The Lion King (1994) Review

"Long live the king."
-Scar



In the Pride Lands, King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) raises his son, Simba (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), to become the next King.  However, Mufasa's treacherous brother, Scar (Jeremy Irons), initiates a coup against the King and forces Simba to flee his home.  Now Simba will have to grow up and face his uncle in order to become the King he was born to be.


What Works:

The Lion King is one of my favorite Disney movies, but it had been almost 10 years since I had seen it.  Let me tell you, it absolutely holds up.  It's an utter blast to watch and it's a ton of fun.  It's interesting to watch it now as an adult.  As a child, I mostly related to young Simba, but it's a very different film watching him grow up and become and adult.

The animation is absolutely stunning and has aged incredibly well.  The film looks spectacular and I don't see why this film needed a remake when it looks this good.

The music is some of Disney's best.  "Circle of Life," "I Just Can't Wait to Be King," "Be Prepared," and "Hakuna Matata" are some of the best songs from any Disney movie ever.  They do a great job of drawing you in emotionally and add a lot to the story.

The voice acting is top tier.  James Earl Jones has such an amazing voice and is 100% perfect as Mufasa.  He doesn't get as much screen-time as you might remember, but he makes this role iconic.

Jeremy Irons is also incredible as Scar.  He's so slimy and such an irredeemable POS.  He's a wonderful villain and watching him manipulate Simba into running away gives me chills every time.  His murder of Mufasa will forever be stuck with me.

The comic relief is incredibly strong as well.  Zazu (Rowan Atkinson), Timon (Nathan Lane), and Pumbaa (Ernie Sabella) all give hilarious performances and are never too much as is often the case with comic relief characters in children's films.  They each have a purpose and have plenty of hilarious and interesting moments.

Finally, my personal favorite character is Rafiki (Robert Guillaume) the wise old baboon who acts a bit crazy, but is actually very wise.  He reminds me of Yoda from The Empire Strikes Back.  I love the lesson he teaches Simba and his strange mannerisms.  He doesn't have a ton of screen-time either, but I love every moment we get with him.


What Sucks:

I got nothing for you.


Verdict:

The Lion King was always one of my favorite Disney movies when I was a kid and I appreciate it even more now.  The animation is beautiful, the writing is fantastic, the music is wonderful, and the performances are iconic.  Don't bother with the remake, just stick with this masterpiece which has 100% got it going on.

 10/10: Amazing      


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