckis claims people were literally walking out of the theater during the initial test screening. If there was ever a movie that could fill a DVD with extras, it would be this one. Unfortunately, the first DVD release of Roger Rabbit was woefully lacking of additional material. I was going to knock a star off in sympathy for the fans who have to buy this movie twice, but I notice Touchstone offers a five dollar rebate for the "upgrade." So what do you get? Well this edition contains two DVD's containing Roger Rabbit in Fullscreen and Widescreen edition plus the following supplementary material: 1) A simultaneous split-screen before and after featurette of the scene where Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) falls off the skyscraper and meets Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse on the way down. 2) A deleted scene dubbed "Pig Head" where Eddie is captured by Toons and released with a giant pig head drawn over him. His only way out, a long shower with a bucket of turpentine to scrub off and wash his animated attachment down the drain. 3) A featurette explaining the use of plastic puppets as stand-ins for the animation and voice acting from Charles Fleischer (Roger Rabbit) and others to give the impression of realism Hoskins could use during filming. Hoskins even went to mime school to learn techniques that would give them impression of throwing 60lbs of weight around, for instance, when all he was doing was moving air. If the judges saw the amount of work Hoskins had go through in order to act and react to these invisible characters, he probably would've won the best actor oscar for the year. Less understandable, is Fleischer's odd insistence on wearing a Roger Rabbit costume throughout the taping. Lou Hirsch (the voice of Baby Herman) refused to wear a diaper. 4) A well done documentary of the making of Roger Rabbit including interviews with director Robert Zemeckis, Bob Hoskins, Charles Fleischer, and the animation and visual effects crew. Words and phrases like "survivor," and "hardest movie ever" become commonplace. SFX house Industrial Light and Magic needed to create over 1000 visual effects shots for Roger Rabbit. Prior to this, the most they ever did was 300 for Return of the Jedi. Long before CGI animation became commonplace, all animation in Roger Rabbit was hand-drawn, right down to the individual frame and a good portion of the interview is devoted to the trials and tribulations the animators went through. Additional material includes the Roger Rabbit shorts that appeared in conjunction with other movies back in the 80's, a DVD game, and a THX optimizer to help dial in your home theater system. The companion booklet isn't much, just brief descriptions of what's on the different DVD's, but you also get autographed headshots of Roger and Jessica Rabbit (total babe!) The menus are intuitive (hosted by Benny the Cab), but I couldn't move up and down the different selections to pick my choice. I don't know if it was a problem with my particular DVD player but the best I could do was select by number, which was problematic as the selections weren't numbered. In spite of this glitch, the "Vista Series" release of Roger Rabbit is a comprehensive collection for fans of the movie as well as movie-making in general. They got it right the second time around.
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