Lion King: The Circle of Life is Half Full

By Scott

3.5 out of 5 Stars

The Lion King is a 2019 American computer-animated musical film directed and produced by Jon Favreau (The Jungle Book), written by Jeff Nathanson, and produced by Walt Disney Pictures. It is a photorealistic computer animated remake of Disney’s traditionally animated 1994 film of the same name. The film stars the voices of Donald Glover, Seth Rogan, Chiwetal Ejiofor, Alfre Woodward, Billy Eichner, John Kani, John Oliver, and Beyonce’ Knowles-Carter, as well as James Earl Jones reprising his role from the original film. The film was theatrically released in the United States on July 19, 2019 and grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide, becoming the second highest grossing film 0f 2019, highest grossing animated film and the 12^th highest-grossing film of all-time.

The story is about a baby cub named Simba (JD McCrary) who was born to the parents of King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and Queen Sarabi (Alfre Woodard) of the pridelands. As a young cub, Simba is adventurous and allows his jealous Uncle Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor) to convince him to engage in risky life – threatening behavior, which will cause the death of King Mufasa. Scar encourages Simba to run away while he ascends the throne with the help of the hyena pack. Meanwhile, Simba befriends a comic duo:  feisty meerkat Timon (Billy Eichner) and his warthog best pal, Pumbaa (Seth Rogen), who have a “no worries” approach to life. Later, as a nearly grown lion, Simba (Donald Glover) is reacquainted with an old friend, Nala, (Beyonce’ Knowles-Carter) who forces him to confront whether he can return home and challenge Scar.

     The opening scene in this film brings an emotional jolt with the birth of Simba, and the animal kingdom of Tanzania looking on with reverence at their future king. When I saw this scene in the original 1994 animated film, I had goosebumps, seeing the huge rising sun in tune with the music. Seeing this scene for a second time, I felt something was missing. I realized later on that the filmmakers decided that adding human expressions to the animal faces would look weird, so they tried to convey emotions more through body language. They also left out other parts, especially involving Mufasa and his relationships with Zazu (John Oliver), Refiki (John Kani) and Simba. This version was darker and more Shakespearian (Hamlet) than the original. The snarling hyenas are more dangerous than in the first film. Seth Rogen was quite funny, but his singing voice is questionable.

     Despite the flaws in this film, I gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars. The realistic animation is technologically astounding! The visuals are impressive and the music, especially Beyonce’s new song, Spirit, is captivating. She wanted the music to be a love letter to Africa. There are a total of 86 different species to be found in this film. The performances by the all-star cast were good.  Ejiofor’s performance as Scar is particularly wonderful. Benedict Cumberbatch turned down the role of Scar. At the age of 86, James Earl Jones still remains one of the great iconic voices of all time. The director, Jon Favreau, wanted to keep the best parts of the original, and he encouraged his cast to improvise; but it lacked the heart and soul that made the original 1994 film a classic. When you leave the theater you will be entertained, and the money you spend to see this film will be worth it!