Disclosure: I was provided with info and a sample for this post. The words and opinions expressed in this article are strictly of my own.
The BOXTROLLS are coming to Blu-ray 3D and Blu-ray Combo Pack including Blu-ray, DVD & DIGITAL HD with UltraViolet this Tuesday (January 20, 2015) from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment! BOXTROLLS features star voice performances from Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley, Isaac Hempstead Wright (Game of Thrones), Elle Fanning (Maleficent), Toni Collette, Jared Harris (Mad Men), Nick Frost (The World’s End), Richard Ayoade (The Watch), Tracy Morgan (30 Rock), and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead). The film is an adaption of Alan Snow’s Here Be Monsters! book and is from the creative works of animation studio LAIKA, the makers of the Academy Award nominated movies Coraline and ParaNorman. The stop-motion animated film is undeniably a real entertainment treat and a fantastic blockbuster movie to add to your family library of movies.
BOXTROLLS has been nominated with 13 Annie Awards including Best Animated Feature, Outstanding Achievement in Directing in an Animated Feature Production, Outstanding Achievement in Writing an Animated Feature Production, Outstanding Achievement in Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production, Outstanding Achievement in Character Animation in a Feature Production, Outstanding Achievement in Animated Effects in an Animated Feature Production, Outstanding Achievement in Character Design in an Animated Feature Production, Outstanding Achievement in Production Design in an Animated Feature Production, and Outstanding Achievement in Storyboarding in a Feature Production. Additionally, the film has also received a Satellite Award nomination for Best Animated or Mixed Media Picture!
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The Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and Blu-ray™ 3D Combo Pack include a Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital HD with UltraViolet™.
- Blu-ray™ unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring 6x the picture resolution of DVD, exclusive extras and theater-quality surround sound.
- DVD offers the flexibility and convenience of playing movies in more places, both at home and away.
- DIGITAL HD with UltraViolet™ lets you watch movies anywhere, on any device. Users can instantly stream or download movies to watch on iPad®, iPhone®, Android™, smart TVs, connected Blu-ray™ players, game consoles and more.
Bonus Features Exclusive to Blu-ray™ Combo Pack & Blu-ray 3D™ Combo Pack
- PRELIMINARY ANIMATIC SEQUENCES
- Play with Commentary by Directors Anthony Stacchi and Graham Annable
- Baby In The Trash
- Eggs In The Underworld
- Man On A Horse
- Trubshaw’s Inventorium
- Cheese Shop
- Tea And Cheese
Bonus Features on Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, Blu-ray 3D™ Combo Pack and DVD
- DARE TO BE SQUARE: BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE BOXTROLLS
- VOICING THE BOXTROLLS
The tremendously talented cast members of The Boxtrolls discuss what it’s like to voice an animated puppet, what each actor brought to his/her role, whether their personalities were similar to their characters, and more.
- INSIDE THE BOX
The directors, producers, and creative supervisor of character fabrication Georgina Hayns share the challenges of crafting characters who are inside a box.
- THE BIG CHEESE: ALLERGY SNATCHER
The directors and producers are joined by Brian McLean, director of Rapid Prototyping, to discuss how the animation studio LAIKA creates the faces for their puppets. The big story here – literally! – is how Snatcher’s face changes shape due to his cheese allergy.
- DECONSTRUCTING THE DANCE
Discover how LAIKA combined traditional stop-motion animation with visual effects in order to create the beautiful ballroom dance sequence – and how costume designer Deborah Cook met the challenge of creating costumes that could flow during a dance scene.
- THINK BIG: THE MECHA DRILL
Standing 5 feet tall and weighing over 75 pounds, the Mecha-Drill is the largest stop motion puppet/prop ever created by LAIKA. Follow its creation from design to completion.
- FEATURETTES
- THE NATURE OF CREATION
- TROLLS RIGHT OFF THE TONGUE
- ALLERGIC TO EASY
- LET’S DANCE
- ON THE SHOULDERS OF GIANTS
- FEATURE COMMENTARY WITH DIRECTORS Anthony Stacchi AND GRAHAM ANNABLE
TECHNICAL INFORMATION –BLU-RAY 3D™
About BOXTROLLS
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The Boxtrolls, a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who have lovingly raised an orphaned human boy named Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead-Wright) in the amazing cavernous home they’ve built beneath the streets of Cheesebridge. When the town’s villain, Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley), comes up with a plot to get rid of the Boxtrolls, Eggs decides to venture above ground, “into the light,” where he meets and teams up with fabulously feisty Winnifred (Elle Fanning). Together, they devise a daring plan to save Eggs’ family. Directors: Anthony Staachi and Graham Annable
BOXTROLLS is Deliciously Creative!
Of course I missed BOXTROLLS in the theaters back in September and had to wait for its arrival on DVD! This is the trend of most my movie viewings! Knowing the film is from the same makers of the breathtaking stop-motion movies Coraline and ParaNorman, as soon as I was offered to review it I snatched up a 3D Combo Pack. For those of you who don’t have 3D viewing capabilities, I have to tell you that you are completely missing out on all the spectacular morsels and little eye-popping tidbits movies such as this one has to offer. Whenever a flick is presented on 3D I always grab it, since the depth and amazing screen protrusions just adds a fun twist on the film. Seriously, I can watch a film on regular Blu-ray and then on 3D Blu-ray and notice tons of things I didn’t catch the first time. Not to mention, the 3D Combo Pack gives you the most bang for your buck in entertainment!
Movies such as BOXTROLLS are a delightful rarity you find in Hollywood these days! The thought of the work, stress, and creativity that goes into a stop-motion film is mind-boggling! Unlike computer generated animation, stop-motion films are made with tiny puppets that are moved a fraction of an inch at a time and then photographed to string together a movie, which take YEARS to make. For instance, the creators of BOXTROLLS were able to complete 1 to 2 MINUTES of footage per week! The overall production took about a year and a half, but all the stuff leading up to the actual execution of shooting the film demanded six to seven years of building. The results—a beautiful and highly extraordinary style of storytelling different than anything else you have ever experienced.
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The Story
BOXTROLLS is set in 1805 in the fictional European town Cheesebridge where the unspeakable has happened! A family of trolls living underground wearing boxes is believed to have stolen a baby, eaten him, and using his adorable baby bones to pick their teeth with! The rumor is escalated by ARCHIBALD SNATCHER, an out of shape, big, greasy haired exterminator willing to rid the town of the pesky grotesque monsters for a coveted white hat and a seat at LORD PORTLEY-RIND’s cheese eating table. Portley-Rind, threatened by the thoughts of having to say goodbye to his Brie, Cheddar, and other precious cheeses decides to strike a deal with SNATCHER to give him what he wants as long as every BOXTROLL in Cheesebridge is destroyed with proof.
Soon you discover the BOXTROLLS are just mischievous little creatures with pudgy blue hands and yellow glowing eyes that are called for the cardboard boxes they wear. They scurry quickly through the streets and alleyways at night looking for garbage and mechanical stuff to snatch up to build strange machines. Traveling in packs, the BOXTROLLS work together using their boxes as tools and props to bring back the rubbish collected to their cavern within the sewers. This is where the BOXTROLL named Fish has taken the 2 year old human boy, named him EGGS, and is raising him as one of the trolls. The misunderstood monsters live on a diet of mouthful of ladybugs and slugs and enjoy listening to a 78 rpm album by the QUATTRO SABATINO. The quirky creatures seem to only have one rule…NEVER TAKE OFF THEIR BOXES!
Fast forward about 9 years to when EGGS is now approximately 11 years old. EGGS is still a happy boy rocking out to the music machine with the Quattro Sabatino song. He plays the washboard while Fish plunks away on the saw. The only difference is the jar of buttons and the cowbells have been added to the music contraption. EGGS has also learned the art of smashing lightbulbs with a skillet adds a wonderful sound to the song.
EGGS is now big enough to join the BOXTROLLS on their garbage collecting mission and heads out of the hidden cavern through the pneumatic tubes along with Fish and Shoe. However, the town is a dangerous place for the BOXTROLLS, since SNATCHER and his Redhats are actively patrolling the alleys to smash boxes and collect BOXTROLLS. The once large pile of sleeping BOXTROLLS has dwindled down to a small few as more and more BOXTROLLS are kidnapped.
Saddened by his family slowly dissipating, EGGS decides to befriend WINNIE (LORD PORTLEY-RIND’s daughter) to set the story straight about the BOXTROLLS being harmless little creatures. The two set out to discredit SNATCHER and get back his family of BOXTROLLS.
Loved it!
The film is heartwarming with comical attributes throughout! A very entertaining movie able to be enjoyed by the entire family! We loved it! The 3D version has wonderful depth and grabs you inside the movie. However, the protrusions are far and few between with a jar of leeches being thrown out at you. Oh…make sure to keep watching past the credits for an extra special treat!
BOXTROLLS ACTIVITIES AND RECIPES
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