‘The Lion King’ Reviewed #NotMyKing

Lion King Spoiler alert? Sorta… 

I went to see new motion capture CGI The Lion King.

I was to say the least, skeptical, from the first time I heard about it.

Very, very skeptical.

I planned on picking it apart.

However, the moment “Circle of Life” started, and the sunrise on the screen illuminated the theater, I melted. Like, I was immediately swept away and bought in to the experience. It was so close to the original.

Even the elephants blew their trunks on time with the original. I was ready to give it two thumbs up right then and there. Then the song came to a close and I noticed Rafiki didn’t take his iconic pose as he presented Simba at the edge of Pride Rock.

Instead, he sat.

Why this peculiar diversion?

Why would they change that? Oh, well maybe because Rafiki is old and given his anatomy, maybe it just made more sense to have him sit with the cub raised, rather than stand.

The movie continued and I was still along for the ride.

For about two minutes.

In the animated version, we are introduced to Scar, toying with a mouse, who is interrupted by Zazu. Shot for shot, the live action movie had been pretty spot on, up until this point. But I was jolted back into reality when I realized this was the scene where Scar swallows Zazu and Mufasa goes “Scar! Drop him” and Scar spits the slobbery bird onto the floor.

How would this look in a live action scene? Will there be a puddle of saliva? Maybe he doesn’t close his mouth around him. That way it would still be “believable.”

The scene continued and the moment never came. They cut it. 

I can only assume they adapted the scene, and many others, in order to match the content with the medium. Audiences are much more willing to suspend their disbelief watching a cartoon than they are, something designed to appear “real.”

And this looked pretty damn real—the VFX team had better win an award or two #IJS—so I’m not surprised that nearly all of the Disney wonder that made their earlier work so captivating was cut from the content and focused solely on the medium. Visually, it was stunning. But the story fell short. 

The Lion King was one of the first movies that pulled me in. Cartoon Simba begging his father to “get up” was the first movie moment I can remember that made an emotional impact on me. We’re talking hardcore crocodile tears here, folks. Even still, it breaks me. I recently watched the original 1994 version at home and I remember my eyes welling up and thinking, I’m an adult man, crying over a cartoon and that’s fucking amazing. Movies are amazing. Even the animated ones have the power to move a grumpy old man like me. That kind of thing is magical. And they cut it.

The rest of the movie went on like that. Anything too far out there was left out so that the audience wouldn’t question. God forbid someone says, “That could never happen” or “That wasn’t believable.”

They even added dialogue (pronounced, exposition) in an attempt to explain away one or four minor plot holes. Annnnd to get their money’s worth out of Beyonce. 

It was fine. Visually stunning. Musically familiar. You could say that this is a very good movie. But, over all, the Experience was fine. Certainly worth seeing. But dont go expecting to see The Lion King. 

Also, Beyonce still can’t act even with the help of a CGI lioness. 

Watch the trailer below.

Kevin Demoan Edwards is a Brooklyn playwrite who spends too much time on social media. Follow him on Facebook.