15/06/1994 - The Lion King, Disney’s first feature-length animation not based directly on an existing story, remains one of the studio’s best to this day. It has now been given a new lease of life on the big screen – the really big screen – as it gets a worldwide release in IMAX cinemas.
The film tells the story of Simba, a lion cub who’s dad is King Mufasa, the lion who reigns over the kingdom around Pride Rock. One day Simba will be king, unless his evil Uncle Scar can stop him and become king himself. After an accident that leads to the death of Mufasa, Simba flees the Pride Lands, convinced that he was to blame and he is no longer worthy to be king.
Even though there have been huge advances in CGI since 1994, the animation is still awe-inspiring and on the IMAX screen you can see the work of the animators close-up. The spectacular set pieces really come to life as they are scaled up, in particular the opening Circle of Life sequence and the wildebeest stampede.
The script is terrific, with the perfect mix of drama and comedy. The death of Mufasa is second only to that of Bambi’s mother in terms of tear-enduing sadness. Timon and Pumbaa border just on the right side of the line between funny and irritating.
There are some first-class voice performances from an a-list cast that includes Jeremy Irons, Whoopi Goldberg, Matthew Broderick and James Earl Jones.
Most highly praised, however, must be the music. The award-winning songs by Elton John and Tim Rice coupled with the score by Hans Zimmer bring Africa and the emotional baggage of Simba and company out of the screen and right into the heart of the cinema. The re-recorded version of Circle of Life, created specifically for the IMAX release somehow manages to top the intensity and power of the original.
The Lion King seems to transcend the ranks of Disney lovers and Disney haters, being a little darker than standard Mickey Mouse product but at the same time harbouring the best bits of a Disney cartoon inside. It features some spectacular animated set pieces that bring its African setting vividly to life. In the IMAX setting, it excels beyond any West End musical. A must see.
Simba is a rowdy, independent little cub who likes to romp and play. When Simba's father dies, it leaves Simba unsure about who he is. Then Rafiki shows Simba his reflection in a pool and the young lion understands that his father's courage and wisdom are a part of him, too.
Simba is the only son of Mufasa, the King of the Pride Lands and ruler of Pride Rock. His mother is the Queen Sarabi, and he is the nephew of the King's brother Scar, who sees a political opportunity in the young cub's trust in him. Working to his disadvantage as well as defining his character is Simba&#...
Every bit as rambunctious as Simba, Nala is ready to go wherever he goes or do whatever he does. Best buddies, the twosome are taken aback when Zazu tells them they are to be married. What a yucky idea! But time changes things, and when they meet again, they realize their friendship has deepened into love.
Nala's mother is Sarafina, one of the pride's lionesses and a friend of Sarabi; the question of who her father is remains one of the mysteries of The Lion King universe (though directors Rob Minkoff and Roger Allers have personally, though reluctantly, acknowledged that it must be...
Meaning: none (proper name; last king of the Bagada people of pre-colonial Kenya), Species: Lion
Regal, commanding and majestic, Mufasa is a great king with a kind, generous heart. Concerned with teaching his son Simba to be a wise, responsible adult and king, Mufasa can seem a bit stern at times, but it's only because he loves Simba and wants to keep the youngster on the right track.
Mufasa's lineage is known only through A Tale of Two Brothers, a children's book published at about the same time as the original 1994 release of The Lion King. In this book, Mufasa's father is named Ahadi, his mother is Uru, and his brother Scar has the cubhood name of Taka.
As a king ...
Meaning: none (proper name; taken as a nickname after "Taka", or "scar"), Species: Lion
As Mufasa's brother, Scar was next in line for the throne until Simba's birth, and he is obsessed with the need to possess it. Although Scar hides his plot with concern for Simba's safety, this evil, cunning betrayer is really Simba's and Mufasa's enemy-- a fact which the great-hearted Mufasa realizes too late.
The younger brother of King Mufasa and second son of Ahadi and Uru (as told in A Tale of Two Brothers), Scar was known as Taka until an incident in which he ran afoul of some Cape Buffalo (in a botched attempt to embarrass his brother Mufasa) and was struck on the...
Mufasa's trusted advisor, Zazu is a prim and proper hornbill with a strong sense of personal dignity. Although Zazu's feathers can be easily ruffled, he is dedicated to Mufasa. The honorable hornbill would give his right wing for the lion king and stays with the pride through good and bad times.
Zazu is the steward and majordomo to the King of Pride Rock, as his family has been since the time of Ahadi, when (as is told in A Tale of Two Brothers) Zazu's mother Zuzu was recommended by Rafiki to the king's service as a lookout and carrier of messages keeping the king informed o...
From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to see than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small on the endless round
It's the circle of life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the circle
The circle of life
Timon is a hyperactive meerkat with a motor mouth. Whether he's making good-natured jokes at Pumbaa's expense or pitching his free-wheeling lifestyle to Simba, Timon always has a fast line. But behind the patter is a loyal little guy who'd give his last wisecrack to help a friend.
Once a member of a large and thriving colony of meerkats far from Pride Rock, Timon was never in his element digging and guarding the holes as a unit with his fellow meerkats. One too many incidents in which his daydreaming and misplaced ingenuity brought real danger down upon the colony caused his Unc...
[Simba:] I'm gonna be a mighty king
So enemies beware!
[Zazu:] Well I've never seen a king of beasts
With quite so little hair
[Simba:] I'm gonna be the mane event
Like no king was before
I'm brushing up on looking down
I'm working on my roar
[Zazu:] Thus far, a rather uninspiring thing
[Simba:] Oh, I just can't wait to be king!
[Simba:] No one saying do this
[Nala:] No one saying be there
[Simba:] No one saying stop that
[Nala:] No one saying see here
[Zazu:] Now see here!
[Simba...
A well-padded warthog, Pumbaa is a bit clumsy and dimwitted, but his empathy and intuition make up for his slow thought processes. Sympathetic and warm-hearted, Pumbaa is ready to trust anyone-- even a carnivore like Simba. And when Simba confronts his destiny, the loyal warthog is the first to follow.
The amiable warthog Pumbaa is cursed with the ultimate in social stigma: uncontrollable flatulence. His family background is a mystery, but his story from the point when he meets up with the meerkat Timon tells us all there is to know about his sad exile from the company of those who can'...
[Scar:] I know that your powers of retention
Are as wet as a warthog's backside
But thick as you are, pay attention
My words are a matter of pride
It's clear from your vacant expressions
The lights are not all on upstairs
But we're talking kings and successions
Even you can't be caught unawares
So prepare for a chance of a lifetime
Be prepared for sensational news
A shining new era
Is tiptoeing nearer
[Shenzi:] And where do we feature?
[Scar:] ...
Sarabi, Mufasa's wife and Simba's mother, is kind, gentle and loving. She's also wise to her little son's tricks. Courageous Sarabi holds her own through Scar's destructive rule, and is proud when her son comes back to battle the evil ruler and claim his rightful place as King.
The head of the lionesses of Pride Rock, Sarabi is the Queen to King Mufasa and the mother of Simba. She's a responsible mother, watching out for her son and making sure he doesn't get into any trouble that he can't get out of, as well as making sure he keeps clean.
The death of Muf...
[Timon:] Hakuna Matata!
What a wonderful phrase
[Pumba:] Hakuna Matata!
Ain't no passing craze
[Timon:] It means no worries
For the rest of your days
It's our problem-free philosophy
Hakuna Matata!
When he was a young warthog
[Pumba:] When I was a young warthog
[Timon:] He found his aroma lacked a certain appeal
He could clear the savannah after ev'ry meal
[Pumba:] I'm a sensitive soul though I seem thick-skinned
And it hurt that my friends never stood downwind
An...
Rafiki, the wise old baboon, is like a tribal medicine man or an ancient shaman. Rafiki travels his own road, sings his own songs and knows what he knows. After anointing newborn Simba, Rafiki wanders off on his mystical way. He returns again to guide Simba back to the path he was meant to follow.
Nobody knows where the old mandrill Rafiki came from, but his quests in search of the secrets bound up in the land and its plants and animals drew him to the Pride Lands in the days of Ahadi, as told in A Tale of Two Brothers. His role in advising the young Mufasa against mischievous plots by his ...
[Timon:] I can see what's happ'ning
[Pumba:] (What?)
[Timon:] And they don't have a clue!
[Pumba:] (Who?)
[Timon:] They'll fall in love and here's the bottom line
Our trio's down to two
[Pumba:] (Oh.)
[Timon:] The sweet caress of twilight
There's magic everywhere
And with all this romantic atmosphere
Disaster's in the air
[Choir:] Can you feel the love tonight?
The peace the evening brings
The world, for once, in perfect harmony
With all its living things
[Simba:]...
Always on the lookout for their next meal or an innocent victim to taunt, tease or terrorize, Banzai, the male hyena, and Shenzi, the female, talk and joke while Ed, the third troublemaker, only laughs. When they're not arguing, these three punks can be found doing Scar's dirty work-- which is no laughing matter.
Shenzi (the female leader of the pack of hyenas), Banzai (the male), and the moronic Ed are old enough to have terrorized the Pride Lands back in the days of Ahadi, according to A Tale of Two Brothers. In Scar's youth, the trio struck a pact with the younger lion prince...
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