`THE THIEF, COBBLER' AND WILLIAMS.Byline: Roy Bassave Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire Elements of ``The Thief and the Cobbler,'' which today becomes one of the first titles to be released on the new Miramax Family Films Home Video label, may be familiar to fans of Disney's ``Aladdin.'' Nearly 30 years in the making, ``Thief'' was created by Richard Williams, the triple Academy Award-winning animator of ``Who Framed Roger Rabbit.'' Begun in 1968 and finished in 1995, it also may be the last completely hand-drawn animated classic from a major U.S. studio. ``The Thief and the Cobbler'' (1995, G; $14.99 on VHS (Video Home System) A half-inch, analog videocassette recorder (VCR) format introduced by JVC in 1976 to compete with Sony's Betamax, introduced a year earlier. , $29.99 on Laserdisc An earlier optical disc used for full-motion video and interactive training. It was introduced in the late 1970s and became obsolete in the 1990s. Videodisc systems based on a stylus were introduced (see CED), but only the optical-based LaserDisc survived, although never very popular. CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) Rotating a disk at varying speeds. By changing speed depending on which track is being accessed, the density of bits in each track can be made uniform. , Dolby Stereo A digital audio encoding system from Dolby that was first used in movie theaters in the mid-1970s. It recorded four channels of audio and provided a breakthrough re-introduction of the optical soundtrack over magnetic tracks on 35mm film. ; one hour, 12 minutes) is a mystical animated adventure that chronicles the escapades of Tack, voiced by Matthew Broderick, a humble cobbler in the fabled ``Golden City.'' Many plot ideas in ``Aladdin'' were taken from this film, since Disney animators had access to the unfinished version for decades. (Check out Zigzag and you'll see where Jaffar came from.) The plot: When the Golden City is left unprotected after its magical golden treasures are stolen by a bumbling Thief (Jonathan Winters), and the king is betrayed by his sinister adviser Zigzag (Vincent Price, in his final film performance), Tack must join forces with the independent and determined Princess Yum Yum (Jennifer Beals) to thwart advancing armies from the outside. The first wide-screen animated film since Walt Disney's classic ``Sleeping Beauty Sleeping Beauty sleeps for 100 years. [Fr. Fairy Tale, The Sleeping Beauty] See : Enchantment Sleeping Beauty enchanted heroine awakened from century of slumber by prince’s kiss. ,'' production on ``The Thief and the Cobbler'' began in 1968 as Williams sought to produce a family movie that would combine old-fashioned storytelling, sophisticated motion-picture techniques and innovative cell animation. According to art director Roy Naisbitt, ``Williams wanted each scene to be enchanted en·chant tr.v. en·chant·ed, en·chant·ing, en·chants 1. To cast a spell over; bewitch. 2. To attract and delight; entrance. See Synonyms at charm. by something special - light, shadow, perspective - something that at that time had not been tried before. This took a laborious amount of time, and production went on for years.'' |
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