By Steve Kabelowsky Contributing Columnist Published Dec 16, 2014 at 7:37 PM

When I think of a true Disney movie, I think of "Sleeping Beauty." It is a pinnacle achievement from the animation studio’s golden era.

It is a fantastic tale, one that clearly puts the evil character at its most menacing, and the good characters who muster up the spirit to take evil on. It’s a classic battle, urging the audience to take a side and root for the victor.

Granted, when something is of 1959 vintage, it becomes difficult to sell it on a younger generation that is exposed to the latest computer-animated worlds. I do find, that when an older family member embraces a film like this and a child can feel the heart and soul expressed, that they will get beyond what is not there and get caught up in the great story that is presented.

The youngest of viewers – especially the ones who love the Disney princesses – will love this film about Princes Aurora, who is put under a spell by Maleficent and a deep sleep brought on by a prick from a spinning wheel. Despite the king’s efforts to burn all of the spinning wheels in the kingdom, the good fairies protect young Beauty and arm Prince Philip to take on the fire-breathing alter ego of Maleficent and save the princess with, "True love’s first kiss."

Disney released the Diamond Edition with DVD, Blu-ray and Digital Copy in October. I’ve had the chance to screen the discs, and take in the wealth of background and history shared in the extras. A large amount of featurette footage is from the original DVD release, including the restoration effort of the score of the film which was nominated for an Academy Award. Historians and animators look back at the original footage from the recording sessions to make the songs like "Once Upon a Dream" come back to life.

One story shared is of background artist Eyvind Earle. Walt Disney loved his work so much that he made Earle the art director on "Sleeping Beauty." This was the first time that Disney gave a single artist the responsibility of creating the entire look on an animated feature. When you watch the film with the art direction in mind, you can see the effort of the American artist to make it stylish and stunning … this extra effort using the most advances camera and animation practices of its time pays off.

"Sleeping Beauty" is the 16th animated film from the studio and included Milt Kahl and Ollie Johnson, two of Disney’s legendary Nine Old Men. This was the last film produced by Walt Disney based upon a fairy tale.

New bonus features include three deleted scenes that were never released before, and they help tell a deeper story when combined with the classic featurettes that reveal an alternate opening to the movie, the live action reference video used by the animators and four deleted songs that didn’t make it into the film. The extras also reveal one deleted character – the vulture – that existed in an early edition of the script where the good fairies don’t take Beauty to live in the woods, but rather stay in the castle with a protection spell.

"No evil thing that walks or flies or creeps or crawls can ever pass these castle walls," the spell read.

Sarah Hyland, one of the stars from ABC’s "Modern Family," presents Walt Disney World’s new "Festival of Fantasy Parade" that was created by the cast members playing the residents and characters from Fantasy Land as a way to tell their stories.

Modern Day animators, including Lino DiSalvo from "Frozen," talk about the villain designs of Maleficent and Cruella from "101 Dalmations" and how the work of Marc Davis influences the films being made today.

Beyond the feature film, there is so much background shared in the Diamond Edition set and both children, and the generations before them will love add this one to the collection.

This is also the best set up for Disney’s "Maleficent" staring Angelina Jolie that puts a wonderful twist on "True love’s first kiss." Bundled together, it makes for a great example where through one classic film made before the 1960s could create an entire universe where new tales can still be told.

The review of "Maleficent" for home entertainment will follow a little later this month. Early tip: Buy it now for the holidays.

Steve Kabelowsky Contributing Columnist

Media is bombarding us everywhere.

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