Wallace & Gromit: The Complete Collection

Millions of fans agree—no one makes animated mayhem like crackpot inventor Wallace & his faithful dog, Gromit. Join the Oscar®- winning sensations for four madcap adventures in their cheesiest, breeziest, and funniest collection yet! Hang on for an out-of-this-world ride as Wallace's mad craving for cheese leads to a space rocket adventure in A Grand Day Out. In The Wrong Trousers Gromit smells something fishy after a penguin moves in and plots to make off with Wallace's Techno-Trousers. Then it's time for A Close Shave as Wallace & Gromit get wrapped up in a sheep-rustling scheme. Finally, trouble rises after Wallace & Gromit start a bread-baking business and are ensnared in a murder mystery that becomes…A Matter of Loaf and Death! (Tricia Spears)

Special features include commentary with Creator/Director Nick Park; four featurettes: How They Donut: The Making Of A Matter of Loaf And Death (SD 20:20), A Close Shave How It Was Done (SD 05:04), Inside The Wrong Trousers (SD 24:19), and The Amazing Adventures Of Wallace & Gromit (SD 15:23); a scrapbook and gallery with blueprints of inventions; 10 Cracking Contraptions (SD 25:21); the "Shawn The Sheep" bonus episode (SD 07:05); Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures video game demo; and trailers.

"The Complete Collection" consists of four Wallace & Gromit shorts. Each is presented in its original aspect ratio—A Grand Day Out and The Wrong Trousers in 1.37:1, A Close Shave in 1.66:1, and A Matter of Loaf and Death in 1.78:1—and each exhibits a vibrantly detailed 1080p AVC-encoded transfer. Of course, there are some definite differences in the video quality between films, but all are true to their source. A Grand Day Out exhibits a slightly softer, grainier look, while A Matter Of Loaf And Death has a more vivid appearance, from being the first Wallace & Gromit short shot digitally, using professional still cameras. The Wrong Trousers and A Close Shave appear similar, with a clean filmic quality. All of the shorts are sharp and nicely resolved, with superb resolution. Even thumbprints impressed on the plasticine characters are detectable, and the model work is impressively detailed. The color palette exhibits naturally warm and rich hues. Contrast is excellent, with solid and deep blacks and good shadow depth, for an image that is nicely dimensional. A Matter Of Loaf and Death is the sharpest and most vivid of the shorts, but an occasional shimmering moiré effect can be seen on certain fine textures, like the cloth of a baker's apron and the thin weft of canvas flour bags in the opening scene. Aside from these blink-of-an-eye artifacts, the picture is absolutely stunning and mesmerizing and is sure to please fans of all ages. (Gary Reber)

The soundtrack for each short is available in uncompressed LPCM 5.1, as well as 2.0 LPCM. There is also a Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel soundtrack. The preferred sound is that of the uncompressed LPCM surround track, which features effective surround envelopment. Depending on the short, the sound can be very dynamic, with an impressively energized .1 LFE foundation. The sound becomes more involving with each short in order of production date. The music score is that of a full orchestra, which sounds completely enveloping, with a wide and deep soundstage that extends into the surrounds. The surround channels are fully engaged in A Matter Of Loaf And Death, with sound effects and thunder, as well as effective pans and directionalized sound effects. The sound is holosonic®. The ADA dialogue is nicely intelligible and even fairly well integrated spatially. Overall, the soundtracks deliver quite good quality and are effectively surround engaging. (Gary Reber)