Search - Urusei Yatsura - Movie 2 - Beautiful Dreamer on DVD

Wonderful movie, terrible DVD...

Christopher Jenks | Springfield, OH USA | 06/14/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is an awesome movie. Five stars, all the way. Unfortunately, this DVD must have been taken from one of the worst film elements in existence. Three stars, at best.

When this disc was first announced, I assumed that CPM would license the newly-restored, anamorphic widescreen video released on the Japanese R2 DVD. What CPM chose to do was clean up the cropped-to-fullscreen video from the original R1 DVD and release that for this edition. Proof? Check out the 2:15 position, close to the edge of the screen. That red dot that appears repeatedly throughout the movie was on the first release, too. Also note the hard subtitles for signs are same font/color as the older disc, while the soft subs have been improved for better visibility.

Just to rub salt into an open wound, the original Japanese trailer on this disc *is* widescreen. Aarrghh!

On the plus side, the ending is complete now, including the Japanese credits and the full version of "Ai wa boomerang." Sweet! I think the subtitle translation was updated, too.

I was hoping for a new dub, but that was never going to happen. Not for a twenty year old anime movie with one U.S. release already. Even if the existing dub sucks. Even if the movie is the GREATEST film ever.

Overall, if you have the first release, don't bother with this one unless you're obsessive and/or a rabid Urusei Yatsura otaku. If you don't have the original, buy it NOW. You'll enjoy it."

Great starter for those new to the series

Christopher Jenks | 02/07/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is simply one of the best anime movies I have seen. It combines great characters with a great story that throws you off just as you think you have it figured out. Beautiful Dreamer is not only fun for veteren Urusei Yatsura fans, but is a fantastic way to introduce people to the series. Granted, very few (two, in fact) alien characters are used, but for this plot the others wouldn't really fit anyway. This movie focuses mainly on our earthbound heroes as they struggle to find out what the heck is going on with their world. Trust me. This one's lotsa fun, with just the right blend of mystery and comedy to make a winner."

Sorry for non-japanese speaker fans.

O.T.A. | 12/05/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When I watched this movie in 1984. I stayed in the cinema for more than ten hours straight to watch the same movie three or four times that day. (In Japan, once you paid admission you could stay in the cinema until you were physically out of the cinema.) 21.5 years and a few movies later, I have never seen any movie that gives me more goosedumps that this movie. And many animation fans over 30 years old and a few greatest animation creators in Japan agree with me, including original Gundams' creator.

Urusei Yatsura was popular even when it was on the comics, so when it was recreated as TV series in the early 80s, it had got experienced voice actors (dubbers?). And without their unique voices, expressions, dialogs, and strange dialects you are experiencing this movie only by 50%. I watched the english version and I was impressed the work of translation, however unless you know the language, it's difficult to enjoy every aspect of it."

Amazing

Thomas Harding | murfreesboro, TN USA | 03/05/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"My friend first saw this film back in '98 when Sci-Fi channel aired it on their "Saturday Anime" programing block; for two weeks he could not stop yammering on about it. Four years later he picked up this DVD and called me over to watch it. I had seen some of the TV series before, but Movie 2 amazed me. It captures all the slapstick elements of the show, but they flow with in the context of a deep plot where the same day repeats over and over, much like the film Groundhog Day. As clues begin to surface that might shed some light on the strange occurances, people begin to disappear.

This film is probably the most popular title in the UY universe and for good reason. With the exception of a few characters, a viewer can jump in totally ignorant to the prior portions of the series. Also, it has a nice balance to the light hearted antics of the TV show, but combines that beautifully with the deeper existentialist trappings of the plot. The ending is satisfying, although the home stretch does drag some. All in all its a great buy for some one who has had some experience with anime, but its not a good starting point for the uninitiated.

This DVD is the only title not put out by Animiego, but it was translated for CPM by the same team, so the continuity and translation is exicelent. This also makes it the only one that is dubbed. its only in fullscreen which might bother some people."