Disney Announces 2014 Diamond Edition Titles

 

Disney has announced the two latest titles to receive the illustrious "Diamond" treatment on Blu-ray next year.  The round The Jungle Book and Sleeping Beauty join previous Diamond Edition releases like The Lion King, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Peter Pan.  This will mark the Blu-ray debut of The Jungle Book.  Sleeping Beauty was previously released as a "Platinum Edition" making this a certified double dip.

Read on for the complete press release!

TWO ANIMATED CLASSICS AWAKEN TO SPECTACULAR NEW LIFE IN 2014…

THE JUNGLE BOOK & SLEEPING BEAUTY

AVAILABLE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER AS PART OF DISNEY’S 

PRESTIGIOUS BLU-RAY™ DIAMOND EDITION COLLECTION

Burbank, Calif., August 2, 2013 – The Walt Disney Studios is pleased to announce the addition of animated classics THE JUNGLE BOOK and SLEEPING BEAUTY to its prestigious Blu-ray™ Diamond Edition Collection. Released from the Disney vault for a limited time only, THE JUNGLE BOOK opens to colorful new life on Blu-ray Diamond Edition in February 2014, while SLEEPING BEAUTY awakens on stunning Blu-ray Diamond Edition in October 2014.

Released from the Disney vault for the first time in almost seven years, THE JUNGLE BOOK swings onto Blu-ray Diamond Edition in the U.S. on February 11, 2014. Based on Rudyard Kipling’s classic novel, this song-filled celebration of friendship, fun, and adventure was Disney's 19th animated masterpiece and the last animated feature to have Walt Disney's personal touch. Now, viewers can experience its lush and colorful world and jazzy, toe-tapping songs - including the "I Wan'na Be Like You” and Academy Award®-nominated classic "The Bare Necessities" - with the ultimate in high definition picture and sound clarity. Also featuring thrilling new bonus features, THE JUNGLE BOOK is next winter’s must-own Diamond Edition Blu-ray!

The ultimate Disney fairy tale, SLEEPING BEAUTY, once again awakens to exquisite new picture and sound on Blu-ray in the U.S. in October 2014. Heralded by audiences and critics alike, SLEEPING BEAUTY was one of the final fairy tales to be that Walt Disney himself worked on. Fully restored with revolutionary Blu-ray technology, this animated classic’s dazzling colors, spectacular action, and Academy Award®-nominated orchestration (for Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture) shines brighter than ever. With wondrous new bonus features families will love, SLEEPING BEAUTY charms like never before on Blu-ray Diamond Edition!

To date, Disney has released seven Diamond Edition titles – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast, Bambi, The Lion King, Lady and the Tramp, Cinderella and Peter Pan - with The Little Mermaid scheduled for release on October 1, 2013. Each Diamond Edition title boasts the highest level of picture and sound; features groundbreaking, state-of-the-art immersive bonus content; and in some cases second screen interactivity, made possible because of Blu-ray technology.

About The Jungle Book:

Based on the Rudyard Kipling’s classic novel of the same name, The Jungle Book follows young Mowgli on a fun-filled journey with unforgettable characters, including Bagheera, the wise panther, the jazzy King Louie, the hypnotic snake Kaa and the lovable, happy-go-lucky bear Baloo, who teaches Mowgli “The Bare Necessities” of life and the true meaning of friendship.

About Sleeping Beauty:

Sleeping Beauty tells the wondrous tale of a princess cursed by an evil witch, protected by three loving fairies and, ultimately, saved by a “true love’s kiss.” Featuring the voice talents of renowned opera singer Mary Costa (as Sleeping Beauty) and Disney stalwart Eleanor Audley (as the evil fairy, Maleficent), the film’s vibrant visuals were created by a team that included Milt Kahl and Ollie Johnston, John Lounsbery, Frank Thomas and Marc Davis (of Disney’s legendary Nine Old Men), and an Academy Award® nominated score adapted from the incandescent music of Peter Tchaikovsky.

About The Walt Disney Studios:

For nearly 90 years, The Walt Disney Studios has been the foundation on which The Walt Disney Company was built. Today, the Studio brings quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. Feature films are released under the following banners: Disney, including Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios; Disneynature; Marvel Studios; Disney|Lucasfilm; and Touchstone Pictures, the banner under which live-action films from DreamWorks Studios are distributed. The Disney Music Group encompasses the Walt Disney Records and Hollywood Records labels, as well as Disney Music Publishing. The Disney Theatrical Group produces and licenses live events, including Disney on Broadway, Disney On Ice and Disney Live!. For more information, please visit www.disney.com.

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Blu-ray Round Up: Four Disney Titles

We're gonna take a quick break from the horror titles we're talking about this month to cover four great titles from the House of Mouse.  Two of which are considered Disney classics and two new movies.

We'll start first with a seminal Disney classic making its debut on Blu-ray in a wonderful 70th Anniversary edition.

Dumbo
Special Features:  Digital Restoration, Disney View - Expanded Viewing Experience, Cine-explore experience, Never -Before-Seen Deleted Scene, Never-Before-Heard Deleted Song, Taking Flight: The Making of Dumbo, The Magic of Dumbo: A Ride of Passage - A Heartfelt Look at Disneyland's Most Popular Ride, Audio Commentary, Featurettes, Art Galleries, Animated Shorts, Games, Trivia and more.

70 years old and Dumbo still has a strong grip on the hearts of millions of people and now with this excellent blu-ray set the film can be seen in gorgeous high definition.  Disney has really done a wonderful job with this restoration.  I'm not sure why it isn't part of their Diamond edition because it seems like they treated it like one of those releases.

The disc is jammed with special features.  Behind the scenes, pictures, games, and more deliver a wealth of supplemental material that is sure to satisfy any fan of the film.  You really get a lot of cool stuff, not the least of which are the deleted scene and song.

The digital restoration is stunning.  Disney has given us Dumbo looking and sounding better than ever.  It looks almost brand new and really makes the movie even better.

The story holds up as good as it always was.  Touching, funny, heartfelt and exciting, Dumbo delivers even better on blu-ray.

Pop Culture Beast rating:  9/10

Next up, is one of my all time favorite Disney films.  

The Lion King

Special features:  4 Never-Before-Seen Deleted Scenes, Never-Before-Seen Bloopers, Deleted Song, The Morning Report: Extended Song, Pride of the Lion King, the Lion King: a Memoir - Don Hahn, Disney Sing Along Mode, Interactive Blu-ray gallery, Plus classic DVD features.

The Lion King finally arrives on Blu-ray and it is glorious.  A beautiful film in both story and picture with laughs, tears, great songs and a great cast.

Disney has really releases a gorgeous set here.  The picture and sound are nothing short of stunning.  The colors are bright and the sound is crisp and deeply immersive.  It really is a beauty to watch.  The blu-ray has such a good picture that you would swear it was in 3D.  Just stunning.

The special features are good, if not a little underwhelming.  The bloopers aren't as funny as they could have been but still a clever idea.  The deleted scenes are interesting but nothing mind-blowing. It's no secret that the real star here is the film itself.  No amount of extras could really measure up to the film anyway.  Still, Disney did a decent job.  I  might have liked a little more considering this is a Diamond Edition.

Out of the four titles on this list, The Lion King is the only MUST OWN of the bunch.  Were I you, I'd be clicking HERE and buying it right about now.

The Lion King Pop Culture Beast rating 10/10.

Next up is the wildly successful sequel...

Pirates of the Caribbean:  On Stranger Tides
Special Features:  Disney Second Screen, Audio Commentary with Rob Marshall and John DeLuca, Bloopers, and a Lego Animated Short

Johnny Depp returns (and not for the last time, the 5th chapter is rumored to lens next summer) as Captain Jack Sparrow in the fourth entry of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise: On Stranger Tides. This time, Jack sets sail with a new director, Rob Marshall, and Penelope Cruz.  Plus, a completely unnecessary B story involving a mermaid and a love lorn priest, and a great but underused villain.

It didn't get the best of reviews, but I enjoyed the film.  Sure it fell short in a few places but it was nowhere near as convoluted as the previous entries.  Sure the entire plot with the priest falling in love with the mermaid was a complete waste of time and really had nothing at all to do with the plot or even brought any enjoyment whatsoever to the movie and sure Blackbeard kinda just fizzled out in the end.  It's still Johnny being Jack and we love that.

Don't waste your money on the 3D version of this.  You don't need it.  No one needs it.  It's silly and does nothing for the movie.  Which, incidentally, looks magical on blu-ray. There are a lot of dark scenes in the film and they really look great here.  No muddy at all.  I was pretty satisfied with that as I kinda thought it might get a little lost in the picture.  I am proud to say I am wrong.

Of course the sound is off the charts.  The battle scenes fill the air to the point that I was struggling to keep myself from looking behind me to see if I was missing anything.  Really crisp clear and deep sound.

Special features wise we get a little bit of the shaft.  You get the second screen option if you are into that, commentary, some bloopers that are pretty funny and a Lego animated short.   Nothing to interesting or worth writing home about.

Overall, an entertaining, if not a little underwhelming, On Stranger Tides will please most fans of the series.  Others though might find themselves wanting something with a little more dep(p)th.

Pirates of the Caribbean:  On Stranger Tides Pop Culture Beast rating 7/10.

Last but certainly not least...

Winnie The Pooh
Special features:  Exclusive featurette, Sing Along, 5 deleted scenes, "The Ballad of Nessie" theatrical short, Mini Adventures and a DVD copy of the film.

Winnie the Pooh is back in a (thankfully) 2-d animated adventure that feels just like the old classic.  It has all the heart and laughs you'd expect from a Pooh film.  There are really only two complaints about the movie.  It suffers from "wrong sounding muppet" syndrome and it is about 20 minutes too short.

You can't watch the film without noticing the voices.  They aren't bad or anything they're just not right.  Eeyore specifically, who I was convinced (wrongly) was Ed Asner.  You get used to it eventually but its still a little saddening to know that some of the original voices won't be heard again.

Another problem is the run time.  It clocks in at just over an hour.  That is a short amount of movie to justify a $25 price tag.  I was enjoying the film and could easily have enjoyed another 15 minutes or so.  I think kids watching would feel the same way.  It's just too short.

Still, it is a fun family film that all will enjoy.  The artwork is beautiful and the film is a clever little gem that really stays true to the Winnie the Pooh story.  It really looks gorgeous on blu-ray.  There aren't any major bombastic scenes to make the great sound stand out but it is a nice soundtrack,

Special features are decent enough.  There are deleted scenes that leave one wondering why they were taken out at all considering how short the movie is but still worth watching.  The features are mainly for the kids.  there are no real historical features that parents might be interested in.  Nothing really all that in depth.

In the end, Winnie The Pooh is a charming little tale that is just a bit too short that will definitely leave you wanting another trip into that magical world of the 100-Acre Wood.

Winnie The Pooh Pop Culture Beast rating 8/10


Dumbo, Pirates 4, Winnie The Pooh and The Lion King are all available now!

RAWR(for more)

Disney going 3D Re-Release crazy

Anyone who follows movies should have seen this coming. Following a smash re-release of The Lion King in 3D, which opened to a #1, $30 million, September weekend. Disney has let loose a slate of 3D re-releases coming at us over the next few years. Announced today are limited engagement 3D updates to four more Disney(and Pixar) classics. Beauty and the Beast starts things off on January 18, 2012. Followed by Finding Nemo bowing on September 14, 2012 followed by Monsters, Inc. on January 18, 2013 and finally The Little Mermaid on September 13, 2013.

So get ready for a 3D re-release of your insert-blank classic animated movie. Oh and expect every other studio to do the same, and not just with animated movies.

RAWR(for more)