Disneynature AFRICAN CATS Review!

On October 4th, Disneynature released AFRICAN CATS, an epic motion picture capturing the lives of two rival families of lions, divided by way of a mighty river, along with the journey of a courageous cheetah known as Sita who is a single mother of five mischievous newborns.

Within the southern region lives the River Pride, six lionesses and their cubs.  They’re portrayed as being a close knit family that relies upon one another for protection and comfort.  The oldest and most seasoned lioness in the pride is Layla who has a six month old cub referred to as Mara. The lionesses raise and nourish the cubs, but the pride is protected by its leader, Fang.  He is the father of all of the cubs and defends them.

To the north of the river lives Fang’s greatest adversary, Kali and his four sons. Collectively, they form the most powerful force within the land.  Kali already rules the north’s lionesses, but he’s not content with that.  He would love to overthrow Fang and expand his realm to the south.  His plan is to destroy Mara and have new cubs of his very own. On the other hand, in order to accomplish this he needs to wait for the high river to go down and get  across the crocodile infested water to reach the River Pride.

I sat down to watch the movie by myself prior to allowing my soon to be four year old view it,  as I suggest you do as well for those who have small children.  The motion picture is rated G.  Nonetheless it displays the true story of the wild and in spite of its general audience rating it contains a number of hunting scenes which may frighten younger kids.  For instance, there’s a scene of  several lionesses ripping  apart a zebra carcass and getting blood on their fur.  Even so, the movie was beautifully done leaving out the horrific gore that can take place in nature.

AFRICAN CATS was filmed entirely within the wild, in the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya.  The imagery was unquestionably awe-inspiring and the closeups of the cats made the movie spectacular.  I additionally loved that it was narrated by none other than Samuel Jackson,  who in my opinion has a captivating voice.  Overall if you ask me
I thought this was Disneynature’s best film to date!

Trailer

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Bonus Features:

“In addition to the film, the discs include an incredible array of bonus features that take viewers deeper into the savanna through extensive interactive behind-the-scenes footage including filmmaker and conservationist interviews, an incredibly touching music video featuring Jordin Sparks singing “The World I Knew,” plus a look at the global efforts to which The Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund contributes.”

DVD:

·       Disney & Nature – Viewers get a deeper look into the conservation efforts around the world being sponsored by The Walt Disney Company.

·       Save The Savanna – A comprehensive look at Disney’s “See AFRICAN CATS, Save the Savanna” program and its impact on the region.

BLU-RAY:

Everything on the DVD, plus…

·       Filmmaker Annotations – This interactive in-movie feature is a viewing mode with 12 different segments that allows consumers to watch behind-the-scenes footage of the production process and hear stories from the filmmakers and conservationists who spent several years making the film.

·       Jordin Sparks “The World I Knew” Music Video

MOVIE DOWNLOAD:

Everything on the DVD, plus…

·       Introduction To Masai Mara – a segment from the Filmmakers Annotations Blu-ray feature

·       Filming The Cats – a segment from the Filmmakers Annotations Blu-ray feature

·       Sophie’s Elephants – a  segment from the Filmmakers Annotations Blu-ray feature

Buy It!

Disneynature’s African Cats Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo can be purchased at amazon.con for just $19.99!  That is a 50% savings off the suggested retail price! By purchasing a Combo Pack or Movie Download version of Disneynature AFRICAN CATS through October 10, you can help protect the future of lions, cheetahs, elephants, zebras, giraffes and a host of other animals in the vibrant African savanna!

Disneynature’s Chimpanzee!

Disneynature is soon to release their next film about a three year old chimpanzee named Oscar!  It’s set to debut in theaters on Earth Day 2012!  Check it out below! It looks amazing!

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