THE LION KING
Rating: G
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
MSRP: $39.99 but Amazon has it for $21.99
Running Time: 88 mins
What’s Going On?
A young lion, Simba, comes of age in the African savanna, finding his place in the circle of life.
Who’s In It:
An all star cast provides their voices to THE LION KING including James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Matthew Broderick, Rowan Atkinson, Nathan Lane, Whoopi Goldberg and a young Jonathan Taylor Thomas.
If You Like…:
Stories about family and friendship, and even a little Shakespeare – THE LION KING is modeled partially on HAMLET – then you’ll love this movie. It’s also the #1 animated film of all time, so if you didn’t see it and love it back in 1994 and love it like I did, chances are you probably caught it when it was recently re-released theatrically.
Special Features:
There’s lots of stuff here, including six deleted scenes, among which include some extended and alternate scenes, a song for Mufasa (really), and some scenes that later found their way into the Broadway musical. These scenes are introduced in context with the film and the illustrated using storyboards. “The Morning Report” is a scene that was included in the previous DVD incarnation of the film that takes place during the “pouncing lesson” sequence of the film. The sequence has been fully animated.
There are two extensive documentaries on the film: The Pride of The Lion King, which chronicles its inception in 1989 from an experience then executive Jeffrey Katzenberg had growing up, to the development of what would become the Tony Award winning musical with then relatively unknown director Julie Taymor. It features interviews with the directors of the film, producer Don Hahn, Hans Zimmer, who composed the score, and Tim Rice, who worked with Elton John on the lyrics for the film. The Lion King: A Memoir takes a more inside look at the development of the film, focusing on footage shot by producer Don Hahn during the film’s productions and focuses on what it was like to work on the then “B” film at the studio, since POCAHONTAS was the film that all of the big gun animators at Disney wanted at the time. Together, the documentaries really present a complete picture of what it took to create the film from the inside and the impact it has had not only on the people who made it, but on the countless numbers of people who have seen it over the years.
The film also features Disney’s Second Screen, which allows you to access extra content as you watch the film. Sadly, I still have no iPad, but if anyone would like to donate one, please feel free.
The Technical Gist
The Pridelands look just as good as you remember them, if not better, and the wildebeest sequence looks and sounds absolutely breathtaking in high definition, and those songs are just as catchy.
The Verdict
This is a MUST BUY/UPGRADE. THE LION KING holds up remarkably well and is just as enjoyable now as it was then. Share it and revisit it with your family. It ain’t no passin’ craze.
