Rating: 
Summary: New song is kind of irritating...
Review: This Special Edition release of The Lion King features a new song (actually taken from the stage production) adapted into the animation. The addition of "The Morning Report" seems very forced, and mostly comes off as irritating. Unlike the other songs throughout the film, which actually in some way move the story along, "Morning Report" seems to have been thrown in just for the sake of adding something for the special edition release. It also, in my opinion, lacks the humor of the original scene which it replaces.However, the DVD contains both the original and special edition versions of the film. And the special features are fantastic. The digital restoration of the film is also great. It looks so crisp and clear compared to the old VHS copy I had. If you are a fan of this film, I highly recommend picking up this DVD. While I didn't care for the new scene in the special edition film, the special features and the restored verison of the original film make up for that.
Rating: 
Summary: Another thoroughly good, fun and wholesome movie
Review: This is another good, fun, totally enjoyable, delightful and thoroughly wholesome family movie - with the most splendid acting by the famous movie stars who provided the voices for the different characters. This was a great movie for people of all ages when it first came out and it remains so today as a video. Buy it for relatives of all ages and enjoy it yourself! Christopher Catherwood, author of CHRISTIANS, MUSLIMS AND ISLAMIC RAGE (Zondervan, 2003)
Rating:
Summary: ABSOULTLY EXTRAODINARY-MY FAVORITE!
Review: The movie was absoultly faboulus. When I first saw it I was 4yrs old and I loved everything except the character Scar(smile). But as I got older I REALLY started to LOVE it a lot, so much that I went and saw the broadway show, have lion king activity center (cd-rom),lion king animated storybook(cd-rom), lion king 2 simba's pride (movie),lion king 2 activity center(cd-rom) and tomorrow I am getting lion king special edition(movie) on dvd! Also I am getting lion king 2 1/2(movie) on Febrary 10,2004. So this movie, as you can tell, really captivated me and I hope you feel the same when you, hopefully, watch it too!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Finally on DVD!
Review: I like this DVD because you can see The Lion King in letterbox format, which means that you see it like it was in the movies- they don't cut any of the picture out. They have enhanced the colors and it looks amazing. They have added a short song called "The Morning Report." Don't worry if you don't like the new song, because they have the original version of the movie on the disk, too. The song is kind of cute, actually. Not necessary, but cute and funny. The music in this movie is amazing. I think that the best voice acting has to go to Jeremy Irons (Scar). The DVD is full of extras, although I am disappointed that they do not have interviews with the voice actors on the disk. They have some games for little kids, like Timon and Pumbaa's Safari and The Lion King Personality Test. There is a segment that tells about the inspiration of the Lion King. It was derived from the story of Joseph in the Old Testament, Moses, and Hamlet. It also tells you how they got a real African choir to do the chants. It shows clips of the movie in different languages such as Chinese, Portuguese, Japanese, Dutch, French, Italian, Zulu, and Korean, so that is always fun to watch. The disk is worth the money, and the price is right because it is much cheaper than other Disney videos. Add this to your collection of favorite Disney movies! Highly recommended if you love The Lion King!
Rating:
Summary: Morning Report - Shmorning Report!
Review: I give the film 5 stars but I've got to say I was really disappointed in the "new" musical number. I've had misgivings from when I first heard about it, but was willing to give it a chance. Since I knew the number from the broadway show I knew that it would somehow have to replace certain moments from the original film. I think the song works fine in the stage version, but I worried that it would break up the original flow of the
scene. And I was right. I'm sorry, but I really like when Mufasa tells Zazu that he's giving a pouncing lesson and tells him to turn around, and then the next time Zazu looks behind him, the two lions have vanished. In the "Special Edition" that little moment is gone. Still I might have overlooked this if the filmmakers had not done the unforgivable: hired another actor to do a Rowan Atkinson impersonation! As far as I know Mr. Atkinson is the only voice actor (other than Jeremy Irons) who has never reprised his role from LION KING. I kind of understand where it might be due to budget constraints on some of the other projects, but to create inconsistencies in the original film ...?!
I kind of had a feeling it would happen. Good ol' predictable Disney ....
Thank God the original version is on the disc as well!
Rating: 
Summary: Who is singing?
Review: Disney's Lion King was a great film before it came to DVD, especially with songs by Elton John. Now, for some reason, Elton John is not singing in this DVD release of the movie, it is some woman. I did not pay for this DVD to hear some woman sing. She ruined the movie for me. It's bad, trust me.
Rating:
Summary: Nice movie Nice DVD
Review: It is hard to believe that this was thought of as a secondary or B-movie at the Disney studio. Lion King is probably the best post-Beauty& the Beast 90's Disney movie. This movie brought it all together very well. After this movie, Disney took this format of animated movie and ran with it, although I personally think this was the peak of their greatness. This movie, much like all great Disney movies, have aged very well. The animation, effects, and story still hold up. The only minor complaint is the fart humor, but I suppose it gives the kids a laugh. There have been some reviews that the movie is too dark for kids but I think kids are smarter than we think. I give kids more credit than that. I believe kids like to be taken on an emotional roller-coaster when their watching movies just as much as adults, whether it be scared or sad.
The DVD is standard Disney DVD fare. It has a commentary track which isn't mentioned anywhere on the packaging but is a nice suprise. Most of the extras are worth your your time. Some of the extras are commercials for Disney World and other Disney merchandice disguised as entertainment. The extras are also kind of hard to navigate through. It would be nice to have a play all feature for all the DVD extras. The new "morning report" segment in the Special Edition version doesn't add much to the movie but it doesn't take away that much either. Both versions of the movie look and sound beautifully in widescreen format. This probably isn't the best Platinum edition Disney has put out but it is well worth it for the movie alone.
Rating:
Summary: Earns its place among the old Disney classics
Review: Animation films are incredibly tricky. Adults(or just mainly uptight people view animated films as kids only. However kids see them as great pieces of film that they "get". For once, Disney gets it right. This was really a powerhouse film when it came out and held the record for the biggest animated film of all time(until recently when a so-so film about finding a fish called Nemo came out). Simba is a young lion in the Serengeti(they call it the Pride Lands though) who just can't wait to be king. However, he's a mischievous little cub who gets into trouble a bit easy. When a terrible tragedy strikes, Simba exiles himself where he meets a warthog and meerkat and develops a carefree lifestyle. Now an adult, he returns to the Pride Lands to reclaim the throne from his evil uncle, Scar. Sounds a bit like Hamlet huh? But you won't care. Many impossibly catchy songs, funny moments and jokes and words that even appeal to adults(do you really think a kid would understand "illustrating the differences in your royal mangerial approaches"? Exactly.) Voice acting is top notch, animation is absolutely gorgeous, and it's done by hand by the way, none of that Finding Nemo/Toy Story/A Bug's Life CGI stuff. There's a reason why this is considered the best Disney film but you owe it to yourself to find out why.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful addition to our film library!
Review: This deluxe edition is wonderful. The sound and color of the remastered movie are breathtaking. And the extras on Disc 2 are as good the movie. It was very poignant to listen to the artists and moviemakers reminisce so lovingly - after 14 years, they still get choked up about it! The only curious gap was the lack of interviews with the voice talents. Granted, they are all busy busy busy, but I would have loved to hear Matthew, Moira, Nathan, Ernie, James, Whoopi and Jeremy talk about the experience and what they think about it now.
Rating:
Summary: Great DVD release
Review: Okay now I preordered this awhile back at a Disney store knowing it would be a great release since I liked "The Lion King" when I first saw it in theaters. Unfortunately I missed the IMAX release of "The Lion King" But I did see the IMAX release of "Beauty and the Beast" and own the DVD. Now first off the added musical score "Morning Report" I didn't care for. I liked the non musical version of that scene better, but hey that's me. Now as for the whole DTS confusion that my cousin brought to my attention. Well their isn't exactly a DTS track but the "Disney Home Theater Mix" could definitly pass as a DTS track, it was a great mix. If you do like the original "theatrical release" better than you can watch that instead. This option is contained in the audio options I notioced, when you select the audio track there is two section's one for Special Edition one for Original Theatrical release both have the Disney Home Theater Mix and both have the standard Dobly tracks selection. All in all this was a great DVD and I haven't gotten thru all the special features yet so I can't say anything but everybody whos seen "The Lion King" should definitely get this DVD I think it's a great buy.
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