Flow, this year’s surprise winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, is on sale for 50% off as part of The Criterion Collection holiday sale at Amazon. The 2024 animated film joined The Criterion Collection in September with 4K UHD Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD editions. With the 50% discount, you can get Flow for $25 on 4K Blu-ray, $20 on Blu-ray, or $15 on DVD.
Flow: The Criterion Collection
Regardless of which edition you pick, you’ll get a remastered edition of Flow director Gints Zilbalodis’ first animated movie, the 2019 fantasy adventure Away. It also comes with multiple inserts, two short films, a making-of documentary, feature-length animatic, and more special features.
Made with open-source software with a budget of roughly $4 million, Flow brought in $20 million at the box office and earned heaps of praise from critics and viewers. On Rotten Tomatoes, Flow holds a 97% on the Tomatometer (critic reviews) and a 98% on the Popcornmeter (audience reviews).
Flow follows a cat who embarks on an adventure after his home and the world around him is destroyed by a flood. Throughout his journey, he meets a lemur, capybara, and other animals who, like him, simply want to survive. It’s a rather unconventional movie, as its animation and sound design tell the complete story–there isn’t a single word of dialogue.
$25 (was $50)
Flow’s 4K digital transfer and DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround sound upgrade was approved by Zilbalodis. All three editions are based on the 4K transfer, so the 1080p and DVD editions will look better than the average Blu-ray/DVD.
Like many Criterion releases, the 4K Blu-ray edition of Flow has premium packaging. The fold-out digipack has interior artwork and is protected by a slipcover. Inside the case, you’ll find a fold-out leaflet with an essay by film critic Nicolas Rapold and a character sticker sheet.
Animated movies represent a very small piece of Criterion’s catalog. The biggest animated film in The Criterion Collection is undoubtedly WALL-E, which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2009. WALL-E is the lone Pixar (or Disney) animated feature in Criterion’s library. Director Andrew Stanton pitched it to Criterion and supervised the remaster, so this is the best version of WALL-E available; it’s also arguably the best 4K Blu-ray of any Pixar or Disney animated movie due to the visual and audio enhancements and treasure trove of special features.
On the visual side, WALL-E offers Dolby Vision and HDR10+. For audio, the film has three surround sound tracks: Dolby Atmos, Dolby TrueHD 7.1, and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. WALL-E is a three-disc collection with approximately four hours of bonus content. Needless to say, Criterion’s 4K Blu-ray edition of WALL-E is a must-buy for Pixar fans, especially when it’s on sale for only $25 (was $50).
Animated movies directed by frequent Criterion Collection collaborators Wes Anderson and Guillermo del Toro are also on sale for 50% off. Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio is available on 4K Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and DVD. Wes Anderson’s 2018 film Isle of Dogs joined The Criterion Collection in September with 4K and standard Blu-ray versions. Anderson’s 2009 animated film Fantastic Mr. Fox is also in the catalog, but this one isn’t on sale for 50% off–unless you buy The Wes Anderson Archive. The recently released 10-film box set includes Isle of Dogs, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and many of Anderson’s best live-action movies on 4K Blu-ray for $250 (was $500). Eight of the films–including Fantastic Mr. Fox–are only available on 4K Blu-ray in this box set.
Here’s a list of notable Criterion Collection animated movies on sale for 50% off during Amazon’s holiday promotion:
- Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
- Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs
- Fantastic Planet
- Watership Down
- Flow
For more Guillermo del Toro deals, check out our story on Criterion’s new Nightmare Alley Special Edition. And if you want to learn more about The Wes Anderson Archive, our story has an in-depth look at the new box set as well as a list of the filmmaker’s movies on Blu-ray for 50% off. For the most comprehensive article you can read on the annual holiday sale, check out GameSpot’s massive Criterion Collection roundup.
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