My Lion King Forum

With the understanding that I don't find Kiara to be a particularly sympathetic character it might be unsurprising that I lean towards CYFTLT though I think I have less biased reasons then simply my views towards Kiara.

CYFTLT is to me, not just about the love between Nala and Simba but the peace that being in one and others company brings. We all know that at this stage in the movie Simba's haunted as all heck by his past and really doesn't feel he has a home anywhere, consider this line, that isn't in Elton's full-length version.

[quote]It's enough for this restless wanderer - Just to be with you[/quote]

Elton's version talks about warriors but in the movie it's a wanderer and it's very much saying something about Simba finding not just home but a place where he thinks he belongs with Nala, recapturing that sense of home that he lost upon Mufasa's death. Simba's night with Nala isn't just about the fun sexy times, in my eyes at least. On Nala's end there's less that can be said for sure since we have little to no cannon on what happened with her when Scar was in charge, certainly there's a sense that here's someone from a happier time that could right everything. What's perhaps more telling is the strength of he belief in Simba in spite of those long years. This is explicitly shown:

[quote]Why won't he be the king I know he is?
The king I see inside?[/quote]

but also after the argument and after Simba's kept up all night with Rafiki she's still searching him out, clearly she doesn't believe that 'just dissapointed' is going to be her last words to Simba. This is actually part of where I think the movie could have been better in another way, Rafiki & Mufasa Storm certainly worked but I think having Simba and Nala work it out together would have made both stronger characters.

In short, CYFTLT is all about the huge mountain of subtext going into that scene, there's so much of it that the movie more or less pivots right around that point.

LWFAW strikes me as very nice and romantic but also failing to really get at the meat of any of the problems in the movie. It's not like Kiara and Kovu's relationship is a new thing, the subtext leading to that song just seems to want to launch them right out of the movie/pridelands instead of drawing them back towards the ultimate climax. Nothing in the song leads to the answer Kiara gives shortly after that actually resolves the plot [quote]we belong with our pride'[/quote] and even that statement has some massive 'have you seen my family' holes in it from Kovu's perspective.

Going purely off how much each song affected me after I heard it, I've got to vote for Love Will Find A Way. As a dreamy young teenager I could only dream of the love that Kiara and Kovu had for each other, but then later on when my parents refused to let me see my first boyfriend when I was 16, the song/scene/movie took on another much deeper meaning for me, much closer to home. Even now, in my steady relationship, it's a lovely song I can totally relate to.

Can You Feel The Love Tonight? was nice, but I've never been able to connect with it personally. I'm also much more fond of the film version than the version in the credits, which is sadly the version that seems to be popular everywhere else.

I will have to vote for Can You Feel the Love Tonight as the better son all around. The lyrics are very poetic and beautiful especially one by Elton John. I love the setting of Can You Feel the Love Tonight against the waterfalls. That being said, I also like Love Will Find a Way because it is idealistic but true when you love someone and it is important to the story being a Romeo and Juliet type story.

[quote="moonsugar33"]Going purely off how much each song affected me after I heard it, I've got to vote for Love Will Find A Way. As a dreamy young teenager I could only dream of the love that Kiara and Kovu had for each other, but then later on when my parents refused to let me see my first boyfriend when I was 16, the song/scene/movie took on another much deeper meaning for me, much closer to home. Even now, in my steady relationship, it's a lovely song I can totally relate to.

Can You Feel The Love Tonight? was nice, but I've never been able to connect with it personally. I'm also much more fond of the film version than the version in the credits, which is sadly the version that seems to be popular everywhere else.[/quote]

This is probably the best post by someone in this forum who prefers LWFAW over CYFTLT. I feel exactly the same way as you do, moonsugar33. There is nothing wrong with liking one more than the other. Most of it is personal preference, and for some people, they connect with one of the songs so deeply and emotionally, and that's one of the great beauties of music.

Is it bad that I've always felt like LWFAW is a bit too cliche and pop-y? I dunno, something about it has always felt slightly uninspired to me, while CYFTLT feels a lot more fresh and unique. It probably helps that CYFTLT has far more dramatic visuals to go along with it, too.

That said, I still think LWFAW is a great song. I just think it could use maybe a rewrite or two, and perhaps some tweaking, to get it up to par with CYFTLT. The right ideas are there, it just needs... something. I do agree that LWFAW carries far more importance to the story than CYFTLT does, but overall, CYFTLT is the all-around better song imo.

[quote="Squeely"]Is it bad that I've always felt like LWFAW is a bit too cliche and pop-y?[/quote]

That would probably be due to that more contemporary instrumentation I mentioned before. It becomes noticeable here: https://youtu.be/9iRJKW9eBs8?t=1m55s

Can you feel the love tonight. No contest IMO. Both the movie and Elton's version are great and very iconic. I will be having Elton's version playing at my wedding =) Having said that, I do like some of the lyrics from Love will find a way, but it's a little weak. I don't dislike the song, it's actually on my Itunes, but... it just doesn't compare to Can you feel the love tonight.

[quote="Shadowfax"]I will be having Elton's version playing at my wedding =) .[/quote]

If I ever get married I want to do this too