THE LION KING - DIAMOND EDITION
Release date: October 4, 2011
Blu-ray version (some materials may not appear on the DVD version)

Considered a classic in the renaissance of Disney animation that occurred in the late ‘80s, early ‘90s, “The Lion King” went on to inspire theme park parades and shows, Broadway spectaculars and sequels. It created phrases that remain in every Disney fans vocabulary such as “Hakuna Matata,” and featured memorable songs, including “Circle of Life,” composed by the team of Elton John and Tim Rice. Today the film remains as brilliant in story and appearance as it did when it was first released.

With the latest Blu-ray release, the “Lion King” has been given the royal treatment! Most notably is the inclusion of Disney Second Screen. For more information on this incredible feature, please visit this link.

I still can’t get over how the Blu-ray automatically syncs with my computer and how I actually control the player via my computer. Despite this being the third Disney Second Screen I’ve viewed, I am still completely blown away by how much incredible content this offers. You easily spend hours and hours exploring the materials. It’s really like having the Disney Archives in your own home!

In addition to a sing-along mode and an extensive interactive gallery, here’s what else you’ll find in terms of
BONUS FEATURES:

PRIDE OF THE LION KING (38:06) is a newly produced piece, and brings in memories via interviews with many of the key figures involved in the film such as Michael Eisner, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Peter Schneider, Tom Schumacher, Hans Zimmer, Tim Rice and many more. A reunion of the original animators and a restaurant meeting between Tom Schumacher, Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane add to a particularly candid style of conversation which is quite refreshing. My favorite line comes from composer Hans Zimmer, “It’s got fart jokes. What more can you ask for?”

The second half of this featurettes focuses on the live stage version of “The Lion King,” with some really fantastic footage of the show.

I watched THE LION KING: A MEMOIR – DON HAHN (19:40) in awe. While this piece tells the story behind “The Lion King,” throughout the entire featurette you are viewing vintage video at the studio in the ‘90s including story sessions, recordings sessions and other treasures of the creative process.

DELETED AND ALTERNATE SCENES WITH INTRODUCTIONS BY CO-DIRECTORS ROGER ALLERS AND ROB MINKOFF (14:31) It’s one thing to see deleted footage from new movies, but for me it’s really a treat to see footage from a classic film and these won’t let you down! In fact, there’s an entire deleted song and a reprise of “Be Prepared.”

BLOOPERS AND OUTTAKES (3:44) What if Simba and all the inhabitants of the jungle were real actors, with real flaws? Find out with these contrived bloopers and outtakes.

THE MORNING REPORT: EXTENDED SCENE (2:30) – When “The Lion King” was adapted for the musical stage, several new songs were written including, “The Morning Report.” In a previous DVD release, the original team animated this song and inserted it into the film. This release has left the original film intact, exactly as it was when it was initially released in theaters, and when on to become the highest grossing hand-drawn animated film of all time, and it presents this sequence as a bonus feature. Good job, Disney!

DISNEY’S VIRTUAL VAULT is a BD live feature which delivers previously released bonus content related to “The Lion King.” Broken up into miniature segments, the content includes interviews, vintage footage, deleted scenes and much more.

There’s an option to queue up the content for your own personalized viewing. The pieces are presented at about a sixth of the size of your television screen, so you can continue to browse through bonus features, queue up videos, etc.

I hope this helps you know what to expect on “The Lion King” Blu-ray! Disney should really take “pride” on the fantastic job they did on it.