Follow the humorous and dramatic adventures of Fievel, a little boy mouse who journeys from Russia to America with his family in the late 19th Century to seek a new life free from cat persecution.

I for one, was certainly thrilled to learn that Universal was finally giving Fievel the coveted DVD treatment, and anticipated its release on the format each day since. Yes, features are scarce, and yes, the film is presented in full frame only, but the way I see it, having An American Tail on DVD at all is a milestone for me, since it is a title I have yearned for since the early days of the format. Do not get me wrong, I am a VERY strong supporter of original aspect ratio on home video, but An American Tail is not exactly a film that cries out for the anamorphic widescreen treatment. In this case, its omission does not really detract from the experience. But then again, maybe I am being slightly biased about this film, having seen it once as child, loved it, and becoming hooked on it ever since.

As far as the picture quality is concerned, aside from the image being full frame, I was actually rather impressed. I was not expecting the image to be quite so crisp and clear. There were a few more speckles of film dirt then I thought should have been there, but for a film nearing twenty years old, it was still a good deal better than I was expecting. Clarity was most definitely improved over the VHS versions, and colors were strong and nice-looking.

The sound is also pretty great. I listened to the DTS 5.1 soundtrack on my surround system, and it is, without a doubt, the best I have ever heard this film. However, those of you who have seen American Tail numerous times over (as I have) are bound to notice changes in some of the dialogue as compared to past video releases. In teh opening titles, for example, as we approach the Mousewitz home, laughter is now heard inside the humans' cottage where, on the VHS release, all that can be heard is James Horner's soundtrack. Also, new or never-before-heard of dialogue have been spliced into the film throughtout. Th emost noteable instances of this are during the scenes when Fievel is trapped in a birdcage, crying, just before he meets Tiger. Also, when the cats are being anchored up onto the ship headed for Hong Kong, Warren T. now utters an additional line from offscreen, which I will leave you to discover. Anyone who has seen the film a good many times is bound to notice these changes.

While this altered/re-dubbed dialogue does not neccesarily hurt the film, it is still fair to question why these changes were needed. Perhaps Universal felt the need to offer something new to DVD buyers who would be purchasing this film again? There is no sense in correcting something that was never broken to begin with. Be that as it may, the changes do not take away from one's enjoyment of the film, or certainly not mine, at least.

Bottom line, American Tail lovers who are not particularly picky about aspect ratio should find this DVD well worth acquring . Like I said, I am big on widescreen myself, but in this case, found the movie too irresistable to turn down, especially at its low list price. Full frame and re-recorded dialogue aside, An American Tail is still the classic that it was nearly 20 years ago. So buy it before you are stuck trying to find an out-of-print copy "somwhere out there."

13 of 16 found the following review helpful:


A Beautiful Classic Animated Film ...  Apr 21, 2005 By Melissa
From director Don Bluth (The Secret of NIMH) this beautiful animated film comes a "tail" like no other. This story is about a little mouse named Fievel taking a "once in a lifetime" journey to America from Russia to escape the cats. They think by going to America there are no cats and can have a better life for their families. Upon their travels poor little Fievel becomes seperated from his family while arriving in New York.

During his adventures he meets up with wonderful characters such as: Tiger (Dom DeLuise), Tony Toponi, Bridget, Honest John, Gussie Mausheimer (Madeline Kahn), Digit, Henri (Christopher Plummer) & more!

This film also had some wonderful feature and ground breaking award winning songs such as:

There Are No Cats in America
Never Say Never
Somewhere Out There
Somewhere Out There - James Ingram & Linda Ronstadt
Duo

Before Disney's beautiful Pixar films came to the big screen, there was the breathtakingly beautiful and realistic animation by Don Bluth and Steven Spielberg productions. It may be a little out dated for most, but it's truly a classic animated film with wonderful song's & colorful characters told in an original story.

The DVD: Is very sweet as well it has sing-a-long song's, cute triva games for the kids, and more!

6 of 7 found the following review helpful:


A Treasured "Tail"  Feb 01, 2005 By Chalice "Jessica"
This is a wonderful movie. I'm a huge Don Bluth fan. This is a story reliving the history of our country through a young Russian mouse. It's a beautiful story with fabulous music and beloved characters. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll awe in wonder as the mice rally together to defeat the cats. (May not be an ideal movie for a cat-lover.) Definitely worth watching.

31 of 43 found the following review helpful:


"Somewhere Out There..."  May 30, 2001
"Somewhere out there, beneath the pale moonlight," there must be a better non-Disney-animated film. NAAAAAAAAH! An American Tail is animator and director Don Bluth's best work to date. The story of a young Russian mouse being swept out to sea while on a voyage with his family to America still holds up very well, even (GASP!) 15 years after the film's theatrical debut. (Wow, I'm getting old!) Fortunately the young mouse, whose name is Fievel, washes up alive and well on New York Harbor. From there, he sets off on a journey to find his family. But it may be more difficult than he anticipated once he comes across the "two-faced" villain Warren T. Rat (voiced to perfection by John Finnegan) and the city's many other dangers that could threaten his quest.

As stated before, An American Tail is very nicely animated, and the incredible soundtrack, composed by James Horner, gives the movie a timeless quality that is one of the reasons why it stands the test of time. Each character is also perfectly voiced. Just to name a few of these talents, Philip Glasser is the voice of Fievel, Dom DeLuise is Tiger the cat, Amy Green is Fievel's sister, Tanya, and as mentioned before, John Finnegan is Warren T. Rat. The songs are also brilliantly performed, the best of which is the classic "Somewhere Out There," beautifully sung during the film by Fievel and Tanya, and again during the end credits by Linda Ronstadt.

All in all, An American Tail is an enduring and heartwarming film that will be embraced by everyone who's young at heart. And so it is to these people that I highly recommend this film. And if you enjoy it, I also recommend viewing the sequel, An American Tail: Fievel Goes West. It's every bit as good.

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