There’s something about this Lion King Remake that just isn’t clicking for me. It feels like when Vince Vaughn remade Psycho. Everything is so shot for shot that the fact that they’ve done it in pseudo live-action just makes me long for the more vibrant colors of the animations. It hurts to know that this movie will look dated in 2 years, but the original will still look timeless in 20.
The new trailer is full of new footage of memorable scenes like Mufasa’s death, Can You Feel the Love Tonight, and Hakuna Matata. Everything looks solid, but they are holding back the music for some reason. If they want people to really get on board, we are going to need more than a couple bars of “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” in the next trailer.
Disney’s “The Lion King, directed by Jon Favreau (“The Jungle Book”), journeys to the African savanna where a future king is born. Simba idolizes his father, King Mufasa, and takes to heart his own royal destiny. But not everyone in the kingdom celebrates the new cub’s arrival. Scar, Mufasa’s brother—and former heir to the throne—has plans of his own. The battle for Pride Rock is ravaged with betrayal, tragedy and drama, ultimately resulting in Simba’s exile. With help from a curious pair of newfound friends, Simba will have to figure out how to grow up and take back what is rightfully his.
The Lion King opens July 19th and features the voices of Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Alfre Woodard, Billy Eichner, John Kani, John Oliver, Florence Kasumba, Eric André, Keegan-Michael Key, JD McCrary, Shahadi Wright Joseph, with Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and James Earl Jones.