TOM AND JERRY MOVIE: BLAST OFF TO MARS [2005 / 2012] [Blu-ray] [USA Release] Discover Life And Laughs On Mars! In The New Feature-Length Movie Starring Earth’s Favorited Cat and Mouse!
Once content to duke it out here on Earth, the eternally scrappy Tom and Jerry now boldly go where no cat and mouse have gone before when they get trapped on a spaceship bound for Mars. After their mistaken mission goes hilariously out of control, the tables are turned on Tom when, thinking his a giant outer space monster, the Martians attack! But what really bristles the cat's whiskers is Jerry being hailed as the Martians' long-lost supreme leader! Will the duelling duo put their differences aside long enough to save Earth from invasion? They may need all of Tom's nine lives to succeed in this extra terrestrially funny adventure!
FILM FACT: This was the first Tom and Jerry film to be filmed in widescreen and the first one to be filmed in the high-definition format, although the NTSC DVD and the U.S.A. version of 'Boomerang' were in full screen (cropping the left and right of the image), though not pan and scan as the camera stays directly in the centre of the image. Like television shows filmed in high-definition and other films filmed in high-definition, the monitor the animation team would have worked from would have 1.78:1 and 1.37:1 safe areas so that the full screen version would not crop off too much of any important visual elements (such as characters). However, the film is broadcast in widescreen on Cartoon Network in the United States and released in widescreen on the Region A/1 Blu-ray, which is a false statement, as all Warner Home Video Blu-ray Discs from America, are always All Regions.
Voice Cast: Jeff G. Bennett [Dr. Gluckman / Martian Guard #1 / President], Corey Burton [Martian Scientist / Court Attendant / Eyes At Gate], Kathryn Fiore [Peep / Press Girl], Brad Garrett [Commander Bristle / Martian Guard #3], Jess Harnell [Major Buzz Blister / Martian General / Worker #3], Tom Kenny [Grob / Gardener #1 / Martian Guard #2], Bill Kopp [Tom / Press Guy #1], Rob Paulsen [Computer / Worker #1 / Worker #2], Frank Welker [Spike] and Billy West [Major Biff Buzzard / King Thingg / Gardener #2]
Director: Bill Kopp
Producers: Diane A. Crea, Jonathon Tinsay, Joseph Barbera, Robert Clark, Sander Schwartz and Tom Minton
Screenplay: Bill Kopp (written), Joseph Barbera (characters) and William Hanna (characters)
Composers: Julie Bernstein and Steven Bernstein
Image Resolution: 1080p
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
Audio: English: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
French: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Spanish: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio
Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish
Running Time: 75 minutes
Region: All Regions
Number of discs: 1
Studio: Warner Home Video
Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: With the animated film ‘TOM AND JERRY MOVIE: BLAST OFF TO MARS’ [2005] we have America's favourite cat and mouse Tom and Jerry team take inter-species rivalry into outer space in this animated comedy adventure. Tom and Jerry are accidentally carried along when the first manned mission to the planet Mars takes off. Once the spaceship lands on Mars, Tom and Jerry are found out, though the big news comes when they discover the Red Planet is not only inhabited, but some of its crankier citizens have a plan to take over the Earth. With the help of a friendly Martian girl, the cat and mouse must battle a monstrous robot and brave a shower of asteroids in order to save the Earth. ‘TOM AND JERRY MOVIE: BLAST OFF TO MARS’ includes the voice talents of Brad Garrett and Billy West.
The ever-duelling duo takes their quarrel to another planet in this watchable animated feature. The colours are bright, the action is fast and furious, and at least there's no annoying dialogue from the stars, as Tom and Jerry are left behind to fend for themselves when a mission to Mars returns to Earth without them. Writer and director Bill Kopp can be applauded for trying to keep the feel of the earlier cartoons, but the characters are drawn a little too sharply, and the running time is probably just too long for youngsters today to sit still and enjoy, but for me, I thoroughly enjoyed it as the pacing is just as good as you would view in their original cartoon shorts.
* * * * *
Blu-ray Video Quality – As to this 2005 production, the animation and sound are both excellent 1080p image quality. In fact, the animation is so super-glossy and clean that at first I was taken aback by it. It takes a couple of minutes to get used to seeing such a clear Tom and Jerry cartoon if you are used to the classic series, which is often grainy and dark. Here, the colours are bright and varied, with the Mars landscape looking especially vibrant, as animators gleefully ignored all the "rules" of what it should look like and drenched the landscape and sky in just about any colour you can imagine. As someone says in the featurette, "it's no longer the Red Planet, it's the Psychedelic Planet!"
Blu-ray Audio Quality – The sound is also very nice and clear, with a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track that is lively, but not remarkable. Sound is fairly evenly separated into all the front channels, with background noise noticeable only in the space flight sequences.
* * * * *
Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
Special Feature: National Geographic Short: Tom and Jerry’s Martian Mission [2012] [480i / 1080p] [1.37:1] [7:00] The National Geographic short, that lasts around seven minutes in length. Whereas the feature cartoon ignored all the laws of space and conditions on Mars, especially where characters could breathe in space, for instance, until it became a funny opportunity to torture Tom by having him get sucked out a broken porthole, this short cartoon is an attempt to showcase some facts about Mars. The only problem is that it goes all over the map, spending only a few sections touching on a plethora of subjects without ever going in depth into any one of them. We get some random facts about Mars thrown at us, then a lame musical number, then more random facts. Just as something gets interesting, such as the mention of people in Canada who are trying to simulate Mars-like conditions, they move onto something else. Plus, the animation is just awful. It is merely a series of reused bits and cookie-cutter expressions for Tom and Jerry, who alternate between them with bird-like jerkiness. There's a child who appears to them as a hologram (for whatever reason) and dispenses the Mars factoids. Despite some game voice acting for the part of the teen hologram, nothing could make this random group of info sound bites seem interesting.
Special Feature: Step By Step with Tom and Jerry [2012] [1080p] [1.37:1] [8:08] ‘Step-by-Step with Tom and Jerry’ is a closer look at the animation process, with writer-director Bill Kopp and producer Tom Minton talking over the animatics, pencil sketches, and finally the colour-treated versions of two sequences in the animation film. Here you get to see 3 separate sections on how the Tom and Jerry cartoon was produced and they consist of: The Animatic; The Pencil Test and Final Animation.
Special Feature: Zany Making-of Feature: Blasting Off [2005] [480i / 1080p] [1.37:1] [6:58] ‘Blasting Off’ is a family-friendly look at the animation process, featuring interviews with Bill Kopp and the voice talent. You get to see behind-the-scenes on how they produced the animation. First up you get to meet the people behind the cartoon voices and they consist of Kathryn Fore [Peep]; Corey Burton [Martian Scientist]; Brad Garrett [Commander Bristle] and Jess Harnell [Major Buzz Blister]. You also get to meet the people who produced the cartoon and they are Rich Chidlaw [Storyboard Artist]; Bill Kopp [Writer/Director]; Chris Headrick [Storyboard Artist]; Jim Schlenker [Art Director] and Tom Minton [Producer].
Sneak Peaks: ‘Tom and Jerry & The Wizard of Oz’ [Blu-ray + DVD] [1080p] [1.37:1] [1:00]. ‘Tom and Jerry Meet Sherlock Holmes’ [DVD] [1080p] [1.37:1] [0:30]. ‘Happiness Is. . . Peanuts + Snoopy’s Adventure’ [DVD] [480i] [1.37:1] [0:43]. ‘Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated’ [DVD] [1080p] [1.78:1] [0:43]. ‘Happiness Is . . . Peanuts: Snow Days’ [DVD] [480i] [1.37:1] [1:00]. ‘Looney Tunes Platinum Collection Vol.1’ [Blu-ray] [480i] [1.37:13] [1:29]. ‘MAD’ [DVD] [480i] [1.37:1] [0:32]. ‘The Looney Tunes Show Vol.1’ [DVD] [1080p] [1.37:1] [0:59].
Finally, ‘TOM AND JERRY MOVIE: BLAST OFF TO MARS’ is to me a winner, and the price makes it very good value. Fans who loved the classic Tom and Jerry cartoon series will definitely want to give this one a look to see how a modern update should be done. Having a formula isn't always a bad thing, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I thoroughly enjoyed this cartoon comedy romp and so pleased I have added it to my ever increasing Tom and Jerry Blu-ray Collection. Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
