Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		4.0

The Swan Princess Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 20, 2020

A cursed princesses, a handsome prince, a royal marriage ball, an evil sorcerer: The Swan Princess puts together bits and pieces of familiar fairy tale (and musical) refrains but to its credit puts them together in a fairly unique way. The film's story is loosely based on the Tchaikovsky ballet Swan Lake though plenty of liberties are taken with the characters and story lines to not necessarily redefine the material but rather to make it fit into a colorful, mostly cheerful animated realm. While not entirely Disney caliber, though clearly influenced by Director Richard Rich's time with the studio, The Swan Princess offers cohesive, coherent storytelling in a pretty package that is altogether one of the more enjoyably complete animated films of its era.

King William (voiced by Dakin Matthews) and Queen Uberta (voiced by Sandy Duncan) bring their children together each and every summer in hopes of sparking a romantic connection, one day resulting in a marriage that will merge their neighboring kingdoms. After several unsuccessful summer visits, Princess Odette (voiced by Michelle Nicastro) and Prince Derek (voiced by Howard McGillin) finally fall in love and everything seems set for a happily ever after. But this is a fairy tale, and as in every good fairy tale, trials, tribulations, and complications stand in the way, all embodied in the evil sorcerer Rothbart (voiced by Jack Palance) who is out to take down King William and everyone he cares for. After Rothbart attacks and curses Odette, Derek is left to search for his true love and reverse the evil curse. 

In retrospect, The Swan Princess’ characters seem to be a bit ahead of their time. Odette wants to wed Derek, but first she wants to know that he loves her for more than her looks. When he can’t come up with any other reason to wed his would-be bride, the princess refuses his hand. The concept of true love runs deep in the history of fairy tales, but Odette’s insistence that she marry for the right reasons sets her, and the film, apart from several of its contemporaries and many that came before it. Odette, in another demonstration of her abilities and away from more traditional male hero narrative structures, sets out to find Derek on her own instead of waiting around to be saved like a more traditionally kidnapped maiden.That the King and Queen allow their children to choose their future spouses instead of forcing an arranged marriage provides a healthier backdrop for the love and adventure to form organically from the heart rather than by royal decree. The film certainly plays some familiar notes (again in more ways than one) but its independence within its traditional world is welcome and unforgettable.

The film blends together a terrific mix of humor and heart, light fare and serious dramatic currents and scenes which keep the film moving forward at an agreeable pace without relying on one or the other and losing its audience to a deluge of darkness or drollery. The cast is terrific, voicing the characters with a balanced cadence that, again, blends humorous asides with more serious content, both feeling natural rather than forced from frontline and secondary characters alike. Jack Palance shines as the evil villain, playing up the humorous qualities of his bad side and enjoying the process of bringing life to the character’s evil ways. McGillin and Callaway share quality chemistry as the prince and the princess, the former demonstrating lovelorn whininess while gradually morphing into a strong and steady hero while the latter plays the saucy princess well, finding a perfect blend of distressed maiden and capable heroine. All exist in gorgeous animation that dazzles in high definition.

The Swan Princess Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

For The Swan Princess Sony has once again done a great job with a MOD (Manufactured on Demand) Blu-ray release. The transfer maintains a natural grain structure from the film transfer. It's even and pleasing to the eye, marred only by the occasional splotch or speckle, some of which appear to be baked onto the source. The image offers an engaging textural quality and a great feel for cinema character. The 1080p resolution is more than enough to bring out the finest details in the animation. From resplendent castle locales to crude villainous lairs, from natural outdoor settings to exquisite ballrooms, the image's high detail level and first-class clarity breathe life into every shot. There is a tremendous feel for depth even on the flat presentation. Colors are resplendent. The movie is made of an endless array of hues that splash onto the screen with wonderful pop and depth. Natural greens, bright blue skies, and a myriad of clothing tones delight while larger color splashes in spectacle shots and scenes -- particularly colorful magical conjures -- dazzle. The picture is full of life and exists on Blu-ray in nearly pristine condition. The occasional speckle (and a few dense examples, such as around the 1:30:40 mark) is the only drawback to one of the nicest looking traditionally animated titles on the market.

The Swan Princess Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Just as wonderful as the 1080p video presentation is Sony's DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 lossless soundtrack. The track is expansive and clarity is wonderful. It's very well balanced in presentation, boasting supremely engaging front end width and perfectly balanced back channel support, taking full advantage of the added two speakers for both discrete elements and larger general immersion. Clarity is striking with every musical number. Notes are warm and rich and lifelike; listeners will feel like they're sitting in the middle of the orchestra. But the track's excellence does not end with music. Action and heavy support effects bear much audible fruit. Thunder cracks at the 12-minute mark, and again about a minute later, with sharp depth and stage fulfillment. Rainfall is naturally saturating, up front and aggressive around the stage but falling back underneath a key dialogue scene at the 15-minute mark. This whole stretch is of near reference quality, particularly for something like this existing in the classic animation realm. The end sequence is dazzling for detail, depth, and movement. Lighter ambient effects -- croaking frogs and buzzing insects, light winds, reverberating dialogue -- draw the listener into the movie's magical world. Dialogue is true and clear, well prioritized, and presents from a natural front-center position.

The Swan Princess Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Swan Princess' supplemental features include featurettes and sing-alongs. No DVD or digital copies are included. This release does not ship with a slipcover.

• Looking Back at 25 Years of The Swan Princess (1080p, 10:16): Director Richard Rich and others look back at a quarter-century of success for the film and rewind the clock for an engaging piece that explores character design, voice work, editing, the film's (and franchise's) success in the independent animation marketplace, and more. Contemporary interviews are intercut with vintage footage.
• The Swan Princess: Making Of (480i, 26:36): Horrific video quality greets audiences who will watch Nest Entertainment reps discussing the film and the larger faith-based product line. The bulk does cover the making of The Swan Princess, which explores the usual stops along the animated production line: production history at Nest, animation, voice work, story detail, assembling the picture from the animation, sound, live action choreography, production challenges, and more.
• Sing-Alongs (1080p, 16:29): Several songs from the film appear with lyrics on the screen. These are not presented in karaoke style but rather plain text (think subtitles, basically). Included are This Is My Idea; Practice, Practice, Practice; Far Longer Than Forever; No More Mister Nice Guy; and Princess on Parade.

The Swan Princess Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Swan Princess is one of the great non-Disney traditionally animated films from the past several decades. The movie holds up well for its timeless story, excellent animation, quality voice work, and memorable songs. Sony's Blu-ray is even better. The video quality is resplendent, the 7.1 lossless audio track is to die for, and a few quality extras are included. Very highly recommended.