Post-Release Poll

[DGFone]

For those who have seen the movie, a simple question?

How did the movie compare to the original? Also, I think we can not bother with spoiler warnings, since the topic is specifically asking about the remake, so it assumes that you have already seen it.

If you don't want to see spoilers, don't read below.

[Regulus]

Spoilers: Mufasa dies.

All in all, I'd say it was a mixed bag. There were some changes I liked, and others that I didn't. There are more Sarabi and Nala scenes, but the whole doung beetle hair thing was just weird. Nala's voice gives her a bit of a different character, and Scar's voice is no comparison to Jeremy Irons.

[Elton John]

i think most of the new actors did a fine job

this mght sound like blasphemy but they really should have replaced james earl jones. dude is almost 90 and it really shows... he doesnt sound nearly as regal as he did in the original.

he sounds....old... and not in a good way

this is why i dont mind them replacing the old actors. the old actors were great in the original 25 years ago.... but it isn’t the mid 90’s anymore.

Little simba and nala are just so adorable.... gah....

Critics who said the movie was a shot by shot remake...when was the last time they watched the original? Yeah it uses most of the same plot beats but there are a lot of changes from scene to scene, especially in the time when simba is with timon and pumbaa outside of pride rock.

There’s a lot of new dialogue... most of it works I think.

I think jon favreau did an admirable job remaking the lion king in realistic cgi. It could have been much worse.

[Panpardus]

Mixed bag, mostly leans on "different but generally okay" compared to the original. Overall it feels more grounded and realistic by virtue of the medium, and that really does elevate some aspects of the story above the original, at least for me, particularly the action scenes and some of the scenery shots. If I had access to both on home release, I'd probably go back and forth between the two fairly evenly when I felt like watching The Lion King because there's different things to like in both versions.

The new dialogue is fine and works well. There's some interesting backstory and characterization implications in there that I really wish they'd explored further -- the implied love triangle between Mufasa, Scar, and Sarabi, and Shenzi v. Nala could've used further fleshing out to make their implied feud more compelling -- but it's fine for what it is. I appreciate it more than the Broadway show in that regard, since that one is almost exactly word-for-word except for the added scenes and songs.

Voice acting and body language is a big part of this, and it generally works fairly well in combination with the facial expression the characters do have. The only time I actually found it jarring (aside from that long-take with adult Simba during "Hakuna Matata") was when Simba was crying over Mufasa. I like that they made his breathing more rapid (subtle detail but nice) and JD McCrary's more emphatic voice acting actually got to me a bit more than the original, but they kept doing close-ups on his face and there really wasn't much going on there, not enough to express the emotion that was being conveyed with everything else. I kept thinking "Cut away, cut away, abort the face shot!" during those bits. Otherwise, I gotta say it either worked or I didn't mind most of the little discrepancies I did catch.

I actually liked the musical numbers for the most part. "Circle of Life" was about the same for me as the original; "Just Can't Wait to be King" was surprisingly good in terms of how they handled the onscreen action and keeping things realistically playful and visually engaging, so I consider that a win; "Be Prepared" was quite different (which I expected) and doesn't hold a candle to the original, although it works for the scene; "Hakuna Matata" is about the same for me, with the plus being Donald Glover's singing and the Timon & Pumbaa jokes, the drawback being Pumbaa's not-so-great singing when he needed to carry a tune; "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" was probably the most improved of all the original songs, catchier and actually pretty fun to watch; "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" was about the same as the original for me; "Spirit" was a nice little new addition and I like how Zimmer incorporated it into the score, although I'm still a bit disappointed that it wasn't a new song performed by one of the characters, especially since there's a beautiful song on The Lion King: The Gift that would fit perfectly as a Nala song ("Otherside").

Overall I'm voting for "just as good but different", or whatever the functional poll option for that is.

[JackStover]

Eh. I thought it was fine, but I'm notoriously easily to entertain. It certainly doesn't have the heart of the original, but it was meant to be a more grounded take on the story and it hit all of the beats that it needed to.

[KiovuLove]

Sorry for my lack of presence here but I came back literally for this topic. I'm gonna try to avoid flat out spoilers but sorry if I overstep.

I saw it Thursday night and I absolutely adored it just to come to the Internet screaming "LACK OF EXPRESSION". There still is expression it's just not emphasized. A reviewer on YouTube brought up a great point that no one complained about it with the jungle book. Yes the jungle book had a human but still very heavily animal and no one said a word. Also there is such a thing as body language for you to feel their emotion. If you don't get the chance to see it right away I'd look up the clip of Timon and pumbaa saving simba on YouTube. It is the best example you will find right now since its still so new. I will say they could have improved it a bit more but I'm not going to hate on it because of everything else that immerses you into the story.

NOW ONTO EVERYTHING ELSE:
The cast was chosen so perfectly. As glad as I am that mufasa was still James Earl Jones you really could tell his age here. I love him still and I'm not mad he sounded old at all or that they didnt recast him. It would have been hard to full his shoes and it brought an element that made the audience want to see it more. Donald glover was not AS charismatic but he wasn't bad. Hes a great singer as well that I appreciate. Young cubs were perfect and at times young simba really gave me the feeling of the original. Scar truly looked and sounded like he has tried to claw his way up but to no avail. Beyonce as nala was pretty great which I was skeptical of at first when it was announced. Timon. And. Pumbaa. They were perfect. Idk who else they could've casted to fit any better. Seth Rogan is no singer but pumbaa is so carefree and goofy that you don't need him to be.

I love how they handled the scenes that wouldn't fly well in a realistic atmosphere: just can't wait to be king, be prepared, and Timon hula scene. JCWTBK was so fun and it really felt like you were on this Rollercoaster of adventure running with simba and Nala through the pridelands. Unpopular opinion: be prepared was actually okay for me. The Hyenas were not idiots in this so the original song wouldn't have worked. Not to mention idk how they could pull offrom the intensity of the original in a realistic setting. It felt more like a silently dark and sinister plotting song. Don't get me wrong I cried when the end of it mimicked the original ending a bit. Then the alternate hula scene....HILARIOUS. everyone in the theatre died of laughter.

I appreciated the hakuna Matata change in the middle. I always made fun of that moment and for them to break that ban was funny (them breaking the 4th wall was pretty good too). I always said my wish for the movie was the Broadway song the madness of scar. While we didn't get that, the new element of a queen for scar was good even if it wasn't as fleshed out as the Broadway movie. The reason for Pumbaa's outburst toward the Hyenas at the end kind of was disappointing because it just didn't feel like it fit. Like way to go pumbaa but...maybe it'd be better if it was said differently. The added nala scenes were good. I do wish they gave her a father since the incest talks happen sometimes.

I don't have much to nitpick about it really. I loved it. I want to go see again at least 2 more times lol is it perfect? No. Is it stunningly gorgeous and delivers on everything the movie is about? Yes. Do I recommend? Of course. It just hurts seeing so much hate for it.

[TheLionPrince]

While it wasn't completely shot-for-shot, I do come away slightly disappointed and felt it wasn't worth my money. That said, the photorealistic CGI, the voice cast, and Hans Zimmer's score were the main highlights, but the story and its presentation is a carbon copy with almost the same exact dialogue and visual cues lifted from the original film. There was a complete lack of joy and emotional weight in the remake that was so abundant in the animated version because it feels so rushed.

The first half of the film was pretty much the same as the original. They took some creative departures in the second half with a better explanation of the Pride Lands' demise under Scar's reign. However, the remake completely rushes the emotional beats from the original film. The message of "learn from your past and not run from it" is absent. Simba's decision to return back home after his father's visitation had no breathing room. Also, there was some weird cut-away shots like a dung beetle rolling a ball of a giraffe's poop.

Photorealistic CGI was just not the right format to tell the story of The Lion King. True, it's amazing to see Lion King as if it were a nature documentary and it's worth every penny, but it definitely robbed the characters of a range of emotions. Anger was pretty much the dominant emotion that that the lions could vividly express.

I liked the voice cast. JD McCrary was really good as cub Simba and I liked Donald Glover as adult Simba although his line delivery wasn't the best. Although in comparison to the original film, the change in voice actors actually felt more believable than going from Jonathan Taylor Thomas to Matthew Broderick. As evident from the trailers, James Earl Jones does not sound as powerful and majestic as he did over twenty-five years. There was a notable lack of bass in his voice. Chiwetel Ejiofor really played Scar as if he were a mad tyrant boiling with suppressed rage. Beyoncé was just okay as adult Nala. Now, John Oliver as Zazu was a standout since strangely enough he sounds just like Rowan Atkinson. Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen's version of Timon and Pumbaa were more tolerable here and tried to give the remake some life.

Like Panpardus noted, I actually did like the musical numbers. There was nothing that was changed during "Circle of Life". I was impressed with how they managed to realistically staged "I Just Can't Wait to be King". "Be Prepared" was heavily condensed. "Hakuna Matata" was pretty much the same, but Seth Rogen is not a singer nor did I expect to be. I actually did like the extended version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". It's been noted online that Beyoncé completely overpowers Donald Glover in "Can You Feel the Love Tonight". A popular argument has been that it actually takes place during the afternoon, but there was some daylight scenes in the original film. Beyoncé's new song "Spirit" is heard late in the film and it feels out of place.

Although it's largely the same score, Hans Zimmer and Lebo M were the film's lifesavers. It was music to my ears to hear the familiar musical cues from the first film.

[SimbasMate]

I hated it. Everything sucked aside from the new Elton John song and the fact that James Earl Jones didn't get replaced.

[Iberian]

I don´t want to beat the dead horse. This movie was made with sweat blood and tears by the artists who worked on it, I simply didn´t enjoy the way Favreau directed it, it was lazy and not magical. However, I respect and understand people who enjoy it.

Going to quote myself, for I think i clearly explain my toughts in this post:

One thing that really bothered me was the disregard for the original background work. The background isn´t simply background it also plays a role in allegory and metaphorical substance, adding important messages to the story.
For example the fall in the CYFTLT was a metaphor for falling in love (cheesy but effective).

Spoiler: show

The vines symbolizes the feeling of entanglement that is felt by the lovers etc....

Spoiler: show

Another instance was the discarting of plains/rivers, in the original when Simba leaves after arguing with Nala he looks at the stars and walks across a log, the first time he only reaches to the middle and watches his reflection in the waters bellow but after chasing Rafiki he crosses it completely meaning a passage into the subconscious or the mystical world (he was unable to cross the bridge between the worlds alone).

Spoiler: show

If you notice these plains are full of stars above meaning that Simba is being looked over by the kings of the past.
Well... In the remake he argues with Nala and runs into a forest. He goes from conflict into resolution without having a soul searching moment, not how the hero´s journey works...
In the end when Simba walks to the edge of pride rock we see a skull being washed away in the cleansing rain, meaning the cleansing of the death and sorrow of the past. In the remake we get none of this.

Spoiler: show

I get it, Jon Favreau enjoys rendering forests, however a true artist should face its own limits within the act of creation, a true artist can never be at ease working, otherwise he ceases to be an artist (he´s an artisan).

This movie was directed by people who had no grasp or understanding of the original story. The movie didn´t rock not because of the technique, the medium or the story, it didn´t rock because it had no soul.

I truly think that if the remake had Greg Drolette as the storyboard /background concept artist the movie would have been great.

PS: Hans Zimmer didn´t did his best in the score... But Lebo M was rocking it, I enjoyed his part. By the way they went completely bananas when they replaced Busa (simba running through the desert) with Beyonce´s Spirit.....

[TLK_Kid]

To be honest, I absolutely loved it. I can't bring myself to say it's better than the original, but just the same, I saw very little to complain about.