Watership Down

Starring:John Hurt, Richard Briers, Michael Graham Cox, John Bennett, Ralph Richardson, Simon Cadell, Terence Rigby, Roy Kinnear, Richard O'Callaghan, Denholm Elliott, Lynn Farleigh, Mary Maddox, Zero Mostel, Harry Andrews, Hannah Gordon, Nigel Hawthorne, Clifton Jones, Derek Griffiths, Michael Hordern, Joss Ackland
Director: Martin Rosen
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

Much like Richard Adams's wonderful novel, this animated tale of wandering rabbits is not meant for small children. It is, however, rich storytelling, populated with very real individuals inhabiting a very real world. The animation is problematic, sometimes appearing out of proportion or just subpar; but it seems to stem from an attempt at realism, something distinguishing the film's characters from previous, cutesy, animated animals. A band of rabbits illegally leave their warren after a prophecy of doom from a runt named Fiver (Richard Briers). In search of a place safe from humans and predators, they face all kinds of dangers, including a warren that has made a sick bargain with humankind, and a warren that is basically a fascist state. Allegories aside, Down is engaging and satisfying, and pulls off the same amazing trick that the novel did--you'll forget that this is a story about rabbits. --Keith Simanton

Customer Reviews:

A Classic.......2007-06-14

Although it feels a bit outdated, it still is a very good story and animation for its time. I would be interested in seeing it updated with new animation, but this production should be available to sell other than being discontinued. It motivates me to revisit the book.

YUP.......2007-06-13

A CLASSIC, SCARE YOUR KIDS WITH MEAN RABBITS!

Bright eyes burning like fire..........2007-01-16

I read this book in grade school and it really brought out my love of and respect for animals. I remember thinking "so animals really DO have feelings!" I saw the movie a few years later. Wow. The book was succesfully brought alive in animation. A compelling story that, over 15 years later, still brings me to tears (and that isn't easy). As other reviewers stated, this is definitely NOT FOR KIDS under 13, there is blood and graphic violence. The horror, however, is not gratuitous. It is a necessity in showing the everyday life of prey - always on the run, paranoid, protective, struggling - because EVERYTHING is out to destroy you. Also a bit of commentary on man's ignorance.

Not bad but not as good as the book, either........2007-01-12

Given that Watership Down is actually an adult and not a children's book, this movie does a reasonable job of transforming it to basically a slightly sophisticated children's animated film while still preserving a few elements of it's essentially adult nature. The story (at least in the book form) is fascinating for anyone who pays attention to animals. The film manages -- as should be expected -- to leave quite a bit of the story out while preserving many essential features. Unless something better comes along this is worth having.

its a great movie.......2007-01-09

Its a great movie though it can be hard to follow at times

Watership Down DVD 2 Pack (Journey to Watership Down/Escape to Watership Down)

Average customer rating:

Watership Down DVD 2 Pack (Journey to Watership Down/Escape to Watership Down)
Starring: Phill Jupitus , Richard Briers , Rob Rackstraw , David Holt (VI) , and Robert Harper (VIII)
Director: Troy Sullivan
Manufacturer: Good Times Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:

Winter in Watership Down
Watership Down
Tales from Watership Down
Watership Down: A Novel
The Secret of NIMH/The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue

ASIN: B00016113S
Release Date: 2004-02-24

Customer Reviews:

OK.......2007-05-24

Good DVD's but these are not the first story in the series as i thought

Average customer rating:

Follows the same premise as the first movie
5 stars for children, 3 for adults.
Excellent Cartoon

Winter in Watership Down
Starring: Winter on Watership Down
Manufacturer: Good Times Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

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Watership Down DVD 2 Pack (Journey to Watership Down/Escape to Watership Down)
Watership Down
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ASIN: B0000AZT3T
Release Date: 2003-09-23

Customer Reviews:

Follows the same premise as the first movie.......2007-01-16

My boys loved it though I bought it for my husband. He thought it was perfect. A nice follow up to his well loved childhood story, the original Watership Down. I will likely buy the additional movies that were listed with this title, I believe they were part of a series that must have aired shortly after the original came out.

5 stars for children, 3 for adults........2004-07-26

This is a great film for extremely small children -- there are lot of small breaks and the dialogue is simple so even a toddler could watch and follow along. Adults might not like the pacing but the storyline is still interesting:
The rabbits you remember from Watership Down, Hazel, Big Wig, Fiver and Pip are back and they are looking for food for the Frith's Eve or Rabbit Christmas celebration. They run into a hungry fox and are rescued by another rabbit warren. But Fiver gets a bad feeling about these new rabbits who live close to humans and even take food from them--are the rabbits of Watership Down in danger? Watch this delightful movie to find out.
Extra Note: This movie, unlike the 1979 Watership Down film is much more cartoony and flat in its animation. The effort to make the rabbits look real isn't the main focus, and the animation is friendlier for little kids used to traditional cartoons.

Excellent Cartoon.......2003-11-01

Great cartoon for kids of all ages, especially bunny fans.

Watership Down TV Series - Journey to Watership Down

Average customer rating:

One of my favourite kid's series'
Excellent
Not just for kids!

Watership Down TV Series - Journey to Watership Down
Starring: Phill Jupitus , Richard Briers , Rob Rackstraw , David Holt (VI) , and Robert Harper (VIII)
Director: Troy Sullivan
Manufacturer: Good Times Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Animation | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Animation | Genres | DVD | Video

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4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

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Watership Down TV Series - Escape to Watership Down
Winter in Watership Down
Watership Down
The Plague Dogs
Tales from Watership Down

ASIN: B000083C8A
Release Date: 2003-02-25

Customer Reviews:

One of my favourite kid's series'.......2005-02-26

I first watched the Watership Down TV series when it aired in the UK in 2000 to 2001. At the time I was more drawn to the "fluffy bunny" genre, but now I realise the large amount of British celebrities who lent their voices to the characters. Some may find it distracting, but I enjoyed listening.

The story, in case you didn't already know, is about a group of rabbits travelling accross the English countryside, led by a vision, to reach a safe haven in "the high, lonely hills". The journey is perilous enough, and when they arrive, there are a few unexpected surprises...

In this day and age, almost all kid's programs seem to be computer animated, but Watership Down opted for traditional, hand-drawn animation, and the results are very pleasing, with bright colours, and some truly fanatstic animation in spots.

The story brings this down to four stars though. The original Watership Down (the book and the film) was painfully frightening and sad, a little funny, and very, very touching. But the stories have been altered and re-written with a young audience in mind (7 - 13 yr olds). Yes, it results in some pleasant, disney-esque animation replacing the dull, inconsistent browns of the film, but the storyline suffers. Not much blood appears for the first ten episodes, and the more frightening scenes, such as when one rabbit is caught in a snare, are toned down so much that the original brutality is lost. I'm not in favour of rabbit abuse or anything, I just think that keeping the scary scenes the way they were meant to be would have carried a stronger message. Also, the smallest rabbit, Pipkin, has been changed from just small in size in the original story, to being a BABY in the series. The intelligent rabbit Blackberry has also been changed from a male to a female, and the doe Hyzenthlay has been renamed "Primrose", probably to avoid pronounciation problems.

But the music is great. Mike batt, who composed the original score of the film, returned to write new music and songs for the series. And even the great Andrew Lloyd Webber contributed by writing an extra instrumental track, "In fields of sun". The cast is also excellent. Listen out for John Hurt (who starred as Hazel in the original film decades ago) return to voice General Woundwort, and Stephen Fry is genuinely frightening as the insane rabbit Cowslip. Other voices worth mentioning are Rik Mayall, who puts on the strangest voice possible for Keehar the gull, and Steve Mangan (who has recently been revealed as a comic genius in the innovative channel 4 comedy "Green Wing") is pompous and aggressive as Bigwig. My two favourite voices were Phil Jupitus and Lee Ross, who play Hawkbit and Dandelion providing the comic relief.

The young at heart among us will certainly enjoy this sweet series, but those of us who prefer a litle more.... drama in our animal dramas, may be better off staying home and watching the film instead.

Excellent.......2003-11-01

Worth watching over and over again. Great for kids of all ages.

Not just for kids!.......2003-01-09

Although the Watership Down TV series was giving a hard time when it first began airing on TV, that was mearly because it was "different" from the beloved book and movie. Different does NOT mean bad! I actually became interested in the TV show long before I read the book. If you watch a few episodes you will realize that a deep and interesting storyline does exist. It complents and extends the book. The second season of the series featured better character animation though roughened up designs. The first season was a touch "lighter" than the second, though both are amazing, and can be enjoyed by EVERYONE.

I am 19 years old and clearly I love this "kids" series. My mother, who hates animation, enjoys it as well. I have recorded every single episode to ever air in Canada and could not be more pleased that it is being released on this side of the ocean (many Watership Down products are/were available throughout Europe. It was quite big in Germany).

Customer Reviews:

Goodtimes Rooks the American Public Again.......2004-09-13

Sigh...Goodtimes once again distributes an incomplete animated TV series to the US. The "first" DVD, "Escape to Watership Down" actually does not have the all important first episode when the rabbits leave Sandleford Warren. So there is no Fiver's first vision, no Cowslip nor the snare scene at the Warren of Shining Wires. These episodes DO exist and were broadcast in the UK & Canada. But Goodtimes seems to think it can get away with giving the American public only a partial product. It is a real travesty when such high-quality children's animation is shortchanged like this. Whoever is in charge of Goodtimes Family Films Distribution should be taken 'round the barn and put out of our misery.

Welcome to Watership Down!!!.......2004-03-07

You can be anywhere in this wide world, but when you say or hear the word "Watership Down", or the names: Hazel, Bigwig, and Fiver, a smile will SURELY spread across your face. Those cute little bunnies are sure to delight persons of all ages with some secret ingredients: Hawkbit's sarcasm, Hazel's trust, Fiver's visions, Pipkin's playfulness, and Bigwig's bossy attitude. We are also delighted by the heartwarming music, vivid pictures, and, most important, the rabbits. But it's not all lovey-dovey. Black-hearted General Woundwort and his bloodthirsty enemy crew are out to kill the Watership Down rabbits once and for all! But, Fiver's visions and Hazel and Bigwig's readiness save the Watership Down rabbits from the enemies everytime they have a conflict. Watch Watership Down today and experience the adventure that happens everyday on Watership Down. Thank you for reading. I couldn't have done it without you and the extra help from Amazon.com.

Excellent.......2003-11-01

Excellent cartoon. This one that you will want to watch over and over again.

Great Kids Version of the Story of Watership Down!.......2003-03-26

This DVD set of three episodes of the TV series version of Watership Down produced in Great Britain is an exellent example of high quality animation and, although the story is somewhat altered, is a credit to both the book and the original movie. Martin Rosen, the director of the original movie "Watership Down" was more interested in portraying the background of the very beautiful English countryside that the movie is set in. The producer and director of the animated series produced in Great Britain by Nepenthe Productions seemed to aim more toward the character and story angles. As such, the characters are extremely finely drawn while the background has less definition. The story has been simplified and re-written with a young child (appx. 7-13yrs)
in mind. I highly recommend this DVD and the other DVD, "Journey to Watership Down" to anyone who has seen the original movie and/or has a small child who likes animation(and what child dosen't?!). Through this animated series children will learn basic values of honesty and integrity, and be better citizens both in their current lives and in their future life.
A Great series for all ages and a true credit to all involved in making it. WELL DONE!

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Watership Down
Starring: Watership Down
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( W ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

General | Animation | Genres | DVD | Video

Album Description

Australian exclusive 25th anniversary edition! 1978 animated classic! Features exclusive commentary from director Martin Rosen and more! Region 2/PAL.

Average customer rating:

A Classic
YUP
Bright eyes burning like fire...
Not bad but not as good as the book, either.
its a great movie

Watership Down [Region 2]
Starring: John Hurt , Richard Briers , Michael Graham Cox , John Bennett , and Ralph Richardson
Director: Martin Rosen
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD