Mike Bastoli considers himself a lifelong Disney fan and total nerd. He first joined The Disney Blog as a guest writer in 2009. From 2007 to 2011, he covered Pixar Animation Studios on his website The Pixar Blog, which quickly became one of the most popular on the Web dedicated to news about the studio. (The New York Times named it the “definitive unofficial chronicler of the animation powerhouse".) In 2011, Mike renamed his site Big Screen Animation and expanded his coverage to capture the broader world of animated feature films. He retired Big Screen Animation in 2014 to focus on his brick-and-mortar family business and other pursuits. Mike resides near Toronto with his wife, Janice.
Walt Disney’s 1951 take on Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland makes its high definition debut on Blu-ray Disc (BD) tomorrow, February 1st, in a 2-disc “60th Anniversary Edition” Blu-ray/DVD combo pack. Alice in Wonderland is flawlessly presented in 1080p high definition, with a “Full Screen” 1:33:1… Read More »Alice in Wonderland 60th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray
Three new Disney-themed documentaries arrive on DVD tomorrow (with bonus features and collectible keepsakes), each exploring a unique facet of the company’s history. Many Disney fans have been waiting for months to see some or all of these films as they were given very limited theatrical runs.… Read More »The Boys, Walt & El Grupo, & Waking Sleeping Beauty on DVD
Tangled, Walt Disney Animation Studios’ adaptation of the classic fairy tale Rapunzel, opens in theatres on November 24. It is Disney’s 50th animated feature. Tangled has as much ‘heart’ and adventure as Pixar’s latest release, Toy Story 3. One of the most moving elements is… Read More »‘Tangled’ is Fun, But Could Have Been Better
I’ve just returned from a late-Thursday screening of Secretariat (opens today) and I am pumped! The story of the Triple Crown-winning “Big Red” —and, more pointedly, the people who believed in him— makes for one of the most invigorating movie of 2010 so far. In a… Read More »Secretariat | My review
After seven years in the “Disney Vault”, Beauty and the Beast arrives next Tuesday (Oct. 5), for the first time ever, on high definition Blu-ray Disc, in a 3-Disc Diamond Edition* that includes a standard definition DVD of the movie. Three versions of the film are… Read More »Beauty and the Beast Diamond Edition Blu-ray
Tomorrow is Earth Day 2010, opening day for Oceans, the second picture released in North America under the Disneynature banner. The documentary is directed by French filmmakers Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud and features never-before-seen views of the world’s oceans captured using the ‘latest in… Read More »Thoughts on Disneynature’s ‘Oceans’
Down with the bloody Red Queen! Tim Burton’s take on Alice in Wonderland (opening in theatres today) is one of the best live-action releases from Walt Disney Pictures in years. This dark, grown-up ‘Alice’, a hybrid sequel/retelling of the stories by Lewis Carroll, is a natural… Read More »‘Alice in Wonderland’ | My review
CORRECTION: As pointed out by reader Alexander in comments, Beauty and the Beast producer Don Hahn mentioned at the D23 Expo last year that the re-release has been postponed until some time in 2011 (exactly when has not yet been determined), primarily to have it… Read More »Beauty and the Beast in 3-D postponed indefinitely