Disney Renaissance Month - The Lion King (1994)

        Hey guys, Chuck here, and we're back with more Disney Renaissance Month. Today, we'll be taking a look at what is honestly the biggest film to have been released during the Disney Renaissance: The Lion King. Released in 1994, The Lion King was directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, and features a star-studded cast that includes Matthew Broderick, Moira Kelly, Jeremy Irons, Madge Sinclair, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Jim Cummings, Rowan Atkinson, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Robert Guillaume, and James Earl Jones. 

       The movie opens with easily the most iconic opening segment in cinema: the "Circle of Life" sequence, wherein the many creatures of the African savannah gather together to witness the first appearance of the newborn cub of King Mufasa and Queen Sarabi at Pride Rock. From elephants to zebras, from cheetahs to giraffes, and from meerkats to rhinos, every animal is gathered to see the new lion cub, and now in respect for the future king of the Pride Lands. 

      Unfortunately, there is one individual not celebrating. Scar, the younger brother of Mufasa, is sulking around in his area of Pride Rock, when he is confronted by Zazu, a hornbill who is the Majordomo to Mufasa. Scar nearly eats Zazu, only to be stopped from doing so by Mufasa. Some days later, Mufasa shows Simba a full view of the Pride Lands, and tells him of how, once he is gone, Simba will be king, and how he must understand and respect the balance known as the Circle of Life. Zazu arrives to deliver the morning report, only to be pounced by Simba, under the guidance of Mufasa. Zazu then reveals, after getting informed of the situation, that hyenas are in the Pride Lands, and Mufasa instructs Zazu to return Simba to Pride Rock. 

       Simba goes to talk to Scar, who spills the beans on a shadowy area beyond the border of the Pride Lands, which Mufasa tile Simba he must never go to. What is it, exactly? According to Scar, an Elephant Graveyard. Simba gets excited, and he gets his best friend Nala to join him in checking it out, but unfortunately they have to get rid of Zazu, who was sent along with them to the water hole, which is where Sarabi thought they were going. After heading to the Elephant Graveyard, Simba and Nala are surrounded by three hyenas: Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. All three of them go after Simba, Nala, and Zazu, only to be dispatched by Mufasa, who had come to the rescue. Back in the Pride Lands, Mufasa scolds his son for putting himself and Nala in danger and for his disobedience. Mufasa reveals how scared he was at losing Simba, and Simba points that the Hyena must have been more scared, to which Mufasa jokingly replies "That's 'cause nobody messes with your Dad." After some playful wrestling around, Mufasa teaches Simba a lesson about the stars, saying that the Great Kings of the Past look down from the stars, and will always guide him when he's alone, as will Mufasa. 

        Back in the Elephant Graveyard, Scar and the hyenas make a plan to kill both Mufasa and Simba, this allowing Scar to claim the throne and be King of the Pride Lands, and when he's king, the hyenas will be free to hunt in the Pride Lands. The next day, Scar takes Simba to a gorge, where after getting the go ahead, the hyenas cause the entire herd of Wildebeest to stampede into the gorge, with Scar going to warn Mufasa of Simba being caught in it. Rushing to the gorge, Mufasa hurries to rescue Simba, whose barely hanging on to a dead tree. Mufasa gets him to safety, and barely climbs out of the gorge, only to be betrayed and murdered by Scar, who sends his own brother hurdling into the stampede below. A devastated Simba goes to check on Mufasa, who is most certainly dead, and calls for help. Scar shows up, sees the devastation, and manipulates Simba into blaming himself and running away. Scar then sends the hyenas after him, and they chase him into a prickly brush, where Simba is able to evade them. 

        Scar informs the lionesses that both Mufasa and Simba are dead, he is assuming the throne, and will usher in a new era where lions and hyenas will live together. Simba, meanwhile, is in the middle of the desert surrounded by circling buzzards, when he is suddenly rescued by a meerkat named Timon and a warthog named Pumbaa, who take Simba to the oasis to recover. Timon and Pumbaa teach Simba about their personal philosophy of "Hakuna Matata," which means no worries, and they raise him to eat grubs (which are, well, bugs). Over the course of a montage, we see Simba mature into a fully grown Lion, and yeah, it's a lot of fun. After passing out, one night, a tuft of his mane flies away, carried by the wind. Meanwhile, unfortunately, the Pride Lands have become a barren wasteland, where the herds have moved on, the grass is dead, and the water is all dried up. Now, where does Simba's hair end up? The tree of Rafiki the mandrill, who is overjoyed that Simba is alive. 

        Timon and Pumbaa find themselves stalked by Nala, who ends up in a fight with Simba. Once they realize who each other is, they celebrate their reunion and spend the evening together, and yes, fall in love. However, Nala tries to convince Simba to return to the Pride Lands to usurp the throne from Scar, but Simba refuses. It's only after a talk with Rafiki, who offers to take him to his father, that Simba learns a real truth. Mufasa isn't dead, as his spirit lives on in Simba. After Mufasa's spirit speaks with his son, Simba realizes what he has to do. Oh, and he gets a smack on the head from Rafiki. Anyway, Simba returns to the Pride Lands, with Nala, Timon, and Pumbaa in tow. Simba uses Timon and Pumbaa to distract the hyenas by, and I'm not kidding, having Timon "dress in drag and do the Hula." Anyway, after that little distraction that almost becomes a "big lipped alligator moment," we see Scar summon Sarabi, and the two get into a debate over whether the pride should abandon Pride Rock, and Simba makes his presence known. Initially believing it to be Mufasa, Sarabi and Scar are stunned to realize it's Simba. 

       During their confrontation, Scar reveals that he was the one who killed Mufasa, leading to a massive fight between Simba and the lionesses against Scar and the hyenas. Timon and Pumbaa rescue Zazu, who Scar had locked up, and Rafiki even gets in on the fight, smacking around a bunch of hyenas. Simba and Scar have their final showdown, with Scar meeting his demise by getting devoured by the hyenas. Simba scales Pride Rock, looks into the sky, and hearing his father's words, let's out a massive roar, which symbolizes his place as King. After some time,.the Pride Lands are vibrant and grown again, the herds have returned, and Simba and Nala are king and queen, with Rafiki showing their new cub to the herds, ending the movie. 

        The Lion King was a defining film in my childhood, and that's probably true for several '90s kids. But, I fondly remember sitting at my grandparents house and watching the video tape of the movie practically on repeat. Seriously, aside from The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Lion King was definitely a favorite of mine from my childhood. 

        The voice cast is practically legendary, with Matthew Broderick as Simba, Jeremy Irons as Scar, Moira Kelly as Nala, Rowan Atkinson as Zazu, Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella as Timon and Pumbaa, Robert Guillaume as Rafiki, and of course James Earl Jones as Mufasa. Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, and Jim Cummings were also great as Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed, as was Madge Sinclair as Sarabi, but easily my favorites were Jeremy Irons as Scar and James Earl Jones as Mufasa. 

        The scale of this movie is just massive. Honestly, I've seen huge movies before, and this movie has some massive scale. Just looking at the landscapes, and the backgrounds, and the wide shots, this movie is pretty powerful. Specifically, I want to point out the Circle of Life and Wildebeest Stampede sequences, which are still some of the most iconic moments in all of animation. Just watching how the segments were illustrated using the CAPS system is just spectacular. Seriously, guys, the animators did an excellent job in bringing the vibrance of Africa to life in this movie. 

       The music is also a HUGE part of what makes this movie so massive. Hans Zimmer, well before his work on The Dark Knight trilogy Dune, and Inception, made a truly beloved music score for this movie. On top of that, the songs were some of the best Disney put out at the time, and the team of Aladdin songwriter Tim Rice and pop icon Elton John is just amazing, even to this day. Songs like "Circle of Life" and "Be Prepared" are easily fan favorites, especially among adults, while kids have fun with sillier songs like "I Just Can't Wait to be King" and "Hakuna Matata." And speaking of "Circle of Life," the combined vocal talents of Lebo M and Carmen Twillie is just astounding. Hearing the Zulu lyrics by Lebo M gives me goosebumps every time I hear the song. Heck, I saw video of him live on stage singing both the Zulu and English lyrics, and I STILL got goosebumps. That just goes to show the sheer power of the song "Circle of Life." 

       Seriously guys, this is easily the most famous Disney Renaissance film. I'd recommend it,.but I know for a FACT that you guys have already seen it. I'm giving The Lion King a rating of 5/5. Alrighty then, guys, this is Chuck signing off. I'll be back later today with my quick look at the 2019 Jon Favreau remake of The Lion King, but Disney Renaissance Month will continue this Saturday with the 1995 film Pocahontas.