'Nemo' DVD fun not just for kids

By Terry Lawson
Knight Ridder News Service

"Finding Nemo" is the year's biggest movie hit, grossing $340 million at the box office. It is poised to set records for home sales. Advertiser library photo

While studios and distributors have been notoriously tight-lipped about DVD sales figures — at least until they know expectations have been exceeded — sources say Disney planned to ship between 15 million and 20 million copies of the 2-DVD "Nemo" set. That means they expect at least one-third of the 50 million U.S. households that own at least one DVD player to buy "Nemo" between now and New Year's.

So it's no surprise that Disney and Pixar, the pioneering computer animation house that has produced Disney's biggest animated hits of the decade, have gone all-out for the DVD package (Buena Vista), which does an excellent job of combining extra features for adults with games and activities for the young ones.

In "Nemo," a risk-averse clownfish named Marlin (Albert Brooks) teams with a memory-impaired blue tang named Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) to find his wayward son, Nemo, who has ended up in a dentist office aquarium. The film is fine entertainment, if somewhat more formulaic than the "Toy Story" movies or "Monsters Inc." It has been afforded beautiful wide-screen (Disc 1) and full-screen (Disc 2) transfers, and a Dolby Surround Digital EX soundtrack captures every gurgle and burble.

The thought that has gone into the DVD presentation is telegraphed by the clever menus, in which the characters help us navigate through disc one. It includes a commentary by co-directors Lee Unkrich and Andrew Stanton, and co-writer Bob Petersen, which incorporates a branching feature that leads us to seven "deleted" scenes (seen in storyboard form), animation tests and vocal auditions, and a 25-minute "Making Nemo" doc.

The kid stuff is on Disc w, with the standout being an eight-minute look at real life below the sea, led by Jean-Michel Cousteau, who is forever interrupted by Dory and assorted other kibbitzers. There's also a game called Fisherades, plus a read-along story and other educational material, but grown-ups shouldn't leave this disc in the case; it also contains the early Pixar short "Knick Knack," which is not only funny and poignant, but shows us exactly how far computer-generated imaging has progressed in 15 years.

Meanwhile, the week's DVD resurrections of more recent movies are little to be thankful for: "Legally Blonde 2: Red White and Blonde" (MGM) squanders the good will created by Reese Witherspoon's effervescent Elle in the first film by sending her to clean up that mess in Washington, while "Adam Sandler's 8 Crazy Nights" (Columbia TriStar) is notable only for being the first animated Hanukkah comedy that can't decide if it wants to warm hearts or gag throats.