Mufasa: The Lion King (2024) Disney/Drama-Musical RT: 118 minutes Rated PG (action/violence, peril, some thematic elements) Director: Barry Jenkins Screenplay: Jeff Nathanson Music: Dave Metzger, Nicholas Britell (score) and Lin-Manuel Miranda (songs) Cinematography: James Laxton Release date: December 20, 2024 (US) Cast: Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., John Kani, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Tiffany Boone, Donald Glover, Mads Mikkelsen, Thandiwe Newton, Lennie James, Blue Ivy Carter, Beyonce Knowles-Carter, Preston Nyman, Anika Noni Rose, Keith David, Joanna Jones, Folake Olowofoyeku.
Rating: ** ½
It’s been a good year for Disney with both Inside Out 2 and Moana 2 cleaning up at the box office. The twin successes helped pull Disney out of a multi-year slump. Of course, it has less to do with quality than the numbers at the end of their titles. Those in the know call them cash-grab movies. They were made purely for financial reasons. I realize it’s a cynical viewpoint of children’s entertainment, but the truth is the truth. The studio knows that kids and their not always thrilled parents will show up en masse for follow-ups to their favorite animated films no matter how weak.
I love The Lion King, the original 1994 animated version to be exact. I’d even say it’s my favorite Disney movie. It moved me immensely. I still tear up when I think of the beautiful “Circle of Life” opening. I like the 2019 live-action remake. It’s good, but CGI animals don’t have the same effect. Nevertheless, it made over $1.1B globally ($543.6M domestic). With those figures, it was only a matter of time before it got its own cash-grab. In this case, it’s a prequel.
As you can surmise from the title, Mufasa: The Lion King tells the story of Mufasa, the father of future Lion King Simba, voiced by the late James Earl Jones in both previous versions. This is Mufasa’s origin story. It’s where we see how he became the first Lion King. It’s framed as a story being told to Simba’s daughter Kiara (Blue Ivy Carter, daughter of Beyonce who lends her voice to Simba’s wife Nala) by wise mandrill Rafiki (Kani, Black Panther) while her parents are away from the den. By way of comic relief, Simba’s childhood friends Pumbaa (Rogen, The Super Mario Bros. Movie) and Timon (Eichner, Bros) are on hand to riff track with jokes about their trademark number and Disney taking legal action.
After he loses his parents in a flood, Mufasa is taken in by Eshe (Newton, Mission: Impossible 2) who teaches him to hunt and see with his heart. He becomes close to his brother Taka (Harrison, Genius), the future king of his pride. The dad Obasi (James, The Walking Dead) doesn’t want him around because of his prejudice against “strays”. However, there comes a time when he’s glad Mufasa is there. He saves Eshe’s life when a rival pride of white lions attack them while they’re hunting. Taka runs away like a coward, embarrassing Obasi.
It’s also Mufasa (Pierre, The Underground Railroad) who warns Obasi that their enemies are coming back. He tasks Mufasa with protecting Taka after sending them away for their own protection. Mufasa’s plan is to find a mythical place called Milele where they’ll be safe from the bad pride led by the vicious Kiros (Mikkelsen, Casino Royale). It’s a long journey fraught with danger at every turn. They pick up a few companions along the way- stray lioness and future lion queen Sarabi (Boone, Hunters), her hornbill protector Zazu (Hyman) and a young Rafiki.
I don’t know what’s going on this year, but I have not been impressed with this holiday season’s cinematic offerings. For the most part, they’ve been these empty, soulless vehicles that leave me feeling hollow and indifferent. Mufasa: The Lion King continues this trend. I wanted to like it and I did, just not a whole lot. It tells a pretty good story, but it meanders a lot, especially in the middle section. It should have a bigger emotional impact considering whose story it’s telling and its big themes of family, betrayal, love and power. One could even say it’s Shakespearean. It tries to go big with its emotional reach, but it never really gets there, not like the OG.
I have mixed feelings about the visual effects in Mufasa: The Lion King. The African landscapes look great and the CGI animals don’t look as fake as the ones in last week’s Kraven the Hunter. However, it still doesn’t look all that real to me. I’m sorry, I know I sound like a broken record, but CGI is no substitute for traditional animation, especially when it comes to talking animals and their expressive faces.
The songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda, while pleasant enough, are completely forgettable. I didn’t hear a one that has Top 40 potential like “Can You Feel the Love Tonight”. There’s no show-stopping number like “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” either. It’s only been a few hours and I can’t recall a single tune or melody.
The voice talents do a good job although the bits with Pumbaa and Timon feel forced and shoe-horned in. They’re an amusing duo, but they’re trying just a little too hard. Harrison does a good job as the treacherous future Scar while Pierre doesn’t have quite the same regal quality to his voice as JE Jones to whom this film is lovingly dedicated. Boone has just the right amount of spunk and strong-mindedness as Sarabi. As for Nyman as Zazu, he’s no Rowan Atkinson.
Directed by Barry Jenkins (Moonlight), Mufasa: The Lion King has ambition written all over it. He’s going for something on an operatic level, but falls short. I hate to say it, but I was actually bored at times. In the end, it just left me lukewarm. It’s not the worse I’ve seen from Disney, but they’ve sure done better. Maybe it’s time to knock it off with all these live-action remakes.
