“The Lion King” (2019) Movie Review

    One of my favorite Disney movies growing up was “The Lion King”.  It had great music and was just an entertaining animated feature.  The film also came out when I was around nine years old so it was a newer Disney film compared to movies like “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” or “Cinderella”.  When I heard they were doing a live action remake, I was intrigued, especially since it was going to be directed by Jon Favreau.

    For the few people who haven’t seen the original Disney film, “The Lion King” tells the story of Simba, the young son of King Mufasa, as he learns about the circle of life from his father.  Unfortunately, Mufasa’s brother Scar wants to rule and he will do anything to be the new king, even if it means killing his brother and nephew.  Simba manages to escape Scar’s wrath and is raised by Pumbaa and Timon.  After growing up, Simba’s old friend (and new love interest) Nala runs into him and persuades Simba to return and reclaim his rightful place as king.

    For the most part, this is a pretty faithful remake and plays out pretty much beat for beat.  I really enjoyed the film and thought it was pretty well done.  Most critics have trashed the movie and the general consensus among them seems to be the film ‘lacked heart’.  I, for one, felt the movie had plenty of heart and while the movie looks more realistic, I don’t feel like that takes anything away from the film as a whole.  I am not the biggest Disney fan ever but I really enjoyed this film.

    Now, one thing I do want to discuss really quickly is the fact that this is being labeled a live action remake.  The phrase ‘live action’ is being used very liberally here since the film is mostly computed animated.  Yes, it is meant to feel real and the characters are modeled after real animals, but that doesn’t change the fact that the label of ‘live action’ is a bit false.

    While the film is largely computer animated, it does feel awfully real most of the time.  There are a lot of shots that feel straight out of a National Geographic or Disneynature documentary.  It’s these moments with small details that really help sell the movie and set it apart from the original animated version.

    The voice cast all did a great job.  Casting Donald Glover, also known as Childish Gambino, as Simba was an inspired choice.  I was a bit surprised how small Beyoncé Knowles-Carter’s part was but she did well with what she was given.  I loved that James Earl Jones returned as the voice of Mufasa.  James Earl Jones has such an iconic voice that it would have been nearly impossible to replace him.  Lastly, Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner knocked it out of the park as Pumbaa and Timon.  Timon and Pumbaa were easily my favorite characters in the movie.

    Ultimately, “The Lion King” doesn’t have much new to offer besides it’s new realistic look and feel but would anyone really want them to change the classic film too much anyway?  Just sit back, repeat to yourself ‘hakuna matata’, and just enjoy the film.

Grade: B+

“Dumbo” (2019) Movie Review

    Disney Pictures has been starting to turn it’s classic animated film library into live action movies for a few years now.  “Alice in Wonderland” was the first of the trend in 2014 and has been followed with the likes of “The Jungle Book”, “Maleficent”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “Cinderella”, “Christopher Robin”, and “Alice Through the Looking Glass”.  The latest remake Disney has unveiled is “Dumbo” which is the classic tale of a young elephant trying to find his place in the world.  My girlfriend and I had wanted to see this movie for a few weeks now but we finally got to see it this week.

    The film follows a WW1 veteran and his children as they work in a traveling circus.  Holt, the father who lost his arm in the war, was once a trick rider for the circus but is now tasked with taking care of the newly purchased elephants Mrs. Jumbo and her new baby.  The baby elephant was born with giant ears and the owner of the circus considers the baby to be a freak of nature.  Holt is assigned with hiding the newborn elephant’s ears during his first performance but his ears end up becoming exposed anyway leading the audience to turn hostile on the poor baby elephant.  Mrs. Jumbo goes into a rage in defense of her son and ends up being sold off because she is deemed dangerous.  The baby elephant is given the name Dumbo shortly after he is separated from his mother.  Dumbo isn’t like other elephants though as Holt’s children later find out.  Dumbo’s large ears allow him to fly!  Following this revelation, Holt’s children hatch a plan to reunite Dumbo with his mother.

    The film received decidedly mixed reviews from critics who seemed to mainly complain that the film “lacked heart” compared to the original Disney classic.  Now, everyone is entitled to their opinion but I have to respectfully disagree with those critics.  I thought the film showed a lot of heart and in some ways is a better kid’s movie than the original.  The moral of “Dumbo” remains in tact in both incarnations of the film but the live action remake also dumps the racist subtexts the original had.

    The film succeeds largely due to it’s cast.  Colin Farrell gives a solid performance as Holt.  Michael Keaton plays against type as the antagonist of the story.  Danny DeVito shines as the owner of the traveling circus.  It was fun seeing Keaton and DeVito together again in a mini “Batman Returns” reunion.  Speaking of “Batman Returns”, “Dumbo” was also directed by Tim Burton.  Burton’s visual flair and his love for Art Deco style actually plays into “Dumbo” very well.

    At it’s core, “Dumbo” is a sometimes cute and sometimes heartbreaking movie that pulls all the right heartstrings.  The movie teaches us the value of being different.  I really enjoyed the movie and cgi used to create Dumbo was top notch.  This is a movie you can take the kids to see and not have to worry what you are exposing your children to.  It is also a movie you can see as an adult and feel like a kid again and I personally feel like that is important sometimes as well.

Grade: B