Ferdinand Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Ferdinand Blu-ray Movie Review

The not so lonely bull.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 14, 2018

As incredible as it may sound, The Story of Ferdinand, the sweet 1936 children’s book by Munro Leaf, actually created some considerable controversy when it was published, with some critics alleging the story about a bull who would rather sniff flowers than fight in a ring had some kind of nefarious subtext, one that (for some analysts) was intent on poisoning the minds of children. In a very real way, though, The Story of Ferdinand presaged more modern issues of gender roles, though in the case of this particular story, it might be more appropriate to call them “species roles”. Though it’s strangely not that well remembered today, The Story of Ferdinand became a relatively early Academy Award winning short for Walt Disney in 1938, under the title of Ferdinand the Bull. Perhaps because that long ago Disney effort is not that well remembered today, the market seemed ripe for another animated adaptation of Leaf’s heartwarming tale, and Ferdinand was brought to life by Blue Sky Studios and its reliable collaborator Carlos Saldanha, who has had a hand in creating one of Blue Sky’s most iconic franchises, the Ice Age series. Much like Ice Age, Ferdinand offers a gamut of anthropomorphized animals, though Ferdinand takes places in modern times and also has a large array of humans interacting with the various bulls, goats and dogs that populate the film. Leaf’s The Story of Ferdinand was a slight book in terms of actual length, though it had a surprisingly profound subtext about following your heart and not letting the world define who you should be or how you should act, and while it’s perhaps inevitable that Ferdinand rather substantially pads its screenplay to get to a two hour (more or less) running time, the good news is that a lot if not all of the original book’s message actually makes it through the gauntlet unscathed.

I have long thought any number of ways humans interact with animals borders on insanity (not the least of which is consuming them), and so I should probably state up front that one of the most barbaric human activities in my estimation is bullfighting. That may be why The Story of Ferdinand resonated so strongly with me as a child (long before I had become a vegetarian as a teenager), something that made me a bit trepidatious in approaching this film, since I wondered if the typical gonzo humor that tends to inform animated features these days would interfere with Leaf’s message of self worth and self knowledge, and undercut what was perhaps Leaf's subliminal message that violence toward animals is unnecessary (in at least Leaf's opinion).

Now, there's absolutely no doubt that the screenplay by Robert L. Baird, Tim Federle, and Brad Copeland introduces all sorts of silly supporting characters to up the comedic ante, including a somewhat manic goat named Lupe (Kate McKinnon), as well as offering a number of over the top set pieces that tweak things like the running of the bulls in Pamplona or that oft quoted adage about a bull in a china shop. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many of these characters and/or events are nowhere to be found in Leaf's original tale. There's also the expected angsty relationship between peace loving Ferdinand (voiced mostly by John Cena after Ferdinand grows up) and a number of other bulls who are hot to trot to take on a matador in pursuit of some imagined glory. The film actually does utilize one of the book's best remembered elements, Ferdinand getting stung by a bee, in a somewhat different context, though the through line of Ferdinand never quite being the master of his own destiny still underpins the wending and arguably overstuffed plot.

In a way, the perceived subtext of Ferdinand may be seen by some as similar to what some folks alleged was (again, a nefarious) subliminal message in Happy Feet, where “assigned” gender (and/or species) roles were questioned. But divorced from what may be our perhaps post-modernist tendency to obsess over what “proper” behavior is, Ferdinand really just wants to relay the simple message to “be yourself”. This probably inarguably bloated feature does in fact deliver that message, but it tends to bury it with a lot of needless padding that often only distracts from rather than supporting that message.

Note: My colleague Brian Orndorf was considerably less pleased with Ferdinand when it was released theatrically. You can read Brian's thoughts here.

Ferdinand Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Ferdinand is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. As something created and delivered in the digital domain, and then released on disc by the dependable folks at Fox, this is a picture perfect presentation that more than capably supports the computer rendered imagery and an appealingly bright, often even candy colored, palette. The Blue Sky renderers have become expert at delivering "lifelike" (if intentionally "cartoonish") animals, and that's no different in Ferdinand, though I have to say I found some of the fur rendering in this release a little odd looking — for example, sheepdog Paco's fur seems to move in clumps, and Ferdinand himself looks less hairy than rubbery on several occasions. But some of the detail on other elements is really quite impressive, not the least of which is the wonderfully precise (if stylized) flowers that are a regular part of the proceedings. A number of both rural and urban environments bristle with a lot of depth and activity and generally offer excellent detail levels. The palette is really gorgeously suffused throughout the presentation, and some of the farm sequences with Ferdinand in a flower filled field are breathtaking. Fox has delivered a disc without any compression hurdles that I noticed.

Note: Ferdinand was released in 3D, but it doesn't look like Fox will be offering a 3D Blu-ray version of the film.

Ferdinand Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Ferdinand has a consistently immersive DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 track that delivers the goods in any number of sequences, starting with the scuffling of the young bulls as the boyish Ferdinand attempts to protect a lone flower in the holding pen. But a number of standout sequences, both short and long, offer a ton of surround activity. Brief moments like the young Ferdinand escaping captivity by hopping a freight train offer excellent panning effects, and later scenes in Madrid and (even later) in the bullring feature a really full bodied spill of effects washing through the side and rear channels. The Spanish inflected score, as well as Nick Jonas' Oscar nominated anthem "Home", also reside quite comfortably in the surround channels. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly and with excellent prioritization on this problem free and very effective track.

Ferdinand Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Ferdinand's Guide to Healthy Living with John Cena (1080p; 3:09) features the affable WWF star offering health tips which are somewhat undercut by interstitial clips from the film.


• A Goat's Guide to Life (1080p; 3:08) focuses on the Lupe character voiced by Kate McKinnon.


• Ferdinand's Team Supreme (1080p; 3:45) looks at some of the other supporting characters in the film.


• Spain Through Ferdinand's Eyes (1080p; 1:50) is a brief travelogue of sorts.


• Confessions of a Bull Loving Horse (1080p; 3:22) is a kind of silly piece voiced by Fluga Borg.


• Creating the Land of Ferdinand (1080p; 5:49) features Carlos Saldahna talking about some production aspects.


• Anatomy of a Scene: The Bull Run (1080p; 4:03) is one of the more interesting featurettes on the disc, chronicling the production process behind this engaging and chaotic sequence.


• Learn to Dance with Ferdinand (1080p; 7:46) has some fun footage showing how live action models influenced the final animation.


• Ferdinand's Do It Yourself Flower Garden (1080p; 6:49) features "garden educator" (yes, there are evidently such things) Lisa Ely.


• "Home" Music Video (1080p; 3:14)


• Creating a Remarka-Bull Song (1080p; 3:51) features Nick Jonas discussing how he wrote "Home", the Oscar nominated song from the film.


• Art of Ferdinand Gallery

  Concept Paintings (1080p; 1:03)

  Character Designs (1080p; 1:23)

  Locations (1080p; 00:48)

  Stills (1080p; 00:33)

  
  Note: All of the galleries offer either Auto Advance or Manual Advance options. The timings are for the Auto Advance options.

• Theatrical Trailer (1080p; 2:26)

Ferdinand Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Part of any perceived "problem" with Ferdinand may be due to the simple fact that American audiences are regularly offered superb animated features, and that ubiquity of excellence has simply raised the bar generally for this genre, which is certainly not a bad thing. But that said, that higher bar presents a hurdle that Ferdinand only partially is able to master. This is a fun, brightly colored, and relentlessly energetic film, and it features a lot of great voice work, but it's inarguably padded and filled with all sorts of extraneous material that has little to do with the central message. Kids will probably find this pretty delightful, but adults may simply want to revisit the memorable Munro Leaf book. Technical merits are first rate, and with caveats noted, Ferdinand comes Recommended.