Friday 7 January 2011

The Lion King (1994)


The Lion King deserves a review from me. Disney’s influence on the world of animation has been singularly immense, for better or for worse, and while not every one of their films is a classic, The Lion King is quite possibly their masterwork, by far my favourite of the studio’s works, and probably my favourite animated movie of all time.

Few people are likely to need a synopsis, but in brief: the lion king Mufasa rules over his pride with dignity and wisdom. A son and heir is born, the adorable cub Simba, and he grows up mischievous and headstrong with his friend (also his ‘affianced’, by arrangement) Nala. However, second in line is the king’s brother Scar, who arranges a clever coup: he has his hyena accomplices start a stampede in a gorge, trapping Simba there. Mufasa comes to his rescue, and Scar makes sure he ends up dead. He sets the hyena on Simba too, but the cub escapes, meeting the carefree duo Timon and Pumbaa and growing up in an idyllic jungle. However, the Pride Lands have fallen into ruin, mismanaged by Scar. Searching for food, Nala meets Simba and recognises him – and hearing about his home, Simba is also reminded of his responsibilities, and eventually he is convinced to go back and confront his uncle.

Much has been made of the similarities to Hamlet, right down to comparing Timon and Pumbaa to Rozencrantz and Guildenstern, but the story is unique enough to seem more homage than rip-off – not that, of course, Shakespeare is to be credited with much in the way of original storytelling. And this is not even mentioning Tezuka’s Kimba. Still, the twist of having the traditional story set in the animal kingdom of Africa works so well, and makes for some of the most beautiful animation and scenery ever drawn. Mufasa’s circle of life speech, with the camera panning around father and son, is amongst the best shots I have ever seen rendered in animation of any sort, done with consummate skill by an animation studio at the height of its powers just a few films before an undignified fall from grace.

I first saw The Lion King in the cinema as a primary school trip. A friend then passed on a pirated VHS until we could buy the legitimate copy. Since then I’ve got the DVD (dust forming what looks very much like the word ‘sex’ excised), seen it in the IMAX and gone to the musical adaptation numerous times. At one point I could very probably have transcribed the entire film from memory. There is very little I do not love – the cast is superb, especially Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones, Nathan Lane, Rowan Atkinson, Matthew Broderick, Whoopie Goldberg and Cheech Marin. The songs are the best in any Disney film since The Jungle Book, from stirring epics to comedy numbers, and Hans Zimmer’s haunting score adds so much, with incredibly strong themes and stirring Swahili choruses from Lebo M.

There are a few minor problems if you overthink the story. Who is Nala’s father? Shouldn’t a pride have just one male? Do these lions kill prey begging them for mercy? Can an ecosystem really get devastated and recover that quickly? Do we really need a ghostly vision, for all the Shakespearean precedent? And sure, you have your noblest characters played by black men, but superb as the performances are, why are those lowly hyenas all so…ethnic? Why is Scar so much darker of hue than Mufasa? But these are such tiny matters, on a par with the little animation errors I can’t help but notice after seeing the film so, so many times. They don’t matter at all. Because as with Aladdin, TLK was Disney in such a strong position that they could take risks. The film contains stark death scenes, scary visuals and doesn’t even introduce its two main comedic characters until halfway through. There is a certain formula to the plot, but it is far from by-the-numbers and staid. ‘Nothing new’ is not a criticism that can be levelled here.

The Lion King does everything right – and what’s more, it does it all beautifully. Truly superb animation.

(The Lion King 2 here; The Lion King 1 1/2 here; The Lion King 3D, with trivia and observations, here)

5 comments:

  1. The Circle of Life always brings me to tears. Without fail (the song, I mean)

    With the Disney Renaissance, this and Mulan are my two favourite films of that era. I do like Hercules, but not as much. I don't really have that much time for Aladdin (Jasmine was irking), The Little Mermaid (hated that Ursula used my name for her villainous alter-ego) or Beauty and the Beast (just plain bored me)

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  2. It doesn't when we are wailing it like banshees in hotel lobbies!

    I enjoy Aladdin, and Robin Williams' performance really makes it something unique and forever one of the weirdest pieces of mainstream animation ever. I mean, he's a genie many hundreds of years ago doing Jack Nicholson impersonations.

    Mulan I feel is a bit later, the first of the next batch of films. I've never liked it that much, but that's not to say I hate it.

    Hopefully I'll eventually write one of these for all the Disney films.

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  3. Still one of the best moments of the very first Kitacon xD Oh man... The thought still cracks me up...

    The Jungle Book is probably my joint fav Disney film. The Bare Necessities/Back Scratch scene cracks me up every time I see it, and that is something that has been consistant all my life xD

    What did you think of the 80s era of Disney films, including The Black Cauldron? And how do you think Tangled will fare after the moderate success of The Princess and The Frog?

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  4. The Black Cauldron wasn't unpopular because it was too dark or too difficult, as some people say. It was just too sloppy plotwise, and too rushed at the end. It's half of a very good movie, and Gurgie is awesome.

    I'm worried about Tangled. It looks...smug. We'll have to see.

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  5. It's probably going to be a good film. I'm just dissapointed that they have changed Rapunzel from a headstrong girl voiced by that blonde woman who was in the original Wicked (Kristien something) to a valley girl airhead voiced by Mandy Moore. And the main focus is no longer her but the guy. Because Disney wanted to attract boys to the film. I don't seem them complaining about successes like the Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast, do you? Such double standards...

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