Plot: What’s it about?
As always, Steve (Steve Burns) and Blue have some plans, with those plans involving all of their friends and a whole load of fun as well. But this adventure is much more than a simple search for an item, as the two plan to put on a musical show in their backyard. And as you might expect, they want to make it the very best musical they can, which means hard work and staying on the right track. But there is much work to do before the players take the stage, since no plans have been made at all! Now Steve and Blue need the help of all their friends, including you kids at home, in order to make this the very best musical show anyone has ever seen. They’ll need to make the plans first, then work out the songs and that won’t be easy. Since this is the toughest challenge yet, they’ll need not only all their friends, but also some new ones. But that’s always a good thing for these two, as they love to meet new friends. Will this be the musical show to end all musical shows? If so, it will take teamwork and focus, but with everyone’s help, it just might happen.
This might surprise some of you readers, but I happen to like the television show Blue’s Clues. I don’t want it all the time by any means, but I found to be highly original and I can see how kids fall in love with the format and characters. This is Blue’s first venture into a feature length project and I am pleased to say, the results are terrific and play out much like an expanded episode of the television show. I was pleased to find the same visual style used and a similar theme brought into this film, but some new elements also emerge. Some new characters show up and while maybe not as lovable as Blue, who doesn’t like Ray Charles lending his pipes to a musical character? I also liked Periwinkle, who is sure to sell a lot of dolls and delight youngsters for many mornings to come. The movie is a lot of fun to watch and imagine kids will love it even more than I did. If your children love the show or perhaps the older readers love the show, this disc is a perfect addition to your library. The movie is fun and worthwhile and Paramount has issued a nice disc, what more can you ask for?
Video: How does it look?
Blue’s Big Musical Movie is presented in a full frame transfer, which preserves the original aspect ratio of this film. This looks much like the television show, though much sharper and in turn, more defined. The super rich colors come through well and show no errors, while Steve’s flesh tones look warm and normal at all times also. This type of movie doesn’t use much contrast, but the black levels are well balanced and consistent. No serious compression errors can be found either, another solid transfer from Paramount.
Audio: How does it sound?
This disc uses a 2.0 surround track and though it doesn’t explode out of the speakers, this mix sounds much more expansive than the television show. The front channels handle the audio well, which comes off as sharp and well placed. The music sounds as snappy as always and emerges in fine form, no distortion or harshness evident in the least. Also in good form here are the usual array of Blue’s Clues sound effects, which sound as outlandish and enjoyable as ever. The vocals are crisp and distinct also, no problems at all surface. This disc also includes English subtitles, if you need to use them.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes some cool bonus features, including an excellent sixteen minute featurette titled Backstage At Blue’s Clues. This piece contains interviews with Steve and various crew members, who tell how the show came to be and also how each show is put together. You’ll see a little on how characters are created (just add “googly eyes”) and also see how Steve looks goofy in front of the blue screen. I was surprised at how cool this piece was, I am pleased Paramount has included it here. Music videos for I Can Be Anything That I Want To Be and There It Is are also found on this disc, as well as a game titled Who Am I? Rounding out this disc is some DVD ROM content, in which you can solve puzzles in the typical Blue’s Clues fashion.
