A review of Fantastic Mr. Fox on DVD and Blu-Ray, you say? But, they came out over a month ago!

Well played, reader. But, we need to do a review. We promised.

We, of course, love the film. Owning it, being able to watch it over and over offers obvious benefits. The careful details of a Wes Anderson film, of the world inspired by Roald Dahl’s fantasy universe and his real world in Great Missenden in the UK, can be observed, noted, taken in… and the colors are utterly mesmorizing…

Some thoughts:

1) Buy the Blu-ray. It comes with the high-definition and regular ol’ DVD versions, so you can watch even if you don’t have a fancy Blu-ray player and keep the other disc for later. We don’t have the Blu-ray version (d’oh!), but it also features a digital copy and special features, which brings us to point deux…

2) The regular DVD version is comparatively bare-bones. It includes “From Script to Screen,” “Still Life (Puppet Animation),” and “A Beginner’s Guide to Whack-Bat.” The Blu-Ray set also includes “Making Mr. Fox Fantastic,”  “The Look of Fantastic Mr Fox,” “The Cast,” “Bill and His Badger,” and “Fantastic Mr. Fox: The World of Roald Dahl.” These bonus features are similar to, but more extensive than (please share your thoughts), the well-done online documentaries. But, they are absolutely worth having, and it is too bad that the regular DVD disc only includes a few of them.

3) The transfer is absolutely stunning.

4) Minor complaints: the menus are a bore; the layer change comes at an awkward point; and, the “Guide to Whack-bat” is rather useless.

Once we have The Darjeeling Limited Criterion-ized, we will start our Fantastic Mr. Fox campaign.

Richard had this cake created by the Riviera Bakehouse in Ardsley, New York, for his daughter Iliana’s second birthday. Best dad ever? And it is never too early to become a fan of Wes Anderson. Happy belated Birthday, Iliana. “She is a cute little kid.”

(click for larger image)

Our pal Shaun sent along one of his (unofficial and unsanctioned) Team Zissou rings. You can get your own over at his Etsy shop. It comes with a special surprise, but we won’t ruin it.

Well it’s got to be.

Below we have a video of Wes and Noah Baumbach at the New York Public Library (before a great talk), discussing the writing process and filming eachother. More after the break.

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On today’s Fresh Air, Terry Gross interviews Wes Anderson on Fantastic Mr. Fox (thanks @nprfreshair). In all likelihood, it is a repeat of the interview done in November:

On sale today at Zoltron.com, via OMG Posters! and Eoghan.

As you may know, Fantastic Mr. Fox was released today on DVD and Blu-Ray. Below are links to purchase at Amazon, by purchasing through our links you’re helping to support the site.

If you happen to purchase either the DVD or Blu-Ray today, let us know what you think in the comments.

For more information the two releases, take a look at our earlier post, and enjoy!

Toronto-based artist & designer Ibraheem Youssef has created some gorgeous, clever movie poster redesigns for Wes Anderson films, as well Tarantino films. Youssef produces concise illustrations that fall somewhere between elegant and raw.

The first wave of these redesigns has earned a lot of attention around the internet. We here at Rushmore Academy have also taken note, and an exclusive Rushmore//Youssef surprise is in the works. It’s a cliffhanger, so keep checking back for more details.

In the meantime, you can purchase the released-as-yet posters in 2 sizes at Ibraheem Youssef’s shop.

From the Guardian, full interview after the break.

Portrait of the artist: Wes Anderson, film director
Interview by Laura Barnett

What got you started?

Filming thrillers and jungle chases on Super 8 when I was about 10. I was trying to imitate Raiders of the Lost Ark, Star Wars and, above all, Hitchcock. Watching The Man Who Knew Too Much made me realise that there was such a thing as a director.

What was your big breakthrough?

Making my first proper short, Bottle Rocket, with Owen Wilson on 16mm film when I was 23. Nobody was interested in it except [director and producer] James L Brooks, who picked it up and let us turn it into a full-length movie.

What have you sacrificed for your art?

Well, I’m 40 and I don’t have children yet. I do want to have them: perhaps I already would, if I wasn’t so involved with these movies.

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The Playlist blog has uncovered (via Film Music Reporter) a new release of Alexandre Desplat’s Academy Award nominated score from Fantastic Mr. Fox. The collection features unused music from Desplat’s score, recorded at the famous Abbey Road studios. You may remember that a a similar, albeit unofficial release was done of Mark Mothersbaugh’s music for The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic was done during the awards campaign, and that there was an official release of the Seu Jorge sessions done for the latter film aswell.

You can see a full tracklisting, along with links to purchase the collection, after the break.

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