Wonderful Addition to DVD Library for my Children!
Added 11/10/2009
Great job by the seller! Package arrived as described and professionally wrapped. The DVD was in perfect working order with no flaws! Would definitely order again from this seller!
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Rated G - really? A terrifying movie
Added 11/6/2009
I read so many great reviews of this DVD and decided to get a copy for my children. This is a G -rated movie, but is scary as hell. The witch, the Harpy,and the overall storyline is very scary and not kid friendly at all. I still have not seen the entire movie because my children were terrified when the Harpy ate the witch, and took its time doing so. Had to turn it off. Should be at least rated PG or PG-13. This is no Smurfs movie.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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"The Last Unicorn" - an enduring classic
Added 11/4/2009
4.5* I love Peter S. Beagle's works, especially "The Last Unicorn", "Tamsin", and "A Fine and Private Place". I watched this a long time ago, and remember loving the story, and today I was finally able to share it with my 5-year-old daughter. In the screen adaptation (the screenplay was also written by Peter S. Beagle), Mia Farrow plays the Last Unicorn who inadvertently learns that she is the last of her kind. Curious to discover the fate that has befallen the rest of the unicorns, the last unicorn learns from a Butterfly (Robert Klein) that an entity known as the Red Bull has herded the unicorns to the ends of the earth. Unfortunately, she finds herself captured by the witch Mommy Fortuna (Angela Lansbury)as part of the witch's Midnight Carnival. The unicorn is able to escape with the help of a novice magician Schmendrick (Alan Arkin) and proceeds to the seaside castle of King Haggard (Christopher Lee) and meets the dreaded Red Bull, a fire elemental, but is once again saved by Schmendrick when she is transformed by his magic into a mortal woman, Lady Amalthea. Here is where Amalthea's/the last unicorn's quest gets really interesting and complicated, for it is at the castle of King Haggard that Amalthea meets and eventually falls in love with Haggard's adopted son, Prince Lir (Jeff Bridges).
The rest of this magical story explores what happens to Amalthea and Lir, will their mortal love survive the revelation of Amalthea's true identity, and will Amalthea fulfill her real quest to find the rest of the unicorns, and defeat the evil Red Bull? The story itself is magical, but what makes it compelling are the various themes explored, regarding friendship, self-discovery, faith, courage, love, and mortality. The anime (Japanese animation) is beautiful, and I will always consider this a classic. The songs are also melodious and meaningful. Highly recommended, though I would advise caution for the under-5s since there are some scary depictions in this movie.
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The are no happy endings, because nothing ends.
Added 9/29/2009
Probably one of the most cherished non-Disney animated family movies from the last century, The Last Unicorn was based on the book of the same name by Peter S. Beagle. This was one of the few theatrical movies produced by Jules Bass and Aurthur Rankin Jr., better known as Rankin/Bass, the creators of nearly every Christmas holiday TV special, and other hit shows like Thundercats and Silverhawks.
Set sometime during the middle ages, a unicorn discovers from a passing butterfly that she is the only one left in the world. She leaves her forest in search of them, but gets captured by a witch for her travelling carnival. The unicorn is set free by the novice magician Schmendrick. Along the way, they are accompanied by the ex-bandit wench Molly Grue. The trio make their way to realm of King Haggard where the other unicorns are supposed to be. Once there, Haggard's menacing Red Bull appears to drive the unicorn into the sea. In order to protect her, Schmendrick taps into his true magic and turns the unicorn into a human female, which makes the Red Bull give up on her. Our heroes then enter into Haggard's castle under the guise of looking for work, with Schmendrick claiming that the now-human unicorn is his niece, Amalthea. Schmendrick keeps Haggard entertained, while Molly searches for a way into the Red Bull's lair which is supposed to lead to the missing unicorns. Haggard's son Lir has meanwhile has fallen in love with Amalthea, believing her to be just a beautiful girl, while at the same time Amalthea is growing fond of him and growing to forget her former life as a unicorn. Molly and Schmendrick eventually find the secret entrance, and with Alamathea and Lir into tow, they confront the Red Bull. Amalthea is changed back into a human, who because of her newfound human feelings is able to defeat the Red Bull and free all the unicorns that were trapped in the sea. Amalthea the unicorn then heads back for her forest, with Schmendrick and Molly apparently hooking up together in the end.
This film features some of the best animation by the Rankin/Bass group since their animated version of The Hobbit. The studio responsible for most of the actual animation though was Topcraft, whose work also includes the anime movie Nausicaa. The character designs are very unique and original too. The movie features an odd assortment of voice actors, like Mia Farrow doing a wonderful job as the unicorn, Christopher Lee as the mad Haggard, Alan Arkin as indifferent Schmendrick, and Rene Auberjonois steals his scene as a laughing skeleton. There have been two DVD releases of this movie, the original, and the 25th Anniversary Edition which has way better quality. If you haven't seen this yet, treat yourself to a truly epic animated fantasy.
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5 stars purely based on story...
Added 9/24/2009
I have to start by saying that I saw this movie for the first time as a small child and have never, and will never forget it. It seems silly to say that this movie shaped my life, but it definitely has!! The story is beautiful, and I absolutely recommend the book by Peter Beagle. What a well-written, poetic, heartbreakingly good story. The movie is animated beautifully and the actors did a superb job with the voices, especially Mia Farrow!
That said, the DVD version of this movie sucks. I had the VHS copy and lost it, and bought this DVD to replace it. Boy, was I disappointed. Everyone else has pointed out the problems--crappy quality, poor menu options, etc. But, if you've never seen the movie before, and the DVD is your only option, I would recommend overlooking the problems with quality just to see the movie.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Wonderful Addition to DVD Library for my Children!
Added 11/10/2009
Great job by the seller! Package arrived as described and professionally wrapped. The DVD was in perfect working order with no flaws! Would definitely order again from this seller!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Rated G - really? A terrifying movie
Added 11/6/2009
I read so many great reviews of this DVD and decided to get a copy for my children. This is a G -rated movie, but is scary as hell. The witch, the Harpy,and the overall storyline is very scary and not kid friendly at all. I still have not seen the entire movie because my children were terrified when the Harpy ate the witch, and took its time doing so. Had to turn it off. Should be at least rated PG or PG-13. This is no Smurfs movie.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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"The Last Unicorn" - an enduring classic
Added 11/4/2009
4.5* I love Peter S. Beagle's works, especially "The Last Unicorn", "Tamsin", and "A Fine and Private Place". I watched this a long time ago, and remember loving the story, and today I was finally able to share it with my 5-year-old daughter. In the screen adaptation (the screenplay was also written by Peter S. Beagle), Mia Farrow plays the Last Unicorn who inadvertently learns that she is the last of her kind. Curious to discover the fate that has befallen the rest of the unicorns, the last unicorn learns from a Butterfly (Robert Klein) that an entity known as the Red Bull has herded the unicorns to the ends of the earth. Unfortunately, she finds herself captured by the witch Mommy Fortuna (Angela Lansbury)as part of the witch's Midnight Carnival. The unicorn is able to escape with the help of a novice magician Schmendrick (Alan Arkin) and proceeds to the seaside castle of King Haggard (Christopher Lee) and meets the dreaded Red Bull, a fire elemental, but is once again saved by Schmendrick when she is transformed by his magic into a mortal woman, Lady Amalthea. Here is where Amalthea's/the last unicorn's quest gets really interesting and complicated, for it is at the castle of King Haggard that Amalthea meets and eventually falls in love with Haggard's adopted son, Prince Lir (Jeff Bridges).
The rest of this magical story explores what happens to Amalthea and Lir, will their mortal love survive the revelation of Amalthea's true identity, and will Amalthea fulfill her real quest to find the rest of the unicorns, and defeat the evil Red Bull? The story itself is magical, but what makes it compelling are the various themes explored, regarding friendship, self-discovery, faith, courage, love, and mortality. The anime (Japanese animation) is beautiful, and I will always consider this a classic. The songs are also melodious and meaningful. Highly recommended, though I would advise caution for the under-5s since there are some scary depictions in this movie.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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