Like many, many other moviegoers, I thoroughly enjoyed the animated Disney-Pixar movie “Inside Out” when it was in theaters less than six months ago. My family and I looked forward to this week’s DVD release, not only so we could purchase a copy of the movie to watch at home but also because we were eager to see the bonus features.
As usual, some of the bonus features were a surprise, but perhaps the most anticipated extra footage was that of the two Pixar shorts: “Lava” and the all-new “Riley’s First Date?” “Lava” is a charming seven-minute love story about a lonely volcano. It was released in front of “Inside Out” in June, and critics have been divided on whether it lived up to vaunted Pixar standards. Some argue that the story-telling is weak, while others defend it, saying the format is just a different type of story-telling.
“Riley’s First Date?” is a brand-new short film, allowing fans to step back into the minds and emotions of 12-year-old Riley and her parents. It wasn’t attached to a movie in theaters; however, some lucky attendees at D23, the ultimate Disney convention held in August in Anaheim, Calif., were treated to a sneak preview of the short. As the title indicates, pre-teen Riley is considering her first date and that sets off all sorts of emotions for everyone who cares about her. The new short is hilarious and rings true for those of us who are parents and those of us who can remember those heady feelings of discovering the opposite sex.
“Lava” is included with all the versions of “Inside Out”: DVD, Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D and digital. “Riley’s First Date?”, however, is only available with the Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D and digital copies.
Other bonus features, as described in the press release, include:
** Story of the Story: Director Pete Docter talks about the evolution of Inside Out, from the ideas and memories that inspired the story through the hurdles, explorations and experiences that helped shape it into the film it is today.
** Paths to Pixar: The Women of Inside Out – Inside Out filmmakers, from voice actors to animators to production crew, talk about their paths, their goals, the challenges they’ve faced and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.
** Mixed Emotions: Inside Out’s filmmakers talk about how they decided which emotions to focus on in the story and how they went about creating each one’s distinct personality and visual identity.
** Mapping the Mind: Inside Out’s artists take you through the years-long process of designing and creating a world everyone knows, but no one has ever seen – the human mind.
** Our Dads, the Filmmakers: Elie Docter (daughter of director, Pete Docter) and Grace Giacchino (daughter of composer, Michael Giacchino) bring you behind the scenes for an inside look at the making of the film.
** Into the Unknown: The Sound of Inside Out: Elie Docter (daughter of director, Pete Docter) and Grace Giacchino (daughter of composer, Michael Giacchino) bring you behind the scenes for an inside look at the making of the film.
** The Misunderstood Art of Animation Film Editing: Learn more about the crucial role of an animation film editor, who helps take the story from its earliest, most exploratory versions, to the final, polished film you see onscreen.
** Deleted Scenes:
— Riley Grows Up – In this scene from a version of the film where the primary relationship was between Joy and Fear (then named Freddie), the emotions begin to notice a change in Riley.
— Joy’s Decline – Joy’s struggles to make sense of the limitations on Riley’s behavior that seem to be springing up at every turn.
— Misdirection – Joy and Freddie encounter a group of Riley’s “retired” imaginary friends, including an early version of Big Bong.
— Construction – Joy is guided through Riley’s mind by a radical non-conformist, Bing Bong, outraged by the demolition of older areas like Imagination Park.
** Commentary: Commentary includes participation from directors Pete Docter and Ronnie del Carmen, and producer Jonas Rivera.
** Mind Candy – A montage of toolkit and interstitials produced for Inside Out.
** Inside Out Trailers – A collection of domestic and international trailers made for Inside Out.
Of these bonus features, all (except the deleted scenes, which are a Disney Movies Anywhere exclusive) are available on the Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D and digital versions of “Inside Out.” The DVD-only version contains just the commentary and “Lave” short as it bonus features.
Which bonus features do you like best? Tell us in the comments!
I guess I’m just a cheapskate…I bought the DVD version; didn’t realize there’d be so much more on Blu-ray. I actually liked the “Lava” short film, and thought there were interesting “camera angles” of the volcano characters to show the “personified” side versus the “natural mountain” side. Some scenes of the film looked almost like actual photography, which I liked a lot. Does anyone know whether or not this story is based on old folklore?