Buena Vista announced in early January the coming releases of a bunch of special Blu-ray Discs specially made for HDTVs. Among the coming Blu-ray releases is “Cars” this summer.
For the uninitiated, Blu-ray discs contain a lot more data than standard DVDs or even HD-DVDs, making them ideal for the burgeoning high-definition television market. The picture and sound are reportedly awesome, but it’ll cost you — it’s hard to find a Blu-ray player for less than $1,000. Here are the FAQs on Blu-ray.
The news release at the Disney Blu-ray site doesn’t have a firm date for “Cars” that I could find, other than Summer ’07. The Upcoming Pixar blog reports that the release date for Blu-ray “Cars” will be June 5. Either way, we know it’s definitely coming after months of speculation.
That just adds to the speculation, however, of a special two-DVD version of “Cars,” along with a lot more extras, being rolled out about the same time. Stay tuned.
I’m definitely hoping for a two-DVD version of Cars. (I certainly can’t afford a Blu-ray player!) I’ve never been this crazy over a movie in my life, but Cars wrapped itself around my heart the first time I saw it last year, and never let go. I know it has a lot of meaning for folks on Route 66, but it has a lot of personal meaning for this North Carolina girl, too! I live about 20 minutes from Richard Petty — I’ve never met him, but I know his reputation, and was I ever happy to see his signature Superbird in the movie! I grew up in Charlotte — home to the Lowe’s Motor Speedway — so there are several shots as Mack drives away from the stadium that are very familiar: the spot on I-77 where there are billboards atop buildings beside the highway, and the way the Blue Ridge mountains unfold in front of you on I-40. Not to mention James Taylor, whom North Carolina claims as its own, since he grew up in Chapel Hill and recorded several Carolina songs (probably every native North Carolinian knows “Carolina in My Mind” by heart!).
Also, since my family moved from Charlotte to a much smaller town in central N.C. when I was 15, I went through the same “city kid to country life” transition that Lightning does. I thought the people in this town talked funny and were backwards hicks — but like Lightning, I discovered just how warm and wonderful small town people really are. I’m a country girl now (I even like country music now, thanks to Cars!); I don’t care if I never live in a city again!
Anyway, I’ve read everything I can get my hands on about the movie Cars, and I was so looking forward to a great commentary, as on the other DVDs (I’ve been a huge Pixar fan from the beginning). I certainly hope one is forthcoming!