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THE LION KING  
2 Disc Special Edition
Released by Buena Vista Home Entertainment. Available to buy now.

Without question one of Disney’s biggest hits of all time The Lion King makes it to DVD in a fantastic remastered  double disc edition complete with a brand new song and stacks of extras.

When his father, King Mufasa, is killed, young Simba is taken under the wing of his decidedly evil Uncle Scar (perfectly voiced by Jeremy Irons) who has his own plans for rulership. Simba though, thanks to his best friends Timon (a meerkat) and Tumba (a Warthog) and a ghostly appearance from his father, realises his destiny.  Never afraid of tackling big subjects in their animations Disney take this tale of lion cub Simba and his efforts to become King and imbue it with such themes as redemption and self worth and even throws in a spot of Shakespeare with more than one nod to Hamlet. It’s not just the story that delights though but the soundtrack too with songs written by Elton John and Tim Rice that help elevate the movie into the top rank, throw in some truly laugh out loud moments, a voice cast that includes Rowan Atkinson, Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Whoopi Goldberg and Nathan Lane and you have a movie with a huge re-watchability factor, the benchmark of any DVD release.

EXTRAS: A huge amount has been packed into this two disc set. A major package of extras in fact, including an extended version of the movie that includes new song The Morning Report (you can still watch the movie without it though), a very interesting crew commentary, a look at scenes that didn’t make it (including storyboard and early treatment footage), then there are stacks of mini featurettes on the making of the movie covering everything from the conception of the movie to the stage show that has pretty much travelled the world. Next is a music video featuring the Disney all stars performing Circle of Life and a version of the movie allowing you to sing along to all the movie’s songs. A big plus for kids though is the inclusion of a whole stack of games including such delights as The Lion King personality test, Timon’s Grab-A-Grub and Pumba’s Sound Sensations, there are also a set of virtual safari adventures in which your hosts are Timon and Pumba.

Definitely the release of the month.