Ahhh…..two months later, we insert us back into the world of useless Disney remakes that actually have merit. Jon Favreau, three years ago, did an outstanding remake that outdid the Disney original which would be “The Jungle Book”. When seeing the trailer for his remake of “The Lion King”, it looked like it would kind of create a cinematic achievement through its visuals and its world.
Guess what, it ended up far from that. Two words. It’s fine.
As anyone quite imagined, the film is basically a shot-by-shot remake of the 1994 Disney animated classic.
It tells the “shot-by-shot” plot line of Simba believing that he would grow up to stand on top of the mountains of Pride Rock like his father. Then of course, it turns into a Hamlet-style story where his father Mufasa is horrendously threatened by Scar, the younger brother of Mufasa. Therefore, Simba must thrive to fight Scar in order to reign king.
I was honestly really anticipating this remake to be as good as the original because of Jon Favreau as director going into it. From what I saw as a “shot-by-shot” remake of the original, it is definitely fine for what it is.
However, there is still great stuff to be said.
The three actors I can say stand out the most would be James Earl Jones reprising as Mufasa, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar, and the hilarious Seth Rogen as Pumbaa as well as Billy Eichner as Timon.
James Earl Jones still has it all at age 88. He definitely lives and breathes Mufasa’s character through mannerism and personality. The chemistry with him and young Simba (played by a striking debut from JD McCrary) still feels as fresh as the original. There is definite reasoning why Jon Favreau wanted to recast James Earl Jones as the father.
Chiwitel Ejiofor might actually be the best part of this film. He is one of the absolute best actors working today. Ejiofor definitely feels like he took notes from Jeremy Irons’ vocal performance in the original where you can love to hate this character. Listen to me, fan-base. I don’t care if he doesn’t have a scar on his face like the original. I’m still going to love Ejiofor nonetheless.
Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner as both Pumbaa and Timon respectively are about as hysterical as Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella in the original. They both make a friendly and hilarious duo as well as picking apart the circle of life and making grub and fart jokes. They kind of bring something new especially with Pumbaa.
The movie’s look is gratifyingly beautiful in every sense of the world. It looks epic as the original did 25 years ago and it is going to win the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Just leave it for “Avengers: Endgame”, okay Academy Motion Picture Arts & Sciences?
Everything else is fine…..I guess?
The musical sequences ranging from “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” to “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” are fine despite “Be Prepared” being a little weak. I kind of loved “Hakuna Matata” though.
Donald Glover and Beyonce both are fine as Adult Simba and Nala respectively. They don’t do anything special or bring something new like how Matthew Broderick’s Simba did this epic battle with Scar near the end of the original.
The storytelling can feel very predictable, but fine.
Here can sometimes be the ugly…
The lion’s movements (or if you like to call it “acting”) when lip syncing can feel VERY off especially during the musical sequences. It can definitely fault during “Hakuna Matata” when Donald Glover sings his lines.
An example of how to do lip-syncing right with motion capture is (without question) with “Happy Feet”. Director George Miller at least knew by hand that penguins can not just sing, but also express emotion and personality.
John Oliver kind of is bland as the toucan Zazu. At times, he might go too deep on Rowan Atkinson’s legendary footsteps a little bit too much.
Also, the reenactment of Simba screeching “No!” when Mufasa dies feels more so like a Mad TV sketch than an epic. In the original, it felt triumphant and important to the movie itself. This……not quite.
“The Lion King” remake is something families definitely plan to take their kids to during the good ol’ summertime, but maybe not the greatest ever since “Avengers: Endgame” might be the answer. Fine is the word on the street with this remake.
Grade: 7/10
