JIM
HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER ($25) is one of the greatest delights ever
brought to broadcast television. The nine episode series brought to life a
group of wonderful, albeit obscure, fairy tales through the magic of Jim
Henson’s Creature Shop. Using film, video and some rather old-fashioned
techniques, JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER proved to be one of the
most visually inventive programs to show up in the late 1980s. A long
sought after commodity JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER arrived on DVD
via Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment. For those unfamiliar with this
charming show, JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER starred John Hurt as
the title character and featured the vocal talents of Brian Henson as The
Storyteller’s amusing canine companion.
The
nine episodes that comprised the limited run series are as follows. The
Soldier And Death is a truly excellent episode in which a soldier
makes some acquisitions that allow him to triumph over death, with
unexpected results. Fearnot is the story of a lad who goes
in search of the true meaning of fear. The Luck Child is a
boy foretold in prophecy; who is destined to become king, much to the
dismay of the wicked sovereign already sitting on the throne. A
Story Short features The Storyteller himself, in a tale in which
his life hangs in the balance over a story.
Hans
My Hedgehog is a personal favorite, that tells of a hedgehog born
to human parents and an enchantment that involves a beautiful princess. The
Three Ravens is the story of a widowed king, an evil witch, and a
princess, who must remain silent to break a curse. Sapsorrow
is an interesting variation on the Cinderella story, with a princess
disguising her true identity, only to meet a prince at a ball. The
Heartless Giant tells of the kindly a kindly prince who releases
an imprisoned giant, but then has to undo the deed and rescue his two
older brothers from the creature. The True Bride is the
story of an orphan girl, who is aided by a lion, against a couple of
trolls that are making her life miserable.
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made the episodes from JIM HENSON'S THE
STORYTELLER available on DVD in the proper full screen aspect ratios
of their original television broadcasts. The quality of the presentations
is merely adequate, owning to the limitations in the shows original
production techniques and the fact that all nine episodes have been
shoehorned onto a single DVD. Everything appears a bit soft and gauzy,
certainly not up to typical DVD standards, but certainly watchable. Colors
have pretty good saturation, but can come across as fuzzy. Digital
compression artifacts are somewhat noticeable, but not particularly
bothersome. The Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack is television caliber stereo
with very mild separations and respectable fidelity. The music sounds fine
and dialogue is always understandable. No other language tracks or
subtitles are provided. The basic interactive menus allow one access to
the standard episode selection and set up features. Trailers for THE
DARK CRYSTAL and LABYRINTH have been included as extras.
JIM
HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER is a series that I am glad has made its DVD
debut, even if the presentation is a bit lackluster. If you are a fan of
the series, you’ll want to check out the disc for yourself.
JIM
HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER ($25) is one of the greatest delights ever
brought to broadcast television. The nine episode series brought to life a
group of wonderful, albeit obscure, fairy tales through the magic of Jim
Henson’s Creature Shop. Using film, video and some rather old-fashioned
techniques, JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER proved to be one of the
most visually inventive programs to show up in the late 1980s. A long
sought after commodity JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER arrived on DVD
via Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment. For those unfamiliar with this
charming show, JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER starred John Hurt as
the title character and featured the vocal talents of Brian Henson as The
Storyteller’s amusing canine companion.
The
nine episodes that comprised the limited run series are as follows. The
Soldier And Death is a truly excellent episode in which a soldier
makes some acquisitions that allow him to triumph over death, with
unexpected results. Fearnot is the story of a lad who goes
in search of the true meaning of fear. The Luck Child is a
boy foretold in prophecy; who is destined to become king, much to the
dismay of the wicked sovereign already sitting on the throne. A
Story Short features The Storyteller himself, in a tale in which
his life hangs in the balance over a story.
Hans
My Hedgehog is a personal favorite, that tells of a hedgehog born
to human parents and an enchantment that involves a beautiful princess. The
Three Ravens is the story of a widowed king, an evil witch, and a
princess, who must remain silent to break a curse. Sapsorrow
is an interesting variation on the Cinderella story, with a princess
disguising her true identity, only to meet a prince at a ball. The
Heartless Giant tells of the kindly a kindly prince who releases
an imprisoned giant, but then has to undo the deed and rescue his two
older brothers from the creature. The True Bride is the
story of an orphan girl, who is aided by a lion, against a couple of
trolls that are making her life miserable.
Columbia
TriStar Home Entertainment has made the episodes from JIM HENSON'S THE
STORYTELLER available on DVD in the proper full screen aspect ratios
of their original television broadcasts. The quality of the presentations
is merely adequate, owning to the limitations in the shows original
production techniques and the fact that all nine episodes have been
shoehorned onto a single DVD. Everything appears a bit soft and gauzy,
certainly not up to typical DVD standards, but certainly watchable. Colors
have pretty good saturation, but can come across as fuzzy. Digital
compression artifacts are somewhat noticeable, but not particularly
bothersome. The Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack is television caliber stereo
with very mild separations and respectable fidelity. The music sounds fine
and dialogue is always understandable. No other language tracks or
subtitles are provided. The basic interactive menus allow one access to
the standard episode selection and set up features. Trailers for THE
DARK CRYSTAL and LABYRINTH have been included as extras.
JIM
HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER is a series that I am glad has made its DVD
debut, even if the presentation is a bit lackluster. If you are a fan of
the series, you’ll want to check out the disc for yourself.