Long Live The King!!!! Live-Action Rendition of 1994 Classic is Respectful and Visually Breathtaking Nostalgia Trip!!!!
Review by Brandon Porter
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| Behold The Future King |
Story Description
It is a time of celebration in the Pride Lands. King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and Sarabi (Alfie Woodard) are introducing the world to their newborn son and eventual heir to the throne Simba (JD McCrary and Donald Glover). For Simba, little can be done to temper his excitement about being king and having the freedom to do whatever he wants with his best friend Nala (Shahadi Wright Joseph & Beyonce Knowles-Carter). But in the shadows, Mufasa's younger brother and Simba's uncle Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor), angry at being denied the title of King despite being next in line, plans to seize the throne by disposing of his brother and nephew. After a tragic event that claims the life of his father, Simba finds himself grappling with the tragedy he believes he caused and the burden of living up to his responsibilities as King. With the Pride Lands in jeopardy, Simba must return home where he faces his biggest challenge yet: Run from his past or take his place in the circle of life.
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| Mufasa and Simba Check In With Zazu For The Morning Report |
Critical and Financial Analysis
Few films in Disney's animated portfolio can evoke emotional reverence and epic scale majestic grace like The Lion King. Highly regarded as one of the greatest if not the great film in the Disney Renaissance era, The Lion King has a generational landmark on animation and cinema itself. Now, the film returns in the form of Disney's latest edition to their live-action line-up. With Director Jon Favreau leading as director and a cast that nearly rivals the original, Fans were eager to return to pride rock and experience the story in a whole new way. From the critic's point of view, it's surprisingly divisive. The film earned a below-average score of 54% from critics via Rotten Tomatoes. The main factors in this split are despite the praise for the visual effects the story follows the same beats as the original classic without adding anything new. That didn't seem to bother general audiences who scored the movie with a much more favorable 89% fresh rating. As for the film's box office, the film none the less devoured the competition with a massive $185 million dollar opening weekend haul making the movie the biggest opening weekend release of July taking the title from the previous record-holder Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. The film also racked in an additional $346 million in international territories giving the film a global total $531 million. Looking at all of the aspects, The Lion King still has a ton of power in terms of the long-lasting footprint it has on an entire generation of fans. With an all-new set of fans traveling to pride rock to experience these characters and these stories, this timeless tale still has a profound place in the circle of life.
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| Staring Into The Eyes of A Queen |
Film Review
It's no secret how much The Lion King means to me and how much of a staple it left on my childhood. The imagery, the beautiful animation, the life lessons, and the chill-inducing score and songs still fill me with emotion and joy to this day. Now on the 25th anniversary of the original's release, Jon Favreau takes the breathtaking photo-realistic visual style of The Jungle Book and applies it to this new iteration of the 1994 classic looking to both pay homage to the original but also make it fresh for the next generation. After watching the film, I can say that the movie is great in its execution despite it clinging out to its predecessor a bit too heavily. For starters, the movie is drop dead freaking gorgeous surprising absolutely no one. By now, we should all be familiar with Jon Favreau's eye for photorealistic visual prestige after his work on The Jungle Book 3 years prior. But seeing a film I love so much realized like this thrilled me and immersed me in the world despite experiencing the sights, sounds, and visuals I've always known. This also points to something that is both a strength and a weakness of this movie. It is no secret that Favreau is doing his best to honor the 1994 classic. He does a great job. Too great of a job almost to the point of copy-paste at times. The entire first act of the movie is about 90% beat for beat like the animated film. Not that there is anything wrong with that but the reliance on what has come before really hinders the narrative liberties at times. Thankfully, the movie starts veering off from relying on its animated counterpart at the beginning of the 2nd act much to my relief. Aside from the visuals, the voice cast is stellar throughout the film. Donald Glover and JD McCrary are terrific as both versions of Simba each adding their own flair to the role. James Earl Jones once again commands the screen as Mufasa despite not quite having the power and punch as he did in the 1994 version. That said, it was awesome to hear his iconic voice and see him in the role again. Chiwetel Ejiofor also brings a lot to the table as Scar. Though not at the level of Jeremy Irons, Ejiofor does manage to bring an unhinged menace making him an intimidating presence every time he's on-screen. Beyonce brings some soul to the story exhibiting Nala's fierceness and headstrong mentality effectively. A few standout performances include John Oliver who is perfectly cast as Zazu and Florence Kasumba as a more harder-edged and menacing version of Shenzi with Eric Andre and Keegan Michael Key delivering some solid comedic beats. Others like Alfre Woodard and John Kani do well as Sarabi and Rafiki despite the latter's comedic playfulness being toned down significantly for this film. However, Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen steal the show as the iconic duo of Timon and Pumba. It's not easy to follow up on the iconic comedic one-two punch of Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella but both do a fantastic job adding laugh out loud humor whenever they are both on screen in banter that is hilarious, fast-paced and clearly off-script. One other thing I appreciated about this version of The Lion King was the added edge to the story's tone. The film's visual aesthetic made even familiar sequences in the film much more intense and gritty. Having the story told in a more grounded and realistic light really adds some tension to the action and emotional moments in the movie. Overall, I found The Lion King to be a fun and engaging nostalgia trip as well as a feast for the eyes and ears. A lot of love went into the film both visually and vocally in a fun retelling of an old classic. It may never dethrone the original but it's more than welcome in the kingdom.
Rating and Final Thoughts
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A fun and visually astounding rendition of the beloved classic that should satisfy longtime fans
and introduce a new generation to the circle of life. |
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| No Sleep For The Lion Tonight. |
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