Review of The Lion King (1994) by Andrewburge — 29 Dec 2018

If there is something that Disney has managed to prove with 'Lion King' is that animation, a genre which is usually targeted at a young pre-adolescent audience need not be silly. This is a film which balances joy with tragedy with such a simplistic yet precise tone, that it becomes a progressive ideal for young minds.

For its entire run time, directors Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff remained perfectly focused, offering insight through well-defined personalities. These characters are not complicated to understand, you know from the very first time you see each of them what they are like and what part they are going to play. Scar (Jeremy Irons) rocks the villain look with a ragged voice and green eyes, always surrounded by flames (both green and red - go figure), Mufasa (James Earl Jones) is the alpha male, an ideal king and man.. er... lion, and all the way to Simba (Matthew Broderick) the soft, spoiled, unpolished prince learning about his destiny through tough lessons.

All these personalities seem cliche and the way this film unfolds is predictable, yes, but this is not what its about. By keeping its ideas simple and straight-forward, it flows beautifully and while we might know where the ride is going, we still love to go on it. This simplicity is easy to manage which results in this film having absolutely no filler scenes whatsoever and, more so, it gives the film's ideas power. These are responsibility, adulthood, friendship. Disney challenged themselves in blending pure joy with adult themes, yet presenting them to children in a very symbolic way.

Through its masterful soundtrack, perfect placing of music moments, it manages to blend some harsh scenes with an extravagant presentation. The world is always alive and by the film's end I realized just how intelligent and progressive thinking it is. Imagine a family with children watching this. Throughout the moments of shock, their innocent minds might be filled with questions. Questions which their parents will have to answer. Dad, is Mufasa really dead? Can this happen? He is the king!

This is a blossoming masterpiece to behold. It is always alive, even at its darkest. Its ambition, boldness, simplicity and progressive philosophy makes it not only an easy film to follow but, in hindsight, one whose straight plot line is not only focused, but filled with basic but important ideologies. If you will not fall in love with 'Lion King', chances are you will never fall in love with a film.