Pre-Order The Lion King (1994) (4k UHD) Available for Preorder (1 Viewer)

[Ronald Epstein]

The price link below will take you directly to the product on Amazon. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.

 

[Lord Dalek]

Its going to be an upscale right?

 

[B-ROLL]

Its going to be an upscale right?

" Computer animation was also used in several scenes, most notably in the wildebeest stampede sequence..."
"The Lion King was released on June 15, 1994, to a positive reaction from critics, who praised the film for its music, story, and animation. With a worldwide gross of $766 million, it finished its theatrical run as the highest-grossing release of 1994 and the second highest-grossing film of all time. It is also the highest-grossing traditionally animated film of all time. "

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lion_King

 

[Lord Dalek]

" Computer animation was also used in several scenes, most notably in the wildebeest stampede sequence..."
"The Lion King was released on June 15, 1994, to a positive reaction from critics, who praised the film for its music, story, and animation. With a worldwide gross of $766 million, it finished its theatrical run as the highest-grossing release of 1994 and the second highest-grossing film of all time. It is also the highest-grossing traditionally animated film of all time. "

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lion_King

...that doesn't answer my question. This was a purely digital production.

 

[Jesse Skeen]

The animation in this has also been tampered with in later years- the laserdisc is the only way to get the true original version unless they surprise us on this one.

 

[MatthewA]

Its going to be an upscale right?

If the CAPS system had enough resolution for 35mm output and an IMAX blowup, then it should have more than enough room for a 4k UHD transfer.

And this is the first Disney film before the studio's elimination of traditional animation to get a 4k. Let's hope their bad Blu-ray habits don't carry over to the new format.

 

[Mike Frezon]

This catches me by surprise.

I didn't know that a 4k/UHD of The Lion King was in the works (especially in time for Christmas).

 

[Jake Lipson]

That artwork is AWFUL. Who approved that? Even reusing the artwork from the current Blu-ray, which I didn't love, would be better than this eyesore garbage..

I'm not going 4K in the immediate future and don't have plans to do so, but this is one of a handful of titles that I care enough about having in the best possible version that I would consider buying this to future-prof. Aladdin and The Lion King are my top two favorite movies of all time, and the movies I play more often than anything else, so I don't want Disney to vault them without me having it for future use. However, I'd be a lot more eager if they had done this last year concurrently with the most Blu-ray double dip (which I also bought.) If/when I get this, it will be my fifth version of the movie, counting the VHS, DVD, Diamond Blu-ray, and Signature Blu-ray. So, I'll probably bite the bullet and get it, but I'm not happy about having to do it so soon after buying the Blu again last August.

I assume/hope that the included Blu-ray copy in the 4K will be the same as the Signature Blu released last year, so at least I could (theoretically) unload that set on a friend if I get this.

Also, how long until Amazon removes this pre-order? I fully expect to have to get this from a physical store and am not pre-ordering right now for that reason.

 

[MatthewA]

The animation in this has also been tampered with in later years- the laserdisc is the only way to get the true original version unless they surprise us on this one.

For those who need to be reminded of the difference:



The original is better. The crocodiles are more in rhythm with the music, and they look more like real crocodiles than herky-jerky inflatable pool toys like the redone version. Did Disney ever give an official excuse explanation about why they changed that particular shot?

 

[Jesse Skeen]

They were going to reissue the movie in IMAX theaters and they did some changes that they thought would "look better" on the bigger screen, along with adding the "Morning Report" song- but then that release was scrapped. The first DVD says it includes both the "original" and special editions, but that's a lie as the animation is still changed.

 

[MatthewA]

Time really flies. I remember seeing the 3-D re-release the day I signed the lease on my first apartment in California. Now this.

They were going to reissue the movie in IMAX theaters and they did some changes that they thought would "look better" on the bigger screen, along with adding the "Morning Report" song- but then that release was scrapped. The first DVD says it includes both the "original" and special editions, but that's a lie as the animation is still changed.

Then they learned nothing from Pinocchio, although to be fair I think their references to "original" vs. "special edition" were based exclusively on the running times. That still doesn't let them off the hook since the original version still technically isn't. And honestly, "Morning Report" is not that great of a song in and of itself or compared to the rest of the score. Maybe it worked better on stage, but on film it just sits there.

The birds also look better in the old version. The new ones look even more fake and barely move at all; look at their wings. They tried to make it better for larger screens and only ended up making it worse for all of them.

 

[Jake Lipson]

They were going to reissue the movie in IMAX theaters and they did some changes that they thought would "look better" on the bigger screen, along with adding the "Morning Report" song- but then that release was scrapped.

You're right, and you're not.

The crocodiles (and the waterfall in Can You Feel the Love Tonight? among other things) did get altered for IMAX and have been retained since. However, The IMAX release did happen and was not scrapped. I saw it, it was awesome and it made $15.6 million in its release in 2002-3.

https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lionkingimax.htm

But the IMAX run did not have The Morning Report. It was just like the version that appears on the Blu-ray and the "theatrical cut" on the Blu-ray. I think they were trying to put it in there but it wasn't done in time for the release date, so it went out as-was and Morning Report was added only for the DVD.

I agree the changes are unnecessary, but they are unobtrusive and don't take me out of the movie while I watch it. If they gave us a Blu-ray of the true original, I would gladly take it, but I'm not as bothered by the changes here as I am in, say, Star Wars, where the changes are genuinely distracting. I don't want to continue watching the VHS (or seek out a laserdisc) just to have the true theatrical cut when the Blu-ray is close enough for all practical purposes except in general principle.

 

[Jake Lipson]

Best Buy has an exclusive steelbook version for $34.99.

I like the inside art of it, but the outer box is...not great (although less bad than the general release art.)

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/lion-k...y-only--best-buy-1994/6297630.p?skuId=6297630

The artwork also shows that the Blu-ray disc has artwork on it which resembles the cover art for the current Signature Collection Blu-ray. However, if that is the case, they would have to do a new pressing since I have the Signature Blu-ray and the label is plain blue as is Disney's standard these days. The artwork for the 4K disc appears to be the original poster art, which makes me wonder why they don't just use that for the cover, since it would be much superior to what they ended up using. It seems like the last time The Lion King had truly great cover art was for the original VHS (and the Best Buy steelbook for the original Diamond Edition Blu-ray, but that's difficult to find now.)

Also, 2019 is the 25th anniversary. Given Disney's mathematical inaccuracy on previous titles, I'm surprised they're not seizing the opportunity to bill this as a 25th Anniversary Edition.

Good lord, I feel old now.

 

[Matt Hough]

That 3D theatrical release of The Lion King was a blockbuster (seems like it added $100 million more to the movie's till) which encouraged Disney to try it with Beauty and the Beast (to much less spectacular box-office results; artistically it was stunning).

 

[Colin Jacobson]

That 3D theatrical release of The Lion King was a blockbuster (seems like it added $100 million more to the movie's till) which encouraged Disney to try it with Beauty and the Beast (to much less spectacular box-office results; artistically it was stunning).

Pretty close on "Lion King" 3D - Boxofficemojo says it made $94 million! The IMAX version added $15 million...

 

[titch]

I've done an A/B comparison, projecting the 4K disc versus the blu-ray and I can't for the life of me see or hear any difference between the two at all, on a 120 inch screen. The 4K disc is encoded at almost three times the bitrate as the blu-ray, but the 7.1 sound and picture seem just the same to my eyes and ears, without the benefit of having two screens running simultaneously. Granted, I've switched off the HDR, as that just doesn't work with my projector, so it will be interesting to hear if those of you with OLED screens can see a difference in the colours and highlights. The 4K disc doesn't have any extras at all. The blu-ray has a 2018 copyright stamp but seems to have the same bonus features as the "Circle of Life Edition" from 2017. So for my money, this wasn't worth the upgrade.

 

[Sam Posten]

Congratulations, you have just shown how effective Bluray sound and video have been for the last ten years. Not every film is going to benefit from increased resolution and bit depth.

And guess what? Lossy sound and video are AMAZING quality these days too.

 

[Brent Reid]

Congratulations, you have just shown how effective Bluray sound and video have been for the last ten years. Not every film is going to benefit from increased resolution and bit depth.

And guess what? Lossy sound and video are AMAZING quality these days too.

What he said.

 

[Sam Posten]

Did anyone who already had Lion King in their MoviesAnywhere locker try redeeming the 4k code? Did it let you? Did if give you anything new?

 

[Lord Dalek]

Congratulations, you have just shown how effective Bluray sound and video have been for the last ten years. Not every film is going to benefit from increased resolution and bit depth.

And guess what? Lossy sound and video are AMAZING quality these days too.

Not like that resolution existed in the first place. This was made digitally in 1994 mind you and animation probably won't benefit much from 4k in general.