«DR. SYN gets first class Disney treatment»

Based on the Russell Thordike classic books of British smugglers, DR. SYN: THE SCARECROW OF ROMNEY MARSH first appeared as a three part mini-series as part of Walt Disney's WONDERFUL WORLD OF COLOR in 1963. Then known only as THE SCARECROW OF ROMNEY MARSH, this production was set in the southern British coast near Dover during the time of King George III. Just prior to the American War of Independance, it tells the story of a mild mannered minister (Patrick McGoohan) who helps his over-taxed parishoners by masquarading as the sinister Scarecrow, the leader of the local smuggling ring. Only Mipps, his faithful sexton (George Cole) and the young son of the local Squire (Sean Scully) know his real identity as they outwit the British general (Geoffrey Keen) sent to capture them. Filmed on location in the actual Romney Marsh area, this is a lush and eye-catching yarn full of high adventure. McGoohan is perfect in his dual role of the kindly vicar and the harsh-voiced Scarecrow, while Cole adds the right touch of puckish humor as Mipps. Michael Hordern lends strong support as the put-upon Squire, while Keen makes for a perfectly hissable villian. With wonderful cinematography and a solid cast, this is definitely one of the highlights of Disney's classic TV show. The exceptional 2 disc DVD presentation is also lovingly presented with documentaries about the history of the Dr. Syn character, as well as Disney's British studio. Also included is DR.SYN ALIAS THE SCARECROW, the 2 hour film version of the story that was released for British and overseas markets. Unfortunately, this handsome DVD edition was sold-out within 2 weeks due to a very limited release by Disney. While this is very regrettable, I would say that it is definitely worth trying to see this delightful adventure and something that I highly recommend.

[Friday, January 09, 2009]

«Booooo to Disney for limited release!»

I've been waiting for this release for a long time, but didn't order until December 12. Amazon took my order, but it was supposed to be shipped from Big Rock Media. I waited until January 5, but no DVD. Only then did I learn that the release was sold out. E-mail to Big Rock went unanswered. Naturally, I canceled, but Big Rock ignored all e-mails after that for information on when it would be available. So I bought one on Ebay for more than I would have had to pay. From now on, that's where I'll check first, rather than Amazon. If they choose to do business with a shoddy company like Big Rock, who won't follow up on customer e-mail, I'll do my business elsewhere.

The three stars are for the movie. I took off one star for poor (actually, NO) service. I get better customer service from my cell phone company, and everybody knows how bad that is. I took off another star for the very limited number of copies produced by Disney, who had to have known that a LOT of people wanted this film.

[Thursday, January 08, 2009]

«fantastic..but..»

like most other reviewers, i loved this as a kid. i got it as a christmas present and have watched it every night since! (9 days as of this posting). my only question is- in the 3rd installment, it repeats the scene when simon bates taps on the vicars window- this scene is also in the first installment. i don't remember this repeated scene as a kid- what do you other fans have to say about it? other than this, i am completely mesmerized by the dvd and it's made me completely giddy!

[Thursday, January 08, 2009]

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