The Lion King (2019)

“The Lion King” is the first film I remember watching in theatres at the age of three. I remember we went to the movie theatre that was inside Cielo Vista Mall at the time and I loved it. I’ve always loved watching films and while not my Disney favorite, “The Lion King” holds a special place in my heart. This is what grew my love for the movies.

It’s sad that the original “Lion King” now has to be referred to as the original. It’s sad that many of the films I loved growing up now have to be referred to as the original. I was excited for the first few remakes or retellings, but not anymore. The last one I watched was “Beauty and the Beast”. I didn’t hate it upon initially watching it, and even now I don’t hate it, but I don’t understand why it was remade. The animated film was pretty much perfection so why try to improve on it?

I know the primary reason is money. The remakes continue raking in huge amounts of money for Disney. “The Lion King” was no exception. People were excited to see arguably the most popular Disney film brought to life in an extraordinarily realistic looking way.

Right from the start I was peeved. The opening shot (and most of the rest of the film) was a shot for shot remake of the original. The animals looked like they were real, but their faces conveyed absolutely no emotions. I didn’t realize how bland the film would become once those emotions were unable to be conveyed.

There is no reason whatsoever for this film to exist. It added nothing new to the story, extended scenes that didn’t further the plot and rushed scenes that did. Most of the voice acting was bland so combined with the lack of emotional expressions on the faces of the characters and I felt nothing. “Be Prepared” one of the best villain songs in existence was cut down to practically nothing and spoken instead of sung. The song Beyoncé wrote was out of place. I’m not saying it’s a bad song, I simply think it would have done better as the end credit song.

Disney remakes are inevitable at this point. They do not compare to the originals, but clearly people are still watching to my disdain. Changes are made that make absolutely no sense like “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” being sung in broad daylight. It seems like I’m part of the remake minority. Most everyone else I know is absolutely loving these dang remakes. I hope that eventually more people join my remake fatigue and they can finally come to a much deserved end.