Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Just getting a new Wallace & Gromit short is good news, but "A Matter of Loaf and Death" feels a whole lot like a remake of "A Close Shave." It's still rather entertaining, but it feels rather derivative. It also seems to use a lot more pop-culture gags than the older films did, though admittedly they're old enough that they have become permanent fixtures on the pop-culture landscape and only one isn't funny if you don't know the reference. I would NOT get this single-disc release, though, because it is a cropped full-frame (1.33:1) when the movie itself was animated in widescreen. The documentary on the making of the movie is in anamorphic widescreen, and often reveals how cramped some of the cropped shots are. It seems that the 4-disc DVD complete collection is in full-frame as well. The Blu-ray of the Complete Collection presents this movie in its proper widescreen format (as well as "A Close Shave"), and should be the one you buy if you have a choice. The Blu-ray remasters the original shorts as well, and they look spectacular.