Mickey b/w treasures vol 1 Italian import: the real deal?

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celwasher
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Mickey b/w treasures vol 1 Italian import: the real deal?

Post by celwasher »

Hello, fellow Disney enthusiasts,

I own around 20 or so Disney features [most of them the hand-drawn variety] on DVD and around 8 boxed tin sets of the Disney Treasures of many of the vintage shorts.


For a few years, there has been a gaping chasm in my Disney cartoon collection: namely, the first-released set of the vintage MICKEY MOUSE shorts, which contains STEAMBOAT WILLIE and many other vintage delights, including GULLIVER MICKEY and MICKEY in GIANTLAND.


I own the second volume of black-and-white Mickey [with the 40 remaining shorts of the b/w MM series] and although VOL 2 is fine in terms of completion, I probably prefer the choice of shorts contained within the 34 entries that make up VOL 1, which contains a lot of the 'cream' in my view. Many of the VOL 1 entries can seen on youtube, and although this is a lot better than nothing, I'd prefer owning the digital discs put out by Disney.



I am resident in the UK, and as I joined the internet revolution fairly late on, this meant I missed out on the Mickey VOL 1 set first time around. A relatively low number of DVD sets were pressed by all accounts, resulting in an inevitable shortage of this material, and the accompanying inflated price-tag. I have kept an eye on these market prices over recent years, and I would say that the average asking-price for this much sought-after double set is around 50 or 6o UK pounds, which to be frank, is out of my price range. I have even seen the tinned edition on offer for over 100 pounds [around 200 dollars], and that's MINUS the shipping costs!



However, this morning I was very interested to discover that Amazon UK are offering Italian imports of Mickey b/w Vol 1 at a very reasonable 12 pounds-odd, if one includes the shipping. This is NOT the tinned edition obviously, but I can still live with a 'vanilla' edition. Initially I was delighted, however is this very reasonable asking price simply too good to be true? Horror of Horrors, is it some kind of illicit pirate copy, with the attendant problems associated with bootleg editions of official releases?


It may, of course, be completely genuine, and I do hope that some of the more consumer-savvy members of this most comprehensive board can ease my troubled mind on this subject.



The edition in question is clearly meant for the Italian-speaking market [which doesn't actually bother me too much, even if I can't understand that language, as these cartoons are highly VISUAL by definition]. Here's the cover of the item [which I have already ordered, by the way]:

Image




Here's a link to Amazon's UK store, which is offering this item. Looking at the feedback score of the supplier, I see a fair few customers never recieved their goods, however a prompt refund service seems to be in place; also many customers appear completely satisfied. My order has been dispatched [within a few hours of purchase] according to my account.


http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0041KXKKC


Is anyone on this board familiar with this Italian Edition?
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Scamander
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Re: Mickey b/w treasures vol 1 Italian import: the real deal

Post by Scamander »

celwasher wrote:The edition in question is clearly meant for the Italian-speaking market [which doesn't actually bother me too much, even if I can't understand that language, as these cartoons are highly VISUAL by definition].
On every Disney DVD/ Blu-ray you have the option to choose the original audio track and english menus- worldwide.
celwasher
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Post by celwasher »

thanks for that useful info, Scamander. I'd still love to know if these are officially-sanctioned Disney releases, though! I've never heard of these Italian versions, though I'm no expert on this sort of thing........
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Scamander
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Post by Scamander »

You also can buy it directly from the Italian amazon subsidiary, so it's legit.
http://www.amazon.it/Walt-Disney-Treasures-Topolino-Bianco/dp/B0041KXKKC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1326453110&sr=8-1
My German edition contains English, German, French and Spanish audio tracks and includes several more subtitle options (also Italian), so I suppose there's only one disc for whole Europe and the only difference between the UK and the Italian version is the cover.
celwasher
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Post by celwasher »

Thanks again, Scamander: I actually quite like the Italian versions of the Disney character's names: [Pippo, Topolino, etc] I bet these names go down a storm with Italiano bambinos especially!

Assuming my DVD set arrives here, I'll report back here and share my thoughts. It was a lovely surprize to be able to purchase it for so low a price [I seriously considered paying 30 UK pounds for the same item, from the exact same supplier or source on e-bay].


I did notice that French youtube uploads of the VOL 1 Mickey black-and-white shorts have a French voice coming on to translate any use of English-language signs and lettering-----possibly this was just done later by the French youtube uploaders for the benefit of French viewers, and the French voices are not on the actual discs themselves?
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Jules
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Post by Jules »

So did you get the set in the mail? Are you happy with it?
Aslan Kral
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Post by Aslan Kral »

I've bought an Italian copy of Silly Symphonies recently. I will write my opinion as soon as I receive it.
Aslan Kral
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Post by Aslan Kral »

I've just received my copy of Silly Symphonies today. The front cover is all English as you can see. And those Italian holograms are huge! It's four times the size of a UK hologram. I haven't opened it yet.

Image
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Jules
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Post by Jules »

Hey! That's the SIAE logo! :D

I have that logo stamped on dozens of Italian 45 rpm records (on the record label)
Heil Donald Duck
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Post by Heil Donald Duck »

If you want Pioneers Day with original titles then yes. R2 is better than R1 of MM in BW but if you don't care about opening closing titles then it probably don' matter if you get R1 or R2
Der Fuehrer's Face is the greatest Donald Duck cartoon ever made.
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