THE JUNGLE BOOK – The Blu Review

THE JUNGLE BOOK (1967) was Disney’s 19th animated feature and the last that Walt himself had a hand in, though it wasn’t released in theaters until nearly a year after his death.Sebastian Cabot, Phil Harris, George Sanders, J. Pat O’Malley, Sterling Holloway, and especially Louis Prima made animated characters come to brilliant life in THE JUNGLE BOOK, well-adapted from Kipling’s collection of short stories. The story followed the man-cub Mowgli (voiced by Bruce Reitherman in an appealing performance) as he trekked from the jungle to the man-village. Along the way he encountered a strange parade of figures including the sniveling Kaa (Holloway), the evil Shere Khan (Sanders) and the rambunctious King Louie (Prima, who got the film’s best song – ‘Bear Necessities’). His two parental figures were Baloo the Bear and the sage Bagaheera. They were voiced by Harris and Cabot and their chemistry together really made the triangle of Mowgli, the bear and the panther work. It is probably the most dysfunctional family ever seen in a Disney film. Everything else in JUNGLE BOOK worked just fine and the film has aged well after 47 years. The songs are still cute and catchy, the characters interacted well with each other, the setting was stylish and the ending a departure from the clichéd happy ending we associate with Disney. It felt more ambiguous but altogether more satisfying. Although there were some things that could make P.C. nuts squawk (the alleged racism) and the animation buffs cringe (the reused animation) that doesn’t change the fact that THE JUNGLE BOOK was fun, unique, jolly, and full of heart.

Now Disney has polished THE JUNGLE BOOK up for the new Diamond Edition Blu-ray release and it is well worth a purchase.

The new Blu-ray set does full justice to the film, starting with the pristine Mpeg-AVC 1.75:1 ratio, image that brings the eye-popping colors to gorgeous life. We’ve come to expect that from this company, which treats its classics with the reverence and respect that deserve. The original mono film soundtrack was also recorded in stereo and has been re-mastered here as DTS-HD MA 7.1, which sounds terrific.

A huge fistful of extras sweetens the pot even further:

Audio commentary – This features Bruce Reitherman (the voice of Mowgli) and composer Richard Sherman. Also edited in are testimonials from animators who were inspired to get into the business because of THE JUNGLE BOOK.

Alternate ending  – presented in storyboard form

‘Nine Old Men’ – 41-minute documentary that looks at Disney’s legendary inner circle of animators known as the ‘Nine Old Men’. Includes interviews with their children.

Bear-E-Oke – sing a long songs

Disneypedia – Junglemania – is a live action nature documentary looking at the real life settings of the movie.

Blu-ray of the movie, the DVD version, and a digital download.

Activity book.

Like all the other Disney Platinum Editions, THE JUNGLE BOOK is a great addition to the collection of any animation fan or any kid’s DVD collection.