Walt Disney Studios in their old days use to make some great nature films but have been out of that genre for quite some time. In April of 2008, The Walt Disney Company announced an independent film division entitled Disneynature that would release nature documentaries to the big screen. Their first film under this new division is Earth, which is actually a 90-minute re-edited version of the BBC series that originally clocked in at 550-minutes. America has always been good at wanting things quicker and faster and in some ways this version is perfect for the MTV generation. But that’s not to say this is a bad thing. In fact this is a well paced film that follows three of the main stars in the originally BBC series. Earth takes us in a year in the life of Earth from pole to pole with polar bears, elephants, and the humpback whales. Who could better narrate a Disney Picture then that of Simba's father, the great and powerful vocal cords of James Earl Jones. Jones handles the task masterfully as he takes us around the globe. Disneynature Earth may make you rethink about your viewing habits and before you know it, you might be a Discovery Channel and Animal Planet junkie.

Extras

Much like when the BBC Planet Earth was released on Blu-ray, they do not give you an option to hear both versions of the narration. The British version of Earth was originally narrated by Patrick Stewart and was later re-recorded by James Earl Jones for the Disneynature edition for America. Blu-ray is the perfect format to include that option and why not? I would love to hear how each actor handled the narration in their own style. So a bit disappointing that they didn’t include an easy bonus feature. None the less, there are a few extras and one exclusive to Blu-ray. The Blu-ray only is the alternate idea of the commentary track using a pop-up style method instead. It includes both video pop-ups with the creative forces behind-the-scenes and text that gives us even more detail information about the making of the film and our planet Earth in general. This alone may be a reason for those who already own the BBC series to pick this film up and watch it as well. The other bonus material is a well-made feature entitled Earth Diaries: The Making of Earth The Movie. His is an excellent 40-plus minute look into what it took to bring this movie to life. It is just as incredible to see the behind the scenes process as much as the final results.

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