I didn't see this 3D re-release. I would've loved to see this film in theaters again in its former glory, but converting a 2D animated film into 3D is both lazy and idiotic. Granted, it could be an "interesting" experiment to see a 2D animated film made in 3D, but this is a conversion, the kind of 3D that's been known to ruin films like Clash of the Titans or The Last Airbender. Granted, I don't expect it to be THAT bad, but I do expect it to have no effect whatsoever. So instead, just to rub this in Disney's face, I pulled out the Special Edition DVD I got for Christmas in 2003 and re-watched that. Now, I have many thoughts running through my head, and I thought I might as well write a review on it. So, let's begin!
The film follows a young lion cub named Simba, who's the son of Mufasa, the king of the Pride Lands. Simba's excited because one day, he'll get to become king himself. He goes on and on about how he'll be the greatest king, how he'll fire Mufasa's servant bird Zazu, how he'll be brave no matter what he does.... However, the idea that he'll be king someday leads him to believe that he can do whatever he wants whenever he wants. This arrogance leads him to wander into an elephant graveyard, dragging his friend Nala into it, no less. They end up running into a pack of hyenas who hate the lion pack because Mufasa banished them from the Pride Lands, and if Mufasa hadn't come to the rescue, Simba and Nala would probably have been eaten.
It's here that Simba realizes how he's not as brave as he thinks he is, but at the same time, neither is Mufasa. Mufasa's only brave when he has to be; he doesn't go looking for trouble, and instead simply tries to protect his kingdom and, most importantly, his son. Still, after that incident, Simba's under the impression that he isn't worthy to become king and that he must remain within his father's shadow. Unfortunately, that all changes when Mufasa is trampled by a stampede of wildebeests. What's worse is that Simba feels that he's responsible for his death, as he was supposed to wait in the gorge where the stampede took place. Because of this, he runs away only to be picked up by a meerkat named Timon and a warthog named Pumbaa who only restore his previous arrogance by telling him to kick back and enjoy life without any worries. He uses this tactic of "not worrying" to cover the guilt he feels for his father's death. What he must realize is that not only is running away from your mistakes instead of learning from them a terrible choice, but he was never responsible for Mufasa's death to begin with.
No, Mufasa died at the hand of his dark and mischievous brother, Scar. He's jealous because he wanted to be king instead of Mufasa. The trouble is that Scar is equally as arrogant as Simba was as a child, but the big difference is that Scar is an adult. He thinks he's being "proper" when in fact he's being smug. All he wants is both the power to seize control of the kingdom and the glory to be called king. When he kills Mufasa, drives Simba away, and seizes control of the Pride Lands, he does nothing but sit around, picking at his teeth, and allowing the hyenas that he's teamed up with to run the kingdom dry of food. He has no idea how to run a kingdom, and though neither of them realize it right away, Simba does know. He knows the pain of losing the life within the kingdom that he loves so much. He knows that bravery also comes with responsibility. He doesn't just want power, at least not anymore. He wants to run a kingdom properly.
One style I love to see in films is the ability to combine humor with drama. It's a style as old as Shakespeare itself (which is an interesting notion to make in this review, as a lot of people have found The Lion King to be similar to Hamlet), and this film pulls it off quite nicely. There are some dramatic scenes where laughs can be found within, such as when Mufasa and Simba are wrestling on a grassy landscape underneath the stars, and some of the sources of humor can also be looked at as dramatic plot devices, primarily Timon and Pumbaa. Like I said, these two are the reason why Simba returned to his arrogance. Timon is slick and relaxed, always kicking back and only using the common sense of what he knows about (that is, bugs) to explain what the stars are. Pumbaa, on the other hand, is a sentimental being who thinks a bit more about things such as that star notion, but ends up conforming to what Timon says because he's been neglected in the past. These two are an excellent comedic duo, and their involvement also helps progress the story. After all, how could Simba have gotten past the hyenas towards the end if Timon and Pumbaa hadn't driven them away with their hula routine?
The animation is magnificent to say the least. The amount of detail put into the landscapes truly manages to capture the beauty of African wildlife. The film knows when and how to be either bright and colorful or dark and dramatic. In fact, the epic, sweeping scope of this film is so great that as a kid, I found its dark and dramatic tone to be very scary. Nowadays, I love the film for that very reason. All of this is backed up by some fantastic musical numbers. Again, they know when and how to be either jazzy and fun or dark and gruesome. In some cases, such as the opening song, Circle of Life, it can be both dramatic and fascinating; theatrical, if you will. These are the kind of songs that I wish more recent Disney songs should be like; not that I don't enjoy the songs from Phineas and Ferb, but it would be nice to see Disney take such dramatic risks with their music. If anything, that would help expand to further audiences.
So, yeah, what else needs to be said? The Lion King is a fantastic film for people of all ages; the kids will love the jazzy, colorful side of the film and will hopefully understand why the film is so dramatic, while the adults will definitely get into the dramatic side and hopefully relive their childhood with its brighter side. If you've been on Mars for the past decade and a half and haven't seen this film (or just the latter, whatever the case), definitely check it out, even if you have to see that 3D version.
I would pay the full $20 to buy this film.
Thanks for reading!
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