Frederick Ashton's Tales of Beatrix Potter Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.5

Frederick Ashton's Tales of Beatrix Potter Blu-ray Movie Review

Frederick Ashton's charming adaptation of several Potter stories should delight children of all ages.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 7, 2010

Quick: can you name the oldest example of character licensing? The multi-media onslaught which modern parents have become accustomed to with everything from Transformers to every Disney character known to Man may seem like a relatively recent phenomenon, but would it surprise you to know that the first character patent and resulting licensing deal stretches back over a century, to 1903? That makes it pre-Mickey Mouse, probably one of the more frequent guesses in this trivia quiz. None other than Peter Rabbit, the erstwhile bad boy of the animal world, perhaps the most famous creation of British author Beatrix Potter, actually holds that singular claim to licensing fame, as Potter patented the soft toy design of Peter in 1903, a testament not only to Potter’s business sense but also to her prescience that a literary career could have “side benefits,” as it were. Anyone who has seen the recent Renee Zellweger film Miss Potter has at least some idea of the trials and tribulations Beatrix had to go through to even get the actual literary side of that literary career off the ground. A sheltered and literally largely uneducated child, Beatrix grew up in an era when women were supposed to be seen and not heard, and certainly not read. She managed to overcome not just the strictures of her nuclear family (which frowned on her every attempt to “better herself”), but of the late 19th century view of society in general about women and their accepted and approved roles, largely limited to being wife and mother.

Potter of course managed to forge an incredibly successful, unimaginably lucrative, life culled from stories she had begun as a lark for a childhood friend who had been ill. Graced with her equally fanciful illustrations, Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit became an almost instant publishing sensation when it was finally picked up by major publisher Frederick Warne in 1902, after Potter had initially self-published the piece. For the hundred-plus years since then, Potter’s work has never been out of print and has, in true multi-media licensing fashion, spread out into any number of adaptations, including a lovely 1971 live action British ballet film choreographed by the iconic Frederick Ashton, danced by his Royal Ballet troupe. In a nice piece of reverse producing, that film version was in itself adapted “back” to a stage version, which is presented on this charming Blu-ray from Opus Arte.

The Mouse Waltz gets underway.

Even those who consider themselves well schooled in the history of classical music might pause for a moment or two when asked who John Lanchbery was. That’s especially true of the somewhat chauvinistic American aficionado who tends to be cognizant of only the “biggie” names that permeate popular playlists and concert repertoires. As David Nice attests in his liner notes to this release, even British audiences sometimes haven’t the faintest clue who this composer and arranger was, until his most famous piece, La fille mal gardée, is mentioned. This brilliant 1960 ballet, done in conjunction with Ashton, based largely on themes of Hérold, catapulted Lanchbery into the front rank of ballet arrangers. Lanchbery never really attained renown as a composer in his own right, though his always imaginative reworkings of other composers’ pieces became justly famous, especially his two most famous pairings with Ashton, La fille and, over a decade later, this wonderfully inventive mélange of tunes by people like Arthur Sullivan for Potter. It’s easy to pooh-pooh Lanchbery’s achievement by claiming the original composers deserve most, if not all, of the credit, but Lanchbery took sometimes very unpromising material, indeed mere scraps of melody by long forgotten composers, and wove it into an effervescent and cohesive piece which adds immeasurably to the allure of Tales of Beatrix Potter. The score, largely comprised of waltzes, is childlike without being soporific, and is richly and often magically orchestrated, gracing and supporting the dance without ever indicating.

Ashton deals with the stories almost anecdotally, with separate scenes for such renowned characters as Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, Jemima Puddle-Duck, Pigling Bland, Jeremy Fisher, Squirrel Nutkin, and, of course, Peter Rabbit. With a simply beautiful production design by Anthony Dowell and Christine Edzard, aided by fanciful masks by Rostislav Doboujinsky, these Tales bring Potter’s evocative illustrations fully to life in three dimensions. The choreography is surprisingly complex, considering the bulky costumes most of the dancers are wearing, but is always classically refined in the best Ashton manner. Ashton’s sense of humor also shines through the bulk of these pieces, which should help attract younger eyes to an idiom that may seem awfully passé to kids raised on the instant hyperkinetic world of video games and the like.

Though it might seem like a secondary reason for recommending this release, this production preserves Lanchbery’s score in toto. The 1971 film soundtrack LP omitted quite a bit of Lanchbery’s contribution, and fans have long clamored for a more complete release of one of the composer’s most lauded achievements. While the film is available on SD-DVD, this Blu-ray offers perhaps a more visceral, “live” experience, augmented by beautiful playing by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia under the able direction of Pual Murphy.

Ballet is probably too often seen as the refuge of the intellectual elite, an art form for snooty types who look down on the rest of us mere mortals. Ashton helped reintroduce a modicum of fun to the proceedings in such famous sequences as La fille’s Clog Dance. That sense of exuberance is fully on display in these Tales of Beatrix Potter, and the child in all of us should easily respond accordingly.

Frederick Ashton's Tales of Beatrix Potter Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Tales of Beatrix Potter waltzes onto Blu-ray with an exceptional looking AVC encoded image in 1080i and an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. My only complaint about the presentation here is the occasionally dark and shadowy stage lighting, which robs some of the action of its magic. Even with the less than optimal lighting, the Blu-ray delivers splendid contrast and excellently rich and inky black levels. The best part of the presentation is the gorgeous detail on the costumes and mask. Literally every hair on the furry costumes is there to be counted, with no resolution problems to report. Colors are rich and well saturated, though a number of the costumes tend toward lighter pastels. The entire production seems (rightly of course) to have sprung from Potter's own illustrative pen, and so we're awash in water-colored hues that may not be over the top and robust, but which are wonderfully shaded and intimate. If you give yourself to the very unique world of Potter, which is admirably recreated here, you won't be disappointed.

Frederick Ashton's Tales of Beatrix Potter Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

John Lanchbery's bubbly score comes fully alive in two lossless options, a DTS-HD MA 5.1 and an LPCM 2.0. Truth be told, there's not a wealth of bombastic low end on either of these choices, but that's more a function of Lanchbery's orchestration than the recordings themselves. What is here is remarkably supple and wonderfully translucent. Lanchbery crafted a delicate score which requires a nuanced touch, and Murphy's conducting is excellent, with just the right amount of rubato and dynamic flexibility. The surround channels here are sparsely but effectively utilized to recreate the beautiful hall ambience of the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Fidelity is top notch, with absolutely nothing to complain about. The 2.0 fold down does an excellent job in its own right, but I recommend the 5.1 mix for its spacious recreation of the live theater experience.

Frederick Ashton's Tales of Beatrix Potter Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Only an unnecessary Illustrated Synopsis (3:58) is offered on the disc. This is odd for a couple of reasons: anyone who can't follow the action in this ballet needs to have their head examined, and secondly, the ballet itself barely runs over an hour. A featurette on the background of the piece, or even better a biography of Lanchbery, would have been appreciated. The insert booklet essay by Nice is, well, nice.

Frederick Ashton's Tales of Beatrix Potter Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Tales of Beatrix Potter fairly oozes charm. Ashton's inventive choreography, Lanchbery's magical pastiche score, and the childlike wonder infusing the production design all add up to one of the most enjoyable ballet outings you're likely to ever experience. This is an experience sure to delight children from 2 to 92.