The Lion King

Voices of: Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Jeremy Irons, Robert Guillaume, Rowan Atkinson, Moira Kelly, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Jonathan Taylor Thomas
Directed by: Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff
Rating: R
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
1994

Times Seen:
Tim: 4

Summary: After the death of his father (James Earl Jones), a young lion cub (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) leaves the pride- and his claim to the throne- behind.

Review:

Tim: The Lion King is one of the greatest animated movies of all time. It features terrific music and original songs, a great voice cast, and a powerful, emotional storyline. It is incredibly enjoyable, funny, and entertaining. It's one of my favorite animated movies. I remember the first time I saw it, before I was even a teenager. It stuck with me and I couldn't shake the movie for weeks afterwards. I loved this film.

I really enjoyed the story. The movie is about the relationship between a father and son, and how that relationship changes after the death of the father. It is a coming of age story, a story about confronting one's past. It is a movie about love, redemption, sustainability, and being true to oneself. It is, in short, everything that you hope a Disney movie would be.

The movie also features some terrific characters. Even years after seeing the film, I never forgot Mufasa, Simba, Nala, Timon, Pumba, or Scar. The characters are so well developed and they immediately become part of you and the fabric of your consciousness. The best stories are often the simplest, and The Lion King proves that point.

I liked the combination of Jonathan Taylor Thomas and Matthew Broderick voicing Simba, young and older. James Earl Jones was perfect as Mufasa (could anyone else have done nearly as good of a job?) and Jeremy Irons was inspired casting for Scar. Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella steal every scene they're in as Timon and Pumba. The whole voice cast is truly impressive.

This movie also features some unforgettable, incredible music. I honestly believe you could put this film's soundtrack against every other animated movie out there, and I'm not sure you'd find one that could beat it. Hans Zimmer won a deserving Academy Award for Best Original Score, and Elton John and Tim Rice won for Best Original Song. This movie was nominated for 4 Academy Awards, and an astonishing 3 of them were for Original Song. These are "Hakuna Matata", "Circle of Life", and the Oscar winning "Can You Feel the Love Tonight". That's an amazing musical lineup right there.

I know animated movies rarely get nominated for Best Picture, but I believe The Lion King should have been. It is certainly better than Four Weddings and a Funeral. It's one of my favorite animated movies (truly, one of my favorite movies period). It's endlessly enjoyable, and a terrific movie.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 9


If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin