The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe Blu-ray

Narnia looks even more stunning and the White Witch even more frightening in this high-definition rendering. And Aslan’s roar fills the surround sound speakers beautifully. Disney did a great job of extending the movie to the menu and special features. In the game Battle for Narnia, viewers are asked to ward off gorgons and other creatures so Peter, Susan, Edmond and Lucy can have safe passage. It’s a simple game, but far removed from the kind of action gamers are used to getting on their PlayStation 3. Disney announced that Narnia would be its first picture-in-picture Blu-ray release, but the only use of this feature we could find was when the movie shrank to a small box in the top right corner of the screen when we viewed the menu. The ability to use the menu while watching the movie is one of BD’s advantages over standard DVD, so Disney would do better to give the movie more room. We also found a glitch in our copy, with the disc freezing when we chose the “Discover Narnia Fun Facts” option.

Shelf Talk: Disney timed this Blu-ray release well, streeting it the Tuesday before the theatrical bow of the second movie in the series, Prince Caspian. However, whether fans who already own the original DVD of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and/or the four-disc extended version that was released in December 2006 will buy this Blu-ray version remains to be seen. (The movie in the Blu-ray disc is the original theatrical version, not the extended cut.) Disney is offering a $10 rebate by mail for owners of the regular DVD when they upgrade to Blu-ray.