BLU-RAY REVIEW – Disney Into The Woods

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Into the Woods

• DVD Release Date: March 24, 2015
• Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Run Time: 120 minutes
• Number of discs: 1
• Studio: Walt Disney Studios
• ASIN: B00Q7WBFTA

Bonus Features

• Never-Before-Seen Sondheim Original Song: “She’ll Be Back”
• The Cast As Good As Gold
• Deeper Into The Woods
• Filmmaker Commentary
• Music & Lyrics
• And more

Cast, Director, Producers, Etc.
 

• Cast: Meryl Streep, James Corden, Emily Blunt, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Daniel Huttlestone, Tracey Ullman, Lilla Crawford and Johnny Depp, Christine Baranski, Tammy Blanchard, Lucy Punch, MacKenzie Mauzy, Billy Magnussen
• Director: Rob Marshall
• Producers: John DeLuca, Rob Marshall, Marc Platt, Callum McDougall
• Screenplay by: James Lapine
• Music and Lyrics by: Stephen Sondheim
• Based on the Musical by: Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine

 
From the director of CHICAGO and the producer of WICKED comes a modern twist on the beloved fairy tales you thought you knew. Meryl Streep stars in this epic musical saga about daring to venture INTO THE WOODS.
Iconic characters, such as Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel, find their fates intertwined with a humble baker and his wife, whose longing to have a child sends them on a quest to reverse a witch’s (Streep) curse. With an all-star cast, this spellbinding adventure is everything you could ever wish for!
Into The Woods is a movie whose storyline pulls from four fairy tales – Cinderella, Jack And The Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood, and Rapunzel. The characters of The Baker and his wife find themselves unable to conceive. They learn that this is due to a spell that a witch placed on the Baker’s family. Wanting a child desperately they set out to reverse the curse. In order to reverse the curse, the witch instructs the Baker to bring her a blood-red cape, a golden shoe, corn-colored hair, and a milk-white cow. Beginning his quest, the Baker sets off into the woods.
We find all of the characters in the woods, at one point or another, but almost simultaneously. Red Riding Hood is going to see her grandmother. Jack is going to another town to sell the family’s cow. Cinderella is sneaking off to a ball to meet a prince. Rapunzel lives in a tower in the woods, kept captive there by the witch. Watching the different characters interact with each other while attempting to carry out their own missions is interesting.
The movie could have ended when the Baker obtained the four items. But it did not. The remainder of the movie showed us that while characters got what they want, it wasn’t specifically what you might have expected or what they might have necessarily wanted. And, a giant stomped all around the kingdom, angry and seeking vengeance for the death of her lost mate. (this was a part that didn’t serve much purpose for me.)
I’d say the movie deserves its PG rating, as some of the storyline is dark and at times suggestive. This movie is a musical. By that I mean that much of the story is told through song. For me, none of the songs were especially catchy, and after a while everything sounded similar to everything else. If you enjoy musical productions you’ll love this movie.
Here are some clips from the movie.


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