Storks appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.40:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. While attractive, this wasn’t one of the best-looking animated Blu-rays I’ve seen.
Sharpness could be a minor distraction. Though most of the movie displayed solid clarity, a few shots seemed a smidgen soft. These were mild instances, but parts of the image lacked the tightness I expect from Blu-ray. At least no issues with jaggies or shimmering occurred, and edge haloes were absent. Of course, the image lacked any print flaws; it remained clean at all times.
Colors became a strong element. The movie went with a somewhat pastel palette, and it displayed consistently vivid hues. Blacks were dense and tight, and shadows were usually fine, though a few low-light shots seemed a bit dark. Overall, this was a good enough presentation for a “B+”, but that meant the presentation disappointed compared to the usual “A”-level computer animated effort.
As for the movie’s DTS-HD MA 7.1 soundtrack, it opened up the film in a satisfying manner. Though the mix didn’t give us wall-to-wall theatrics, it managed to use the spectrum well.
As expected, the film’s occasional action sequences boasted nice breadth and activity, and the aerial elements created a fine sense of involvement, as these components zoomed around the room. While the soundscape didn’t stun us on a constant basis, it provided more than enough to succeed.
Audio quality seemed consistently solid. Speech appeared natural and distinctive; no edginess or other issues marred the dialogue. Music sounded warm and full, while effects showed good clarity and accuracy. When necessary, bass response came across as deep and tight. All of this lifted the track to “B+” status.
A few extras fill out the disc, and we launch with an audio commentary from writer/director Nicholas Stoller, director Doug Sweetland, editor John Venzon and storyboard artist/head of story Matt Flynn. All four sit together for a running, screen-specific look at the project's origins and development, story/character areas, editing and deleted/altered sequences, aspects of the animation process, cast and performances, music, visual design and connected domains.
Parts of the track work very well, especially when it looks at Stoller’s immersion into the world of animation. He previously dealt solely with live-action, and he offers a good perspective in terms of the differences between the two domains. Other useful production notes emerge as well.
However, the commentary comes with more than a few dead spots – a surprising number given how chatty the guys tend to be. They also veer toward praise a little more often than I’d like. Still, even with these drawbacks, the commentary offers a mostly informative piece.
A clip called Guide to Your New Baby runs two minutes, eight seconds. This features movie characters in a comedic “tutorial”. It focuses too much on the irritating Pigeon Toady character for my liking, but Storks fans might enjoy it.
An animated short entitled The Master comes from the universe of “Lego Ninjago”. It lasts five minutes, 18 seconds and provides a spoof of martial arts movies. While not great, it comes with some amusement.
Next comes a music video for “Kiss the Sky” by Jason Derulo. The video simply plops Derulo’s song on top of various movie scenes. It’s a dull video, but the tune’s not bad.
Six Deleted Scenes fill a total of 10 minutes, five seconds. All presented as storyreels, the most significant sequence offers an alternate opening. Others add a bit more character material as well as comedy and action. I kind of like the unused introduction, and the others also seem decent – especially when we get a shocking revelation about Hunter.
We can watch these with or without commentary from the same guys who chatted over the feature film. They give us background about the sequences as well as why the scenes failed to make the movie. They offer useful notes.
A collection of Outtakes goes for two minutes, 14 seconds. These present phony bloopers from the movie’s characters. That gimmick worked back in 1998 with A Bug’s Life but seems stale in 2016.
The disc opens with ads for The Lego Batman Movie and Scooby-Doo: Shaggy’s Showdown. No trailer for Storks appears here.
A second disc presents a DVD copy of Storks. It includes the Lego short and the music video but it lacks the other extras.
Despite some good talent involved, Storks misfires. It seems more like an outline for a movie than a full-fledged story, and neither its comedy nor its adventure do much to entertain. The Blu-ray provides pretty good picture and audio along with a moderate roster of bonus features. Storks lacks the inventiveness and cleverness it needs.