By stretching out the source material, Jon Favreau shows how thin it is—and how little there is to the titular hero
. Already this year, “Dumbo” and “Aladdin” have been added to a roster that included “Cinderella”, “The Jungle Book” and “Beauty and the Beast”. When the company cannot use actors and filmed footage, it does the next best thing: it produces a remake which is not quite live-action, but which looks as if it might be.
As awe-inspiring as this digital deep-fakery is, though, it does have a flaw: photorealistic talking animals, it turns out, are nowhere near as charming or as expressive as stylised talking animals. And aside from the David Attenborough-worthy visuals, “The Lion King” does not have much to recommend it. It may not be a shot-by-shot facsimile of the original cartoon, but it is so similar that Jeff Nathanson was lucky to be credited as the sole screenwriter.
He is Simba , a feisty lion who is due to reign over the Pride Lands after the death of his gruffly majestic father, Mufasa . But Mufasa’s bitter brother, Scar , murders the king, and somehow persuades the extraordinarily gullible Simba that he is to blame. The exiled cub is then befriended by Timon and Pumbaa , a meerkat and a warthog who escort him to their Edenic jungle home.
Thanks to interludes for Elton John’s and Tim Rice’s songs, this meagre plot just about fills an hour and a half; but over the course of two hours it becomes clear that Simba doesn’t do anything especially brave, noble or clever. Indeed, he doesn’t do anything except leave home, laze around for a while, and then stroll back. His big heroic moment comes when he chooses to abandon his bucolic existence to reclaim his throne, but it feels more like a capitulation than a victory.
It might have been more inspiring to young viewers if the Pride Lands’ lionesses had stood up to Scar on their own, and if Simba had been bold enough to reject his royal destiny in order to keep frolicking with Timon and Pumbaa. As it is, the film is technologically advanced, but it is as regressive in its politics as any of the company’s hand-painted fairy tales. Still, hakuna matata. The film will no doubt be a box-office smash.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Disney’s 'Lion King' will be (yet another) slam dunk for 2019's box office giantWalt Disney Co.'s latest remake is expected to have a huge opening weekend at the box office, marking another big hit for the Burbank entertainment giant.
Read more »
See Beyoncé belt out 'Spirit' with Blue Ivy in 'The Lion King' music videoThe 'Spirit' music video includes clips from Disney's 'Lion King' remake starring Beyoncé and Donald Glover.
Read more »
Twitter Is Completely Obsessing Over Blue Ivy's Cameo in Beyoncé's 'Lion King' Music VideoJust in case you forgot that Blue Ivy is the actual coolest person alive.
Read more »
Beyoncé’ Gave The Most Revealing Answers In A Rare Interview For ‘The Lion King’When Beyonce talks, we listen. TheLionKing
Read more »
Beyoncé Stuns in Another Gold Dress at The Lion King After PartyDon’t hurt yourself by staring at this bright number for too long.
Read more »