Mufasa: The Lion King

I’m not a big fan of writing movie reviews because Im always afraid of swaying the reader one way or the other. I think regardless of what one “critic” says everyone should judge for themselves the merits of any movie they chose to see.

Well I finally got around to seeing Mufasa: The Lion King and I have to say I immediately choked up when I saw the film was dedicated to James Earl Jones.

Prequels

I think anytime a filmmaker decides to put together a prequel that it becomes an uphill battle from the get go. I would guess that the decision to make a prequel is based on a very successful movie that was extremely popular and well-loved.

Okay, but does that mean that a prequel would enjoy the same success?

I did some research on movie prequels and there really aren’t too many notable ones.

The ones considered most successful in terms of box office revenue are The Godfather, Part II; Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace; X-Men: First Class; Batman Begins; and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

How many of those five would you have guessed? Maybe The Godfather, Part II?

It seems like quite a challenge.

And it seems so for Mufasa: The Lion King.

Plot Without Spoilers

I’ll do my best to give you a relatively high level description of the storyline without throwing in any spoilers.

Basically we find Rafiki telling Kiara, offspring of Simba and Nana, the story of her grandfather Mufasa.

The film see saws between the past and the present as Rafiki tells the story.

So the film covers Mufasa as a young cub and how he becomes an orphan and eventually is “adopted” by another pride.

As the movie evolves we see Mufasa maturing and developing a certain code of ethics that will help him in his adventures.

The main storyline focuses on the strong bond between Mufasa and his step brother Taka. One day the land is assaulted by two white lions who attack Mufasa and Tara’s mother, Queen Eshe, but Mufasa kills one while the other flees. Taka sees the attack but retreats in fear.

The white lion survivor reports back to Kiros, the leader of a pride called the Outsiders, lions banished for their white fur, and the father of the lion Mufasa killed. They swear vengeance and slaughter King Obasi (Taka’s father), Queen Eshe, and their pride before chasing Mufasa and Taka, who escape into a river.

The remainder of the film involves the chase of the Outsiders to find and kill Mufasa and Taka as they (Mufasa and Taka) escape to find a mythical land called Milele.

Okay, I am going to stop right here and let you find out for yourself how the rest of the story goes.

Live-Action Animation

When you see this film you will be astounded at what I call “Live-Action Animation.” The detail is amazing, from the droplets of water to the blades of grass, to the hair on a lion’s mane; it’s just quite unbelievable what you are seeing.

The animals look like real animals and not just another CGI rendered group of images.

It makes me wonder what we’ll see in years to come.

However, there is a problem here. The images of Mufasa, Taka, Rafiki, and every other character in the movie are so lifelike that, and i have to say it, they look ridiculous singing songs.

In the original animated Lion King we are used to seeing animated characters singing but these characters are so lifelike you kind of wince while watching them sing.

Along those lines I need to say that the songs for the movie just don’t work.

Getting Back to the Prequel Stuff

Before I end this “review” I need to speak again regarding prequels.

I assume filmmakers decide to make prequels to help define, describe, or answer some questions that may have arisen from the original film.

The problem is that a prequel takes away some drama.

During the countless number of lion fights that Mufasa had heck I knew he wouldn’t get killed. I knew he had a son to sire down the road so I knew he’s pull through…no drama.

I guess what I am saying is that prequels work to help the audience understand certain aspects of the original film but should not expect to have the audience gasp at danger when the audience full well knows the outcome.

Again, these are my own observations.

I have left out some key parts of the movie so go see the film; marvel at the animation; and oh yeah…keep your eye on that Taka.