I'm sorry Simba, but I definitely can not feel the love tonight (I'm sure I'm not the first to make that joke but I don't care). Disney's hyper-realistic remake of The Lion King is quite the utter disappointment and an unfortunate slap in the face to the visionaries who made the original such an emotional and masterful piece of animation. While I do not agree that this updated version is as horrible as many are making it out to be, there are certainly not that many redeeming qualities about this film to even validate its existence. Despite the loaded voice cast and talent that radiates from each of them individually, there is such a large disconnect between the characters in this film and the emotions that they were trying to convey, which made the original so impactful. As much as I tried to enjoy this, the only element that will really stick with me is the obviously impressive animation that Disney has somehow convinced audiences to be live-action.
Young cub Simba (JD McCrary) is born into the wondrous and beautiful world of Africa and learns that one day when his father Mufasa (James Earl Jones) is gone, he will become king. After being wrongfully accused of Mufasa's death by his uncle Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor), Simba runs away and grows up outside of the kingdom with his newfound friends Timon (Billy Eichner) and Pumbaa (Seth Rogen). Upon learning that Scar has laid ruin to the kingdom, adult Simba (Donald Glover) now decides that it's time to take back his throne and restore power and peace to his home of Pride Rock. If you've seen the original film or have ever even heard the basic story of this movie, then you know exactly what to expect out of this remake. The plot is exactly the same, much of the dialogue is simply recycled, and besides the pacing of the story, nearly every element is a carbon copy of its original. I do not mind when Disney makes live-action adaptations of human characters, such as Cinderella, Mulan, or even the Maleficent films. Those stories can be easily translated from their animated predecessors while still providing at least something new for the audience to experience. My main issue with this movie is its complete lack of originality with its deadbeat, animal characters. Other than lines of dialogue and some humor here and there that was changed, this movie plays out just like the far superior 1994 version, only Disney makes it much harder to even relatively relate to this drab story.
The most glaring visual issue that I have with The Lion King is its inability to express any emotion. Pride, triumph, and especially sorrow are some of this film's most prevalent themes - whether it's what a certain character is feeling at a particular time or what the tone of the film is attempting to achieve. There is no room in this film for the animals to express any of the emotions that make this story so grand and memorable. The "live-action" stylistic choices of the animation are the obvious cause of this problem. Because of this, I did not feel for Mufasa's death scene at all; one of the saddest and most iconic losses in film in the past few decades and in this version, I could not care less. Perhaps it is my selfishness as a human, but I only saw it as the circle of life running its course instead of a close character that I felt for. Disney is clearly utilizing this film to show off its cinematic muscles with the dazzling animation and on that front, they are doing great. The animation is undeniably gorgeous and it is an absolute visual spectacle for its entirety. But I truly believe that rather than relying on the party trick of expensive CGI, that they should try investing in new writers to pen original films. This might actually bring the company more critical success, as they slowly but surely inch towards the monopolistic, money-machine that they have unfortunately become.
The playfulness that also comes with "Hakuna Matata" and "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" is absent and can really only be shown with more cartoonish animation; any other attempt at this simply fails in comparison. Not to mention that this scene was shot incredibly awkwardly and captures absolutely none of the original charm and lighthearted qualities. However, despite this film's complete lack of style and heart, the voice acting was decent and the new versions of the songs were sung with a lot of passion. It's difficult not to sound great with the likes of Donald Glover and Beyoncé, but the true standouts of this film were Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen as the comedic duo Timon and Pumbaa. Eichner and Rogen were excellently cast in these roles and there is honestly no other actors that I would even consider to embody these hilarious characters. Hans Zimmer also returns for the score and it was fantastic as expected. His work on the original and this remake has definitely evolved over the course of 25 years and his flawless artistry has only improved.
The Lion King is not nearly as majestic as one would expect. While I do believe it's worthy enough to show younger audiences who are accustomed to today's culture of live-action remakes and animation, there is nothing redeeming about this movie for audiences like me who remember the power of the original. This remake is not only dry and forgettable but will make you realize the pure charm that the days of 2-D animation once held.
My Rating: ★½
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