“Oh hey, another Disney remake!? That makes three I’ve seen this year and its only July!” When I got the tickets to this movie, that’s all I could think about. I loved Aladdin as a kid and the movie was just fine and if you haven’t read my other review… I wasn’t a fan of Dumbo. So then as I walked into the cinema to watch The Lion King, I was concerned. I feel like this movie is more seminal and enjoyed than most Disney movies for the majority of people (including myself) and I personally had all my fingers crossed that this movie came out like royalty and not another dunce.
First things first, I love the entire cast. Literally every single person in this movie, I’ve enjoyed in many other projects, so I was excited to see what they could bring to this movie. Turns out it’s a lot. I was right in loving the casting as its perfect. From Donald Glover and Beyoncé as Simba and Nala to John Oliver and James Earl Jones as Zazu and Mufasa (just like the original). They were so on point that I enjoy this voice cast as much as I loved the original. Which brings me to my main point that keeps me slightly conflicted; this is very, VERY similar to the original and I’m not sure if it’s a bad thing or not.
On the one hand, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it but on the other hand, why bother making it at all? Saying all of this, however, I still think it was great and upon learning how it was filmed, I loved it more. If you haven’t seen the videos of the making or know anything about it, ill tease it here. John Favreau directed within a VR world that the movie was filmed/created in. It sounds crazy and it is, and for that, I love it more.
Speaking of the photorealistic CGI/Animation it was stunning. At some points, I could’ve sworn that some of the animals were real and I couldn’t believe it. Life-like animal singing was another reservation I had when going in, as I avoided most trailers, I wasn’t sure how it would look with photorealistic animals singing (unlike the Disney cartoons making it look “normal”). It was as jarring as I thought but it took me a second or two to get used to it. The look and the music were my two biggest concerns considering my love for the original and with the looks, there weren’t that many issues but when it came to music, I have a few thoughts. Pharrell was in charge of the music for this and I honestly, I don’t know if I hear any major differences, which I feel is a weird feeling but overall I enjoyed it.
I still don’t know if we need remakes of older Disney classics but for some kid out there, this could be their first Lion King and I think that is actually a great thought. So even though the original was great, I can see the benefit of all these live-action remakes. All the pluses and very few negatives had me leaving the movies feeling pleasantly surprised and I feel like you will too, whether you’re a 30 something grown man or a child learning what Hakuna Matata means for the very first time this film is for everyone who loves the original.
(it means no worries)