Bedtime Stories

Released: Saturday, April 04, 2009

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The most entertaining Bedtime Stories experience you can have is this Blu-ray ad DVD combo Pack.  On Disney Blu-ray, spectacular picture and sound make it more magical than ever.

Funnyman, Adam Sandler, stars in Walt Disney Pictures’ Bedtime Stories, the magical family comedy that is packed with adventure and lots of heart.  When Skeeter Bronson (Sandler) babysits his sister’s, Courteney Cox, children, his imagination runs wild as he dreams up elaborate bedtime stories -- always casting himself as the hero.  Entranced, the children add their own ideas to thse once-upon-a-time tales of heroics and chivalry.  Then…magic happens.  These nighttime fantasies become Skeeter’s daytime realities, leading him on a real-life adventure in search of his own happy ending.  Filled with colorful characters, humor and whimsy, this heartwarmingly comedy will enchant your entire family like never before in Blu-ray High Definition.

Bedtime Stories” is a film that kicks off a flashback from the past, taking place at a family run inn.  Father Marty Bronson (Jonathan Pryce) is raising his two children, trying to keep his business and family afloat.  Every night reading his children a bedtime story, Bronson tries to keep a happy face despite knowing his inn is not doing well financially.  Hotel mogul, Barry Nottingham, offers an escape from finacial ruin, if he signs away the rights to the inn; and Marty agrees to the deal if only he makes a promise that when his son Skeeter becomes older, he would run the inn. 

The stories then forward to the future -- nearly twenty-five years later.  The inn has now become a popular, classy, and luxurious hotel on sunset strip.  Meanwhile, Skeeter Bronson, Adam Sandler, a middle-aged man handyman/custodian is not exactly running the business as his father has hoped.

When Nottingham (Richard Griffiths) makes an announcement of a new hotel to open up in Southern California, Skeeter feels that perhaps this is his time.  Unfortunately, the job is given to the arrogant Kendall, Guy Pearce, who is dating Nottingham hotel heiress, Violet Nottingham (Teresa Palmer); at the same time, Kendall is dating  the hotel concierge, Aspen (Lucy Lawless).

Skeeter goes to visit his sister, Wendy (Courteney Cox), his niece Bobbi (Laura Ann Kesling), and nephew Patrick (Jonathan Morgan Heit) who is celebrating a birthday...only to find out tht Wendy’s husband has left the family, and she has lost her job as a principal of her school due to the school closing.  She has an interview for a job in another state, but she needs someone to watch the kids for a few days.  She asks if Skeeter can watch the kids at night, while her friend and a teacher at the school, Jill (Keri Russell), has the children during the day.  Unfortunately, Skeeter and Jill don’t get along.after their first meeting. 

But Skeeter, who is not really close to the kids, agrees to take care of them for a few days.  Also, joining them is their guinea pig (with its big eyes) named Bugsy.

Both Bobbia and Patrick have been raised by their mother to eat healthy, and not watch television.  Skeeter feels they need to have some fun.  So, he lets them watch television, eat burgers and reads them a bedtime story. But each time he tells a story, which ends with a bad ending, the first bedtime story features a peasant named Sir Fix-a-Lot (Sandler) who is a hardworking man who is bypassed from a job which goes to Sir Butkiss (Pearce), a story that mirrors Skeeter’s own life. But the children insist that a story must have a happy ending, so they start adding to the story of how things workout for Sir Fix-a-Lot such as his boss giving him a chance to prove that he’s worthy of taking over the business and gumballs start raining in on him.  Then after the kids finish the story,bugsy let them know it is bedtime.

The day after, certain things that were told in the bedtime story comes true.  After bad decision making by Kendall, Mr. Nottingham decides that he will give Skeeter a chance of taking over the new hotel.  But it all comes down to who can come up with the best plan for the new hotel.  Skeeter or Kendall.  But for Skeeter, he feels something may be magical with the bedtime story when gumballs raining on top of him (actually a gumball truck was hit in an accident and thus the balls are falling off the interstate on to his car).

Feeling that the kids and even Bugsy may have something magical, he feels that perhaps he can help them come up with a great bedtime story that would benefit him in real life.  So, with the last remaining three days with the children before he they are returned to his mother, Skeeter comes up with ideas for him to get a Ferrari, a kiss from a damsel in distress, and more!  But of course, with the children’s imaginative minds, things don’t work out as smooth as Skeeter is hoping for.

Bedtime stories turns out to be a movie you would not expect.   Adam Sandler shows us you can believe in anything and yet it can be hilarious in many ways; the movie is full of laughs, and is a great family movie -- even the Sandler fans will want to catch this one as his happy maison crew makes cameos in the movie causing certain scenes to have a contagious laugh. Bedtime stories turns out to be another Disney hit that the whole family can enjoy.  PS:  don't miss the bloopers.

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment has hit another home run in the  Blu-ray game.  Disney is one of the few companies to release their Blu-rays with a bonus DVD and digital copy all in one; the Blu-ray releases are also known for its unreal picture and audio quality.

So, with the release of “BEDTIME STORIES”, the film is featured via 1080p High Definition with an aspect ratio of 2:30:1.  Another positive for the Blu-ray release is that the special features are featured in 1080p.

As for audio, audio is presented in English 5.1 DTS-HD (48kHZ, 24-Bit).  Also, included is a French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital track as well.

Subtitles are provided in English SDH, French and Spanish.

Special features included on the “Bedtime Stories” Blu-ray are:

• Until Gravity Do Us Part - A four-minute behind-the-scenes look at the film’s mindboggling special effects.  Interviews with John Adrew Berton Jr. (Visual Effects Supervisor), and Garrett Warren (Fight Choreographer) on how the segment was filmed.  Quite interesting how much was put into the making of this scene CG wise and also instead of green screen, using all blu-screen and how much went into the fight choreography and getting Sandler and Pearce ready for the role.
• It’s Bugsy – A near four-minute featurette featuring a close up of Bugsy, the big-eyed guinea pig.  Behind-the-scenes of how many guinea pigs were used in the film and how they were utilized.  Interviews with the cast of working with the guinea pig and more.
• To All The Little People - A near six-minute featurette featuring interviews with Laura Ann Kesling (Bobbi) and Jonathan Morgan Heit (Patrick) and how they felt about working with Director Adam Shankman, Adam Sandler, Russell Brand, Keri Russell, Courteney Cox and others.  Also, how the talent felt with working with the children.
• Laughter is Contagious Outtakes - A seven-minute featurette featuring outtakes and interviews with the cast of working with each other.  How Adam Sandler made everyone laugh and how he was good with the children.  How Rob Schneider would make Adam Sandler laugh and much more.
• Cutting Room Flor: Deleted Scenes - Ten minutes worth of 12 deleted and extended scenes.