DreamWorks Ultimate Holiday Collection Blu-Ray Review: Heaps of Holiday For the Family!


A collection of holiday treats has arrived on stores’ shelves and consuming it won’t add anything to your waistline! The must-own item comes from DreamWorks and it’s their Ultimate Holiday Collection that features 9, count-‘em 9, animated characters and their franchises that are endeared by millions. This may be the rare home video release where there’s a necessity to purchase two copies—you know, one for you and the family and another as a gift.

Whether you adore Shrek, Toothless and Hiccup, Po, Poppy and those avians who are troublemakers who hilariously save the day, this collection surely is a Christmas movie miracle.

Ever wonder what Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Shrek (Mike Myers) get up to during the holidays? Those questions and more are answered as viewers enjoy Trolls Holiday, Shrek the Halls, Donkey’s Caroling Christmas-tacular, Merry Madagascar, Penguins of Madagascar in a Christmas Caper, Dragons Holiday: Gift of the Night Fury, Home for the Holidays and Rise of the Guardians.

Trolls Holiday commences right after the concluding vents of the 2016 hit movie. Anna Kendrick returns to voice the role of Poppy, Queen of the Trolls. When she learns that those Bergens do not have anything to add to the holiday discussion—because they’ve never had any—the perky pink Troll gets to work to erase that mistake. Branch (Justin Timberlake) is back and the rest of the gang as well as they not only seek to bring joy to Bergens, but sing a few hit songs for good measure. That colorful animation sure adds layers, too.

Shrek the Halls—timeline wise—picks up after Shrek 2. This one has to have a special spot in DreamWorks’ heart as it was their first holiday special! Myers and Murphy are joined by returning favorites Cameron Diaz and the feline who went on to star in his own adventure, Antonio Banderas’ Puss in Boots. Basically, the big green guy has to learn to celebrate Christmas with his family.

The eight-minute short, Donkey’s Caroling Christmas-tacular finds the titular burro and a few of his pals singing some of your favorite holiday hits. Meanwhile, Merry Madagascar brings back the entire Madagascar family who have to pull together if they’re going to save Christmas. That tends to happen when you accidently shoot down Santa Claus’ sleigh. There’s one more thing, the holly one … has amnesia. Ben Stiller’s Alex and his friends do their best, I mean, they have to right? They took out Santa’s ride!

Although we adore all aspects of the Madagascar world, there is no question our favorite part are those penguins. The Madagascar Penguins in A Christmas Caper is a pitch perfect 11 minute short. In what amounts to a prequel, Private Penguin finds a way out of the zoo. After all, he has to … must get a gift for Ted the polar bear. Lucky for PP, Skipper, Kowalski and Rico are close friends.

Nothing screams holidays like a magical dragon, or is it just me? Dragons: Gift of the Night Fury is a supremely sensational work of art. Whether you are a fan of DreamWorks Animation, or even specifically the How to Train Your Dragon movies, there is too much awesomeness beyond the surface for this holiday gift to not be brought home.

Po from Kung Fu Panda probably likes the Christmas holiday because of all the delicious treats, don’t ya think? In Kung Fu Panda Holiday, Jack Black’s alter ego is tasked with hosting the annual feast for all the other Kung Fu Masters. It’s an event meant to promote peace and keep communication high between the various elite fighters. There’s an issue. Po’s adopted papa, Ping (James Hong) is having his annual dinner party that same night. This is a true quandary! There is no knock-off voice case here—DreamWorks brought back all the talent, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, and David Cross) and their master, Shifu (Dustin Hoffman).

Home: For the Holidays has a ball with its moniker, but that joyous sentiment does translate to the visual. The 2015 animated flick is one of the longer additions to this set, clocking in at 45 minutes. If you were a fan of Home, then you better check out Home: For the Holidays.

On the above list of all the titles available, you may have scratched your head at the words Rise of the Guardians. Yes! The actual full-length 2013 movie, that had a dazzlingly cast voice acting ensemble, is led by Chris Pine as Jack Frost, Alec Baldwin is essentially Santa—here known as North—while Isla Fisher delights at the Tooth Fairy and Hugh Jackman hits a grand slam as the Easter Bunny, here just known as Bunny. Pitch (Jude Law) decides to try something he rather enjoys, trying to take over the world. The Guardians will have none of that.

When it comes to bonus features, I would bet that Shrek’s Yule Log will be the host’s choice in just a few households across the planet. Staying with the green big guy, 12 Days of Xmas Pop-Up Book finds the Myers voiced character delivering a (really) short story. It’s fun and a worthy endeavor. The 4 Penguins Sing Along Music Videos also is a can’t miss. Love those little buggers? You’ll want to sing with them as they undertake some family favorite songs.

Dragons: Gift of the Night Fury has director Tom Owens introducing and explaining four scenes that were cut from the Christmas special. All the extras on the Rise of the Guardians movie are the same ones offered on the DVD and Blu-Ray release.

Films Grade: A
Bonus Features: A