The Lion King (2019)

(Source: Amazon.com)

I will admit, this is one of Disney's remakes I waited for with much anticipation, and one of two I can definitely say I "loved" rather than simply "liked" (or in the case of Maleficent, did not care for at all). The original animated film this is based on is arguably tied with Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast for my title of "favorite Disney film", and this version can be said similarly for Disney's recent live action remakes. I grew up watching the animated Lion King across various forms of home media, going from the VHS, to the DVD, to my current Blu-Ray copy; matter of fact, I have seen the film so many times I know the story beats by heart along with its production history. Understandably, when I heard it was going to be another one of Disney's remakes, I was more excited for this than I was for Aladdin.

When I saw it fairly recently, I left the theater with a massive smile on my face seeing one of my favorite films with a new coat of paint; it remained faithful to the original (down to casting James Earl Jones as Mufasa once again), the songs were just as I remembered them and mixed elements of their stage versions, and managed to expand upon the story of the original in certain places. However, while I was more than satisfied with the finished product (and the burger I ate while watching it), I do have some flaws I would like to address.

The first piece of criticism that needs to be addressed was James Earl Jones' new interpretation of Mufasa. While initially, I was excited to see the original voice actor returning (considering he is one of my favorite actors, and Mufasa is one of my favorite characters), I was unfortunately disappointed seeing it in action. In the original film, Mufasa's voice had this booming power and regal tone to it, showing Jones was putting a massive amount of passion in the character. In this version, his delivery was flat, emotionless, and felt quite cheap. Unfortunately, that kills the mood in certain iconic scenes carried over from the source material, and sadly destroys their impact. Scenes such as him lecturing a young Simba under a starry sky, and the latter seeing his father's ghost later in the film lose the power and emotion they once had because of that flatline delivery. One could obviously see that Jones was not reprising his role for the fond memory of doing the original, but simply for a paycheck. A similar criticism can be given to Mufasa's brother, Scar; particularly regarding the new version of the villain song, Be Prepared.

I will preface this criticism saying that I liked the new Be Prepared; matter of fact, it sent chills down my spine moreso than the original and stage versions. The new version increases the intensity of the song, increasing its impact and the intimidating nature of the antagonist. However, like Doomsday's appearance in Batman v Superman, it also felt like it was tacked on to appease the fans since it was initially planned to be cut from the remake. This is definitely shown through the song's length and the lyrics, since over half of it is simply the phrase "be prepared" repeated multiple times. The song itself is also significantly truncated in comparison to previous versions, clocking in at slightly over two minutes as opposed to the three minute original. That and the hacked-together nature of the song disappointed me, because Be Prepared is my favorite song from the original film, and the one I was looking forward to seeing most. However, I love how it left me speechless as the number ending, simply mouthing "whoa" and attempting to process what I saw moments before. Moving past the negative aspects of the film, there are some massive positives that need to be recognized; for starters, those regarding the new Timon and Pumbaa.

Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen managed to gracefully uphold the legacy left by their predecessors, Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella. Matter of fact, there were times where the two managed to sound almost identically to the originals. Additionally, their versions of Hakuna Matata and the "live bait" scene kept me laughing. While the comedic aspect of the remake has been drastically reduced, I am  glad that Timon and Pumbaa still delivered on the laughs, and stole the show just as they did in the source material. I am going to give a slight spoiler, but my favorite scene with these two was when they were singing The Lion Sleeps Tonight, and their neighbors were looking at them like they were saying "oh god, not those guys again." Their expressions alone caused quite a few laughs from the audience.

In regard to the aforementioned reduction in comedy, while this take is substantially darker, it also means the emotional impact is increased. While I could emotionally connect with the characters in the original, there were moments where I was nearly to the point of shedding tears in certain moments in the remake. A prominent example of this was during the infamous stampede sequence; I tried to hold back tears as Mufasa put his own life on the line to Simba, but when Scar threw him off the cliff, I simply lost it. I do not remember the last time a scene in a film had that much of an emotional impact on me, but good job Lion King for pushing me to that point. I still cannot listen to the stampede's instrumental without having flashbacks of that scene, so thank you for that.

Overall, this is one of Disney's remakes I would highly recommend seeing; it is faithful to the original while also giving the viewer something new (along with references to the stage musical), it retains all songs and their charm from the original (something Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast did not), and is also beautifully animated. However, if you are going in expecting James Earl Jones to give another stellar performance as Mufasa or something as comedic as the original, then you will be somewhat disappointed. Myself, I am definitely looking forward to seeing it again when it is released on Amazon Prime Video; I absolutely loved it despite its flaws.

What did you think of the film? Feel free to discuss your thoughts in the comments below, and also please like and follow for future Reviews and Retrospectives posts.

Disney's Aladdin (2019): Diamond in the Rough?

 (Source: IMDb.com)

Initially, I had mixed feelings when this remake was announced but was nonetheless excited (since this is adapting my favorite animated movie). However, this film was an example of one I should have viewed with no expectations whatsoever; I was one who hoped for deleted songs such as Proud of Your Boy, and essentially an adaptation of the stage musical using Howard Ashman's deleted lyrics. I will say if you are one who had those expectations like me, you are going to be slightly disappointed; as a minor spoiler, the only instance of deleted lyrics in the film are at the end of Arabian Nights and the new reprise of One Jump Ahead (which was surprisingly written for the original film but cut later in production, similar to the aforementioned Proud of Your Boy). Despite all this, this remake is one of Disney's best in their current trend of live-action adaptations. Admittedly, while this film is by no means perfect (nor does it hold a candle to the original and its stage musical), it still does a solid job adapting the source material while giving us something new in the process. 

Also, I am currently eating my words in regard to Will Smith's Genie and the rest of the cast (aside from Marwan Kenzari's Jafar). 

I loved the portrayals by Mena Massoud (Aladdin), Naomi Scott (Jasmine), Frank Welker (Abu, Raja, Cave of Wonders), and of course Will Smith. They did a phenomenal job portraying their respective characters in addition to fleshing them out; their renditions of the iconic songs were also beautifully done.... except for Will Smith's Prince Ali. 

While I know he was making a solid effort in that scene, the sequence as a whole lacked the energy of its animated and stage counterparts; it is disappointing because Prince Ali is my favorite song that was in the original film. I did like the part of the song where Genie was waiting for Sultan's approval to enter the palace, even though it messed up the song's flow. Harkening back to my earlier statement on deleted Ashman lyrics, I felt this song could have benefited most from using them; Genie could have used the lost intro as a means of transitioning into the main number (since the scene started rather abruptly), and the lost lyrics littered throughout the song could have been used to embellish "Prince Ali's" exploits (similar to the stage musical). Utilizing these deleted lyrics was one of main missed opportunities in this film, the other being everyone's favorite Scarlet McCaw, Iago. 

I was disappointed that Iago's role was drastically reduced from the original and stage versions, where in this version he is simply a regular parrot; he is still capable of speech, but now it is small phrases. Alan Tudyk did a great job in the role, but I wish we would have seen more from him. Aside from Abu (who remained mostly the same from the original, if not having a more expanded role), the animal characters were essentially pushed aside. 

While I am not the biggest fan of Abu, I actually enjoyed him much more in this version. He was given a more dynamic personality and was a catalyst for some events in the plot, making this little monkey one of the most enjoyable characters in the film. Additionally, he is given more time as a monkey than as an elephant, which is another bonus for the character. 

Regarding the film's events and pacing; while the story was very solid, there seemed to be somewhat of a lack of cohesion in the second and third acts, as it simply jumped from one event to another. There were plenty of moments I enjoyed (such as the scenes of Aladdin and Jasmine in the marketplace), but there were also times where it seemed like Guy Ritchie was going off a checklist, trying to hit certain points. There were moments he nailed perfectly under his direction, and there were some that could have used some work (such as the infamous "jams" running gag). 

I respect the efforts of director Guy Ritchie and the beautiful score by Alan Menken, they did a very solid job in making this film. The cast made the roles their own and did a great job, especially the main trio. Aside from Prince Ali, the entirety of Menken's score was also beautiful, and Jasmine's new song blew me away. I also loved the callbacks to the source material and the stage musical, such as making Prince Ali "of Ababwa" and the little snippet of Proud of Your Boy used at one point in the film (a moment which made me shed a few tears of joy since that is my favorite Disney song). If you go into this film with ZERO expectations, then you will have an enjoyable experience and come out satisfied. It is not exactly a "Diamond in the Rough" like one would think, but it makes a great effort in trying to be one. Aladdin is certainly worth a watch (or two or three), and I loved how it took the material of its predecessors and ran with them. However, Jafar seriously needed some work... he certainly does not hold a candle to Jonathan Freeman, not by a long shot.