Is The Lion King (Live Animation 2019) any good? #194

Finally I watched The Lion King 2019 movie and I can’t wait to share my thoughts with you all. In case you don’t know what “The Lion King” is then sorry, we can’t be friends!
Just kidding! It’s an animated movie by Disney that came in 1994! There are 2 other movies that came down the line- The Lion King 2 : Simba’s Pride in 1998 and The Lion King 1 1/2 in 2004.
Today I’m gonna be talking about the first movie of the series and which was remade again as a live animation this year 2019.

The story:
The basic story is this: There was a lion named Mufasa who ruled the jungle. He was a great king and everyone loved him. His son was Simba. Mufasa had an evil brother, Scar, who wanted to acquire the position of king at any cost. After Simba’s birth, it became clear he would become the next king. So Scar plotted to kill Simba—though he failed to do so, he murdered his brother and manipulated events in such a way that Simba thought himself responsible for his father’s death.

Scar asked him to leave and sent hyenas to hunt and kill him. Scar then became king of the jungle. Simba ran far away from his home and found a new, beautiful place with Timon (a meerkat) and Pumba (a warthog). They taught him how to live without worries, their motto being “Hakuna Matata.”

Scar destroyed the harmony of the jungle, exploiting it with the hyenas. Nala, Simba’s childhood friend, searched for help and found him. Simba returned to battle Scar and reclaimed his rightful place as king.

My reaction to the original movie:
I grew up hearing about the movie, but only watched it a couple of weeks ago. I remember watching the Lion King cartoon series with Simba, Timon and Pumba. I really liked the original movie—I almost cried when Mufasa died. Even though these are kids’ movies, I didn’t expect to see such an emotional twist in the plot! The songs are great too. It’s a good film and as a 25-year-old adult, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

My reaction to the 2019 remake:
I’m one of those over-enthusiastic people who go to watch movies like this, but I was a bit late this time due to other plans. The live action remake looked natural except for the animals that could talk and sing. The visuals were great. As a child, I spent most of my time watching Discovery Channel, National Geographic, and Animal Planet—I could watch wild animals all day long! Watching the movie brought me back to my childhood; it made me feel more nostalgic than just seeing the same story and hearing the same songs again.

I didn’t do much research before going to the theater, but unknowingly I hoped the movie would be different. Probably that’s just me expecting too much. I think it was almost identical – scene by scene, song by song – though the dialogues were a bit different. One of my friends told me he found some scenes lame…I didn’t find anything lame, but it wasn’t as overwhelming as I had expected. It’s just a childhood thing; a connection for 90s kids. I’d choose the 1994 version as better, not because it came first…I feel it was an amazing movie for its time.

The take-aways from The lion king-
Mufasa, the strong and kind king, said: “A good king doesn’t look for what he can take but looks for what he can give.” Timon and Pumba’s duo has a lot to offer. We often get stressed about things that are out of our control. We should focus on the present and cherish every moment.

Final thoughts:
I don’t mind watching Disney movies with my 10-year-old brother. To be honest, the story didn’t have much appeal for me. Is it because I’m too old? I don’t know. Please don’t hate on me in the comments; it’s just my opinion. It’s more like a fairy tale, except for Mufasa’s death… Who dies in children’s movies and cartoons?!

I have watched recent works of Disney-Pixar such as Brave, Monster Inc., Inside Out, and Frozen. I was fascinated to see how the characters are built and the plot created with an intention to leave a deeper, meaningful core message. These movies aren’t just for kids; they’re meant for all ages. A mature audience will find more interesting references in these movies than children.

On final note, original I preferred original Lion King movie than the 2019 movie.

Thanks for reading! Check out my next movie blog-