Logan Sork Film Reviews
The Lion King
Typically, when people think of the Disney animated films, people tend to think of each and everyone one as flawless classics. While I would certainly argue that a lot of them are classics, the majority of them have a lot of flaws that people tend to overlook. However, in the case of the 1994 animated hit The Lion King there are simply no flaws to overlook. This film is one of the few movies I consider to be nearly perfect. Everything about this film is simply awesome, from the epic feel to the animation, to the music, every element in this film works together in tandem to create one of the greatest viewing experiences ever made.
The Lion King is directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff and stars Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones, Moira Kelly, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Robert Gauillime and Rowan Atkinson. The film follows Simba (Broderick), a young lion who is to succeed his father, Mufasa (Jones), as king of the African Pride lands. His life is thrown into chaos however, when his Uncle, Scar (Irons), murders Mufasa, forcing Simba into exile. While exiled, he meets Timon (Lane) and Pumbaa (Sabella) who teach him how great life is when you just let everything go. As Simba goes older, he forgets his responsibilities as the future king, choosing instead to live a care free lifestyle. However, when his childhood friend, Nala (Kelly) discovers Simba, she tells him of the horrible things that have happened in his absence. Realizing he cannot run from his past forever; Simba and his friends return to challenge Scar and restore peace to the kingdom.
One of the things that separates The Lion King from other Disney animated films is just how epic it feels in every sense of the word. While other Disney animated films seem to have some sort of spectacle to them, there is no topping this film. The story is pretty standard, a tale of family, betrayal and perseverance that has been told many times throughout history, but the film still finds ways to make it seem larger than life, despite only lasting for an hour and a half. Some of the elements that help this film reach such epic heights include the imagery, which is simply stunning. The animation is so bright and colorful in the bigger scenes, but also subtle and beautiful in the smaller dramatic ones. It’s the epic scale of the imagery and animation of the film that adds to the fantastic story and makes for a truly eye-catching film even after all of these years.
Of course, it’s not just the animation that adds to the epic feeling this film exudes. Another element that makes this film so memorable is the music. While there aren’t as many musical numbers in this film as other Disney animated features, they are all extremely memorable. From the fun “I Just Can’t Wait to be King”, to the villainous “Be Prepared”, and the epic “Circle of Life”, each song adds a different flavor to the epic tale and allows for some truly memorable moments from all characters. And it’s not just the musical numbers that make this film fantastic, as legendary composer Hans Zimmer provides an excellent orchestral score for the film’s dramatic moments and action scenes. Some people say that music makes the movie, and in the case of The Lion King it certainly plays a big role in adding to the epic feel of the film.
While all of these elements certainly play a big part of making The Lion King stand out from other Disney films in terms of scale and feel, what truly makes the film standout is its unique message. Most of the other Disney films have pretty standard messages like “love someone for who they are”, “be yourself” and all of that jazz. Now don’t get me wrong, those are great messages that everyone should learn act out I life, but after a while it gets kind of boring. And while this film may certainly have snippets of those messages it adds a great one about embracing your past, even if it hurts, and learning from your mistakes. This not only works to add a different message to the film, but also to elevate the basic plot structure we’ve seen before, further adding to this film’s epic storyline.
The Lion King is not just the best Disney animated film, it’s one of the best animated films of all time. Heck, it’s one of the greatest films ever period. What makes this film worthy of such praise is evident upon viewing this nearly flawless masterpiece. The film is simply epic in every sense of the word, from its story and characters, to its beautiful animation and fantastic songs. If you somehow manage to make it through life without seeing The Lion King at least once, then you haven’t lived your circle of life properly.
10/10