Yogi Bear 3D (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review

( Max score: 100 )

87

Film Synopsis:

Everyone's favorite pic-a-nic basket-stealing bear brings his meal-mooching ways to movies in this live-action/CG-animated adventure starring Dan Aykroyd as the voice of Jellystone Park's famed troublemaker Yogi Bear and Justin Timberlake as the voice of Yogi's faithful pal Boo Boo. Jellystone has been losing business, so conniving Mayor Brown has decided to shut it down and sell the land. Faced with the loss of his home, Yogi must prove he really is smarter than the average bear as he and Boo Boo join forces with Ranger Smith to find a way to save the park from closing forever. Anna Faris, Tom Cavanagh, TJ Miller and Andrew Daly co-star in this wonderful new incarnation of Hanna-Barbera's classic cartoon.

My Take:

I grew up watching Hanna Barbara Cartoons and Yogi Bear was among my favorites. I honestly had no interest in seeing Yogi Bear when it was in the theater. When it arrived on 3D Blu-ray for review my curiosity was piqued. The cartoons proved fun because of their limited scope and slapstick rituals. Building a full length feature around these characters required integrating a plot that could not only support the comedic slapstick but some semblance of a story. The result is a cute but mediocre family film with an elementary storyline that will appeal to young viewers while putting their parents to sleep. I had no real feelings of nostalgia and found the situational comedy to be bland at best. I didn't mind T.J. Miller as Ranger Jones and thought Andrew Daly was a hoot as the duplicitous Mayor. The animation/CGI/3D was quite good and I enjoyed seeing Yogi and Boo Boo brought to life. Unfortunately the low charm factor, unimaginative humor and contrived story left it feeling flat however little ones will probably enjoy its 3D effects, animated characters and reiterated slapstick.

Parental Guide:

The rating is for some mild rude humor.

Audio: 84

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Video: 86

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Yogi Bear comes to Blu-ray Disc from Warner Home Video featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 17 Mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 3.5 Mbps.

This is a pleasing high definition video presentation that boasts vivid primary colors and strong depth and dimension. Images are clean, delineated and revealing of subtle textural detail that enhances the perception of minutia within clothing, physical features and objects onscreen. Blacks are rich with deep highlights that provide plenty of visual pop. Detail in shadowy backgrounds and uneven lighting is quite good which gives those segments appreciable depth of field. Fidelity never wavers in this beautifully rendered high def encoding from Warner Bros. The DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack readily delivers the goods in this fun and sometimes active surround mix. Dialogue is distinctive, free of sibilance, and appropriately elevated within the front soundstage. The atmospheric sounds of the city, blowing wind, flying objects and the ambient extension of the music score all come across with crystal clarity and proportionate spacing to create a believable and occasionally enveloping soundscape. Dynamics are punchy and bass has tangible weight that added solidity/depth to the mixes recorded elements. This presentation won't bring down the house but it sounds great.

3D Presentation: 90

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Yogi Bear 3D comes to Blu-ray Disc from Warner Home Video featuring 1080p MVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 24/17 Mbps.

So far I have been satisfied with what I have seen of the 3D formatted high definition Blu-ray releases that have come my way and Yogi Bear is no exception. Detail is well preserved as the image retains its high level of clarity as objects within the frame are delineated and sharp. Depth is appreciable as evidenced by the notable separation of objects or people layered in the foreground/background which serves to visually draw you in by creating a more discerning sense of virtual space occupied by things of various sizes and shapes. There are a variety of sequences that provide a gimmicky but fun reach out and touch sense of dimensionality. One example can be seen in the opening picnic basket pilfering scene where Yogi is suspended in mid air/slow motion with various pieces of food exploding all around him. Another occurs later as they ride the white water rapids and the turtle gets tossed from the raft, held only by his tongue (you'll see how) and swings outward from the screen. Comparing color reproduction to the 2D presentation I felt that here they appeared to be slightly richer which made them more pleasing to the eye. The rendering of detail and clarity was similar although I would give the slightest edge for all around visual pop to the 3D version. I didn't notice any overtly distracting signs of ghosting/crosstalk or 3D related anomalies. Overall Yogi Bear makes for a fun film experience in 3D.

The same lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio soundtrack is found on both the 2D and 3D versions. See my comments/score above regarding the audio quality.

Bonus Features:

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  Disc 1 (3D):

  
  
• (HD/3D) Fun on the Yogi Bear set - 2 minutes
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• (HD/3D) Tour of Jellystone Park - 2 minutes
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• (HD/3D) Jellystone Park jewel: Yogi's secret hiding spot - 2 minutes
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• (HD/3D) Jellystone visitor Pic-anic Demo - 2 minutes
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• (HD/3D) Looney Tunes Rabid rider - 3 minute animated short
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  Disc 2 (2D):

  
  
• (HD) Spending a day at Jellystone Park - Interactive map feature
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• (HD) Yogi Bear mash up - 3 minutes
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• (HD) Looney Tunes Rapid rider - 3 minute animated short
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• (HD) Are you smarter than the average bear - Interactive matching game
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  Disc 3

  
  
• Bonus DVD of Yogi Bear
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• Digital Copy

Final Thoughts:

Yogi Bear is an uninspired family film that is hampered by unimaginative humor and a contrived story that while sleep inducing to adults may prove more engaging to young viewers. This three disc Blu-ray offering from Warner includes the feature film in high definition in both 3D and 2D flavors with each offering excellent video quality and involving DTS-HD Master Audio surround sound. There are fan friendly Blu-ray exclusive features, behind the scenes footage, and an animated Looney Tunes short. Additionally the bonus supplements found on the 3D version are all offered in 3D which is a nice touch. Tack on a third disc containing the standard definition version of Yogi Bear along with a Digital Copy and you have a well rounded package ready for every playing environment. If you are already a fan this is worth considering as a purchase otherwise it only qualifies as a rental either for the kids on a rainy Saturday afternoon or to check out its 3D presentation.