Hair High Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Hair High Blu-ray Movie Review

Hair High is an essential comedy produced, written and directed by Bill Plympton (I Married a Strange Person!, The Tune). From production company Plymptoons. Released on April 17, 2004, Hair High is impressive as a tribute to the 1950s teen romantic-comedy.

Starring Ed Begley, Jr., Craig Bierko, David Carradine, Keith Carradine, Beverly D'Angelo, Hayley DuMond, Eric Gilliland, Matt Groening, Don Hertzfeldt, Peter Jason, Justin Long, Dermot Mulroney, Tom Noonan, Zak Orth, Martha Plimpton, Jay O. Sanders, Michael Showalter, and Sarah Silverman. From associate producers Ron Diamond, John Holderried, and Martha Plimpton. The comedy gem is one of the best features from Plympton.

The story opens with the star quarterback Rod (Dermot Mulroney) and head cheerleader Cherri (Sarah Silverman). The lovable and offbeat scooter-driving Spud (Eric Gilliland) also enters the equation as an unexpected love interest to head cheerleader Cherri. Perhaps love can ignite between the geek and the prom queen? The unusual and fun high school story is a beautiful ode to youth.

The quirky comedy is filled with offbeat animation and visuals including reanimated frogs, enormously high hair, tongues, lips, and tonsils – strange and quirky animated visuals appear throughout the film. The hairstyles remain one of the most impressive elements of the feature- film. The over-the-top and quirky hairstyling is so much fun and there is a lot to appreciate about these beautifully offbeat and charming visuals.

Plympton continues to showcase a wide range of quirks with the story also exploring the Fighting Cocks school team, a chainsmoking teacher whose lungs literally fall out and have to be place back inside of him – in one of the strangest sequences in any Plympton feature-film. These types of unusual and offbeat sequences make the film stand out even more as a fun tribute to high school comedies – meanwhile, creating a distinct style that is unlike anything else out there.

The cinematography by John Donnelly (Mutant Aliens, I Married a Strange Person!) is beautiful and one of the most distinct elements of the production. The cinematography does a good job highlighting the animation and showcasing the most serene elements of the production. There is plenty to love and appreciate about the visuals. The cinematography is essential to the storytelling.

Composed by Hank Bones (Mutant Aliens), Corey Allen Jackson (I Spit on Your Grave), and Maureen McElheron (The Tune, Mutant Aliens), Hair High is a beautiful score. The music plays a big role in the filmmaking. The music is a perfect match to the animation and to the vibrancy of the storytelling too. The score underlines the high-school setting with a sense of aplomb. The music has a distinct style quite unlike anything else seen in high-school teen comedies.

The art direction by Lori Samsel (Mutant Aliens) is fantastic and an essential element of the production. The animation is terrific and there is plenty to love and cherish about the art style. The animation is as quirky and distinct as anything else done by the creative Bill Plympton. The animators did something spectacular with the production and the results are outstanding. Each frame of the film is like a unique work of art offering audiences something memorable and offbeat. The high-school setting allows for plenty of comedic visuals and fun charm.

Bill Plympton delivers one of his greatest feature-films and the filmmaking is a joy to watch. There is a sense of passion behind every frame of the film. Plympton is such a unique talent and he does a lot of wonderful things with the story. From the first to last frame of the story, there is a clear passion and dedication to storytelling. There is no one else out there like Bill Plympton. Few animation filmmakers have a distinct voice as memorable and engaging as Plympton.

Hair High is beautiful romance at its core. The romantic element of the storytelling is one of the best attributes of the film. There is a sense of passion between the leading characters and their romantic storyline. Plympton cares deeply about the characters and their relationship. The beauty of the storytelling is in these characters journey and the fable-like quality that becomes essential as the storyline progresses and enters the last stage of the film. The last act of the feature-film is especially beautiful and surprising – there is a romantic element that is so unusual and quirky that it makes the film stand out as one of the best creations by Plympton.

Hair High Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Deaf Crocodile, Hair High is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.66:1 widescreen. The high-definition transfer impresses in spades. There is a lot to appreciate about the animation and its encoding quality. Outstanding clarity and detail in the presentation. The transfer is filmic and beautiful looking. Background animation and line art are excellent throughout.

One of the best qualities of the video presentation is the high-quality transfer. Physical media offers wonderful picture-quality and presentation strengths. There are significant aspects to the transfer – beautiful details throughout. The line art is well reproduced, too. Physical media also offers audiences superior encoding with higher bit-rates compared to streaming services. Streaming usually provides a more compressed image with fewer bit-rates compared to disc quality. The physical media experience offers distinct advantages that fans, collectors, and home theater enthusiasts can all appreciate.

Hair High Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release is presented in English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. The lossless, high-resolution audio is engaging and wonderful throughout. There are plenty of engaging elements to the audio encode. Fantastic encoding of the audio presentation. Dialogue is well reproduced throughout. There is exceptional audio clarity for the entire presentation. The soundtrack is excellent and engaging throughout.

One of the strengths of physical media is the lossless audio encoding. Streaming video services only offer up lossy (non-lossless) audio encoding. For home theater enthusiasts wanting the best possible audio presentation, there are distinct advantages to the physical media format. The lossless audio allows for superior bit-rates, bit-depth, and more overall clarity. The presentation is all the better as a result. Fans of the physical media format will be pleased with the clarity and resolution of the Blu-ray disc.

Hair High Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The limited edition comes packaged in a gorgeous collectable slip-box. The collector's art box features unique key artwork. The release also comes with a booklet featuring writing about the feature-film.

Distributor Deaf Crocodile continues to reward fans with exceptional collectables and packaging. Collectors appreciate the gorgeous art-work and the fantastic design to the release. One of the greatest physical media distributors, Deaf Crocodile knows what to do to make a first-rate package for fans.

On disc supplements:

Shuteye Hotel (HD, 7:24) is a 2007 animated short.

Horn Dog (HD, 4:46) is a 2009 animated short.

"Horny High" (HD, 10:45) is a visual essay by Celeste de la Cabra.

New Interview with Bill Plympton and Maureen McElheron (HD, 58:10)

Scene Breakdown (SD, 1:58)

Anicam (SD, 6:49)

Film Premiere in Portland (SD, 13:11)

Voiceover Session with Ed Begley Jr. (SD, 6:34)

Voiceover Session with Sarah Silverman (SD, 3:04)

New Commentary Track featuring Adam Rackoff, James Hancock, and Martin Kessler

2004 Commentary Track by Director Bill Plympton

Hair High Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Hair High is an outstanding high-school comedy gem. The animated classic is one of the best films from filmmaker Bill Plympton (I Married a Strange Person!, The Tune). The art style is distinct throughout. A fantastic film and tribute to classic high- school comedies. The storytelling is first rate and there are a lot of wonderful attributes to the offbeat animation and filmmaking. Fans of unique animated films will be especially pleased by the production. It is a joy to see the distinct style and vibrancy of the storytelling.

The Blu-ray release features high-definition video and lossless audio. The release also comes jam-packed with an enormous selection of bonus features – including multiple audio commentaries, multiple animated shorts, a new interview, voiceover sessions, and more. The limited-edition release also includes a nice collectable art-box and booklet. Highly recommended.