Film: The Lion King

GENRE: CG Animated Adventure Drama

RATING: PG for violence and thematic elements
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 58 minutes

STARRING: Donald Glover (Solo, Community, Atlanta, The Martian)

Beyonce (Goldmember, Dreamgirls), Seth Rogen (Knocked Up)

DIRECTOR: Jon Favreau (Jungle Book, Iron Man, Elf)

WRITER: Jeff Nathanson (Rush Hour 2, Catch Me If You Can)

PLOT: Young lion avoids responsibility after accidentally causing the death of his father.   

FULL DISCLOSURE: Love the original.

STORY STUFF: It’s basically the original story with a few tweaks, so if you liked the 1994 version, you’ll be fine with it. There’s a little more story for Beyonce’s Nala this time around. The big question I have is “was this version necessary”. I’m not so sure.

ACTING STUFF: Good casting all around. Also loved hearing James Earl Jones (Star Wars) voice Mufasa again. The hyenas weren’t as goofy as the original which I missed. I thought Rogen matched the character of Pumbaa but the dude was struggling with the singing. Billy Eichner however was rocking the singing as Timon.  

ARTISTIC STUFF: Some beautiful visuals and realistic looking animals. The big thing missing though is the animated expressions from the original. These CG animals aren’t showing the facial expressions that add to the story. I feel bad for the original animators.  

VERDICT: Three and half stars out of five

SEE IT IF: You want to hear new voices for beloved characters

UPCOMING REVIEWS: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood