Review: Monkey Kingdom Blu-Ray/DVD Offers Educational and Fun Home Entertainment for Entire Family

We received a copy of Disneynature’s Monkey Kingdom Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack to review this weekend. The film was one of the biggest surprises to me earlier this year, and I’ve learned a lot more that we’ll be sharing from interviews with director Mark Linfield and Disneynature Ambassador Dr. M. Sanjayan in the upcoming days (I will be linking to those soon). I appreciate the film even more now knowing how much work went into it. And I hadn’t realized until researching before my interviews that these particular monkeys have been subjects of research since the 1960s. That made it much easier for filming, since it wasn’t at all unusual to have humans in their presence.

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The Blu-ray isn’t bonus feature heavy, but what is here we found very fascinating.

The bonus features are:

• Tales From The Kingdom – One of the things I wondered while watching Monkey Kingdom was how the camera crew could seemingly be everywhere to film the most important events. It turns out, there were 10 teams that spread out during the 3 years of filming. And it was more work than I could have imagined for the leopard and bear segments. Just capturing the leopard footage took months!
• On The Set Of Monkey Kingdom with Jane Goodall and Wolfgang Dittus – Dr. Dittus arrived to study the macaque monkeys in 1968, expecting it to be a one or two year project. He never left. Disneynature Ambassador Jane Goodall talks with Dittus and interacts with the monkeys.
• Disneynature Monkey Kingdom: The Conservation Story – Dr. M. Sanjayan from Conservation International talks about conservation of the animals in Sri Lanka and elsewhere. One of those ways is planting trees – a “green wall” – to help keep monkeys and other animals from encroaching on other land. Sanjayan talks in an easy manner, with humor and concern for the wildlife.
• “It’s Our World” Music Video Performed By Jacquie Lee – What I liked best about this video is that it has nothing to do with the performer visually and everything to do with the film. You’ll have seen the scenes before, but it was a pleasant watch.

Here is our original review of this wonderful film!

“‘Monkey Kingdom’ is Good, Disneynature Fun For the Whole Family”

We had the opportunity to see a preview of Disneynature Monkey Kingdom a couple of nights ago. Monkey Kingdom revolves around Maya (the key monkeys are given names), a toque macaque in Sri Lanka with a moptop of hair and a gentle disposition. The film begins with The Monkees theme song (“Hey, Hey, We’re the Monkees”), which sets the movie on a lighthearted note.

Maya is at the bottom of the monkey caste system, which can mean scouring the ground for fruit that has dropped from the tree. The upper echelon of monkeys get to sit at the top where the ripest fruit is, and then monkeys in the lower hierarchy can be located at the bottom of the tree – if they are lucky. Living quarters are the same, with Maya nearly always out in the elements, even during monsoon season. Fortunately, we do find out later that monkeys can increase their lot in life – though it isn’t easy.

A narrative is created for this group of monkeys, with Maya the star of the show. Maya does find a partner, who quickly is chased away from the group – but not before Maya is pregnant. Maya gives birth to Kip, who is an adorable baby that Maya dotes on. There is a scene where Kip and Maya are out swimming, and a water moniter shows up. Both Maya and Kip escape, although another monkey does not. Scenes dealing with death are not graphic, but they do let viewers know about the harsh realities that animals face in the wild. Even monkeys can be cruel to one another, both within their own group and especially when dealing with an outside monkey group. Disneynature has done a fantastic job at imparting that information to viewers without it being overly sad.

One of the questions I had during the movie was answered during the credits. The filmmakers inject themselves into the process. They aren’t just observers, but the monkeys know they are there, and sometimes play on the film equipment. A couple of scenes seem to have been staged for fun, including a birthday scene (and it is a lot of fun).

Monkey Kingdom is a learning experience for families, but also an enjoyable film.

Monkey Kingdom is narrated by Tina Fey. The film is rated G.

Mousesteps Grade: A-