I was actually dreading watching this particular animated film. It didn’t really appeal to me and I wasn’t impressed by the combined star-voiced powers of John Travolta and Miley Cyrus. However, I was pleasantly surprised! It was very entertaining - a real hoot!
Of course, there is a major plot twist (i.e. spoiler warning in this review) at the beginning, within the first few minutes, and I don’t want to give anything away, but it is so cleverly done and such a vital part of the plot, that I might have to mention it. Ok, I will have to make mention of it to write this review. So if you are reading this and haven’t seen the movie, stop reading, go see the movie, and then come back and finish this review.
Bolt, the Super Dog, is voiced by John Travolta. His human, movie star sidekick, is Penny, voiced by Miley Cyrus. However, the big twist is that Bolt doesn’t know he is not a Super Dog and only a mere movie-star dog on a set. None of his powers are real, none of the villains are real.
It is a franchise movie making scheme: those dastardly Hollywood cooperate fat cats have kept the secret from him. Poor little Bolt. The audience really plays into feeling sorry for Bolt, at least I did. I think I said ‘awwww’ as much as I laughed. And there are a lot of laughs in this film, as well as ‘awwww’ moments.
Things go terribly wrong, of course, when Bolt gets shipped to New York and separated from his person, Penny. The bond between Penny and Bolt is not Hollywood magic, it is real, and Bolt knows he must get back to his human. Penny also mourns the missing Bolt, and Bolt is replaced by replaced by a look-alike dog---which is The ‘Put a Pin in That’ Agent’s fault (voiced by Greg Germann). Penny is devastated, and things start to go wrong for the movie franchise.
Both travel quickly to New York and Bolt’s adventures start. He still thinks he has superpowers, but that he is weakened by the pink packing foam he was in (it is his kryptonite). He meets some pigeons who take him to Mittens (voiced by Susie Essman), a fast talking alley cat (think ‘wise guy’ here). On the movie set, the cats were the villains, and Bolt still thinks in those terms, so he immediately takes Mittens hostage and demands that they travel back to LA. Their adventures begin.
Mittens, no intellectual slouch, quickly figures out that Bolt is not a superhero with powers. Traveling together, they pass lots and lots of Waffle Houses and finally met the third member of their group - the lovable but extremely obese hamster Rhino (voiced by Mark Walton).
Rhino is a FAN. He has spent much of his days watching the magic box (television) and knows who Bolt is. He BELIEVES. Rhino’s belief in Bolt, the Superhero Bolt, is true and genuine and this further adds to Bolt’s disillusionment. Nothing like a true fan to inflate the ego, right?
Rhino is definitely the star of this movie, and some of the funniest scenes come with him rolling around in his hamster ball. At one point, he gets out of the ball, but soon makes a comment, “Just let me go get my ball,” and he is rolling around again. Rhino is the magic of this movie - he is a genius character, and props to the screenwriters Dan Fogelman and Chris Williams for coming up with such as original character. Rhino is loveable, fun, fat, but brave and true (he doesn’t seem to be afraid of anything) and he is the true heart of the film.
Eventually, Bolt has to face reality and the truth of things, and it is a hard lesson, but as the three travel west, a true friendship unfolds. It is an unlikely friendship forged of survival but it works. Of course, the ultimate goal is for Bolt to be reunited with Penny, but the real lesson in this film, I believe, is the bond of friendship.
The animation is spectacular - at one point, Rhino’s ball fogs up. Just an example of the great animation, all provided by Blu-ray’s 1080p picture, that you will find. You can see individual hairs on Bolt, and when the make-up bolt on his side starts to fade, Blu-ray makes the smear very distinctive (how can you make a smear distinctive? The conundrum of Blu-ray, its that good).
The Blu-ray comes loaded with bonus features. They include: Super Rhino Short, an animated short film; In session with Travolta and Cyrus, a behind the scenes feature; a music video which includes a song sung by both Travolta and Cyrus; Deleted scenes which include optional introductions; Act, Speak! The Voices of Bolt, which shows the voice cast in session, Creating the World of Bolt, a look at designing the film; Bolt Be-Awesome Mission Game, where you help Bolt defeat the Green-Eyed Man; and the Bolt Art Gallery, a peek at the film’s early concepts.
The Blu-ray set includes 3 discs, disc 1 all of the above mentioned, disc 2 being a digital copy, and disc 3 featuring the genius of Disney: a DVD copy of the film, which is something that Disney has started doing with their children’s movies. Disney Blu-rays include a bonus DVD disc for the kiddies to watch either on their DVD player or in the car. So parents, it’s a great buy: Blu-ray and DVD included in one sweet package. Definitely well worth the money!
Bolt is very entertaining and won’t disappoint. I started watching expecting to be disappointed, but I have to say that Bolt is the best animated children’s film I have seen, even trumping Kung Fu Panda and Walle (and that is saying a lot since I loved both of those movies).
It is just great entertainment and a sure-fired don’t-miss. Wonderful family entertainment that will keep you laughing start to finish. In closing, my 5-year-old wanted me to mention that, in his humble opinion, he thought the ending was too violent. But I will leave that for fans to decide.
Bolt [Blu-ray] is now available at Amazon . Visit the DVD database for more information.
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