Hey There, It's Yogi Bear Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.5

Hey There, It's Yogi Bear Blu-ray Movie Review

Prettier than your average Blu-ray.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III June 7, 2023

A new box of Warner Archive May releases, and what to review first? The exotic Allan Quartermain adventure King Solomon's Mines? Greta Garbo in Queen Christina? Maybe The Courtship of Eddie's Father with little Ronny Howard? Ooo, how about the forgotten parabolic drama The Boy with Green Hair? Nah, let's go with Hey There, It's Yogi Bear, Hanna-Barbera's first foray into theatrical animation that was based on their short-lived but popular TV series The Yogi Bear Show. It's no masterpiece but a perfectly decent way to spend ~90 minutes, retaining most of the franchise's small-screen charm with simple but attractive widescreen animation and a decent little story to match.

Those like me who grew up in the early 1980s know what it's like to see favorite cartoon characters appear on the big screen, but back in 1964 -- when movies had officially gone widescreen only a decade earlier -- the novelty of a hand-drawn TV icon appearing in theaters was still pretty new. Having successfully run in syndication only a few years earlier, The Yogi Bear Show, which followed other H-B animated sitcoms like The Huckleberry Hound Show and of course The Flintstones, still proved a somewhat unlikely candidate for the studio's first feature-length effort. Yet the affable charm of this pic-a-nic basket thief translated well enough to a larger canvas, one that's oddly light on supporting characters but features a more "nationwide" scope that eventually leads Yogi and friends out of Jellystone Park.

Spring is in the air and, after his latest scheme to bilk parkgoers out of their lunch, Yogi Bear (Daws Butler) is caught by fed-up Ranger Smith (Don Messick), who decides to send him off to the San Diego Zoo for good. The crafty bear talks old pal Corn Pone (Hal Smith) into taking his place... but Yogi's persistent suitress Cindy Bear (Julie Bennett) and sidekick Boo Boo (Messick) are unaware of the switch and believe their friend is gone forever. Yogi secretly remains in Jellystone as "The Brown Phantom" so Cindy pulls a stunt to earn her own trip to San Diego, where she's intercepted en route by the conniving Chizzling Brothers (Mel Blanc and J. Pat O'Malley) and their faithful dog Mugger (Messick) -- a clear prototype for Muttley -- who collectively run a travelling circus in need of a successful new act.

Peppered with hit-or-miss musical numbers, the flow of Hey There, It's Yogi Bear stays decently smooth from start to finish despite a few manageable speed bumps, like its somewhat drawn-out setup and the fact that Yogi and Boo Boo are unfortunately separated for most of the journey. Yet its colorful animation and fun characters are an easy highlight, helping the film retain a sense of charm that should still appeal to kids while of course delighting anyone old enough to remember seeing this one in theaters or on TV during their childhood. Warner Archive's welcome new Blu-ray is led by an absolutely outstanding 1080p transfer that helps this film shine like new and, while the extras are predictably light, we at least get a nice episode-length installment of the original show lovingly remastered in high definition.

Hey There, It's Yogi Bear Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Unlike Warner Archive's recent release of Looney Tunes Collector's Choice, Volume 1 (which the boutique label didn't have complete restorative creative control over), Hey There Yogi Bear absolutely nails the fine line between "clean and unprocessed", sporting an absolutely outstanding 1080p transfer sourced from a recent 4K scan of the original camera negative. The film's deceptively attractive animation -- an obvious step up from the earlier TV show and presented in its original widescreen to boot -- has never looked better, with excellent color representation and smooth yet accurate textures that showcase the original linework and cel painting without attempting to correct human mistakes: a smudge here, a few color streaks there. Film grain is likewise ever-present but not distracting, while digital imperfections such as posterization, banding, edge enhancement, and macro blocking are simply nowhere to be found. (A handful of shots appear noticeably softer than others, but this is very likely due to optical zooms.) Overall, it's clearly top-tier work and yet another example of why Warner Archive continues to lead the pack for purist-friendly catalog releases.

As mentioned earlier, the bonus Yogi Bear Show episode "Yogi's Birthday Party" has likewise been restored in HD. Please see screenshots #23-25 for examples of Warner Archive's similarly great work on that short.

Hey There, It's Yogi Bear Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Hey There, It's Yogi Bear often sounds decently robust for a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio stereo track; according to a reliable source, this two-channel mix was created from original audio stems for a theatrical reissue in the '80s, but the main and end title themes remain in their original mono. Not surprisingly, the combined result is a mostly full-bodied sound stage that opens up for music cues and other song breaks. Yet there's sporadic hiss and hollowness that keeps it from achieving perfect marks, although this lossless presentation likely outpaces all previous home video presentations -- and probably even most theatrical showings -- by a decent margin. Either way, dialogue is perfectly understandable, background effects are mixed nicely, and a few dips into relatively low frequencies (again, during the music cues) make portions of this track seem at least a decade or two younger than they really are. It's overall very fine work and in no means disappointing, yet it can't help but run second behind the dazzling visuals.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included during the main feature only, not the bonus episode.

Hey There, It's Yogi Bear Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with vintage poster-themed cover artwork and no inserts. Bonus features are unfortunately minimal, and a theatrical trailer listed on the back cover is nowhere to be found.

• Yogi's Birthday Party (20:24) - This rare full-length episode of The Yogi Bear Show (most episodes were three shorter adventures) first aired on January 6, 1962 as the series finale and features Yogi prepping for a TV appearance that's actually a surprise birthday bash. It's a great send-off that features an all-star lineup of H-B characters including Cindy Bear, Boo Boo, Ranger Smith, Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss, Augie Doggie, Doggie Daddy, and more. Lovingly restored in HD to match the main feature, this makes a fun companion piece that hopefully means we'll get a complete collection of The Yogi Bear Show soon.

Hey There, It's Yogi Bear Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As Hanna-Barbera's first of several big-screen animated adventures (and followed by 1966's The Man Called Flintstone, presumably in the works for an eventual Blu-ray release), Hey There, It's Yogi Bear is a modest but entertaining effort that fans of the studio should enjoy. You don't have to wear nostalgia googles for this one... but anyone who saw it in theaters or on TV will be delighted with Warner Archive's new Blu-ray, featuring a top-tier 4K-sourced restoration and even a bonus episode of The Yogi Bear Show (likewise hopefully on deck for release). Recommended.