December 21, 2024 · Watch the official trailer
It's pretty much pointless at this stage to even question why Disney is developing live action remakes of their animated classic films.
The studio now only occasionally known for new and original content have pushed for cash grabs and ways to keep nostalgia alive for new and old audiences to re-engage with their intellectual property that they don't have to spend any additional time or resources, continuing to in essence farm money from audiences needing something family friendly to do during holiday seasons.
Oscar-winning director Barry Jenkins, known for his quiet and thought-provoking “Moonlight,” takes his turn making cinema for Mickey Mouse with a sequel to the 2019 live-action remake of “The Lion King” with “Mufasa: The Lion King,” an origin story for Simba's father as well as the classic villain Scar
And while the almost animatronic computer graphics that completely envelope the world of “Mufasa” do have a little bit of flair to them thanks in large part to a brilliant auteur with an eye for visual moments, there's rarely a time in “Mufasa” in which it feels necessary to have hired a director of Jenkins' talents. Audiences would probably have gotten the same overall experience with a newer or lesser talented filmmaker who could have delivered 85 percent of the same movie.
Some of the voice cast from the 2019 film return mostly in very minor secondary roles with only a John Kani’s Rafiki, Billy Eichner’s Timon and Seth Rogen’s Pumbaa even having more than a few moments of screen time as what appears to be the present day of the film happens in sporadic moments as a preamble to tell a larger story in flashback.
“Rebel Ridge” star Aaron Pierre gives a confident vocal performance as a teenage/adult Mufasa and his ability to reflect the character's visual emotions with his tone and cadence make perhaps the best pairing of actor to character in the new cast.
Kelvin Harrison Jr. does a solid job as a fellow lion, Taka, whose future destiny as the nefarious Scar is planted throughout the film, though the emotional depths of Taka's growing jealousy towards Mufasa aren't given enough character development in a middling script from screenwriter Jeff Nathanson.
It's also telling that despite having works for six years on “Mufasa,” Jenkins, an award-winning screenwriter in his own right did not pen the script for this film, instead opting to write the script for another Christmas release, “The Fire Inside,” a biopic about two-time Olympic boxing gold medalist Claressa Shield.
“Mufasa” lives and dies by the visuals more so than anything over the course of its two hours and the visuals are seemingly on par with audience expectations for Disney’s own standards in this computer-generated, photorealistic look that began largely with the 2019 “Lion King” and will continue on in various degrees for upcoming releases like live action versions of “Lilo and Stitch” and the original “Moana” film.
While it does feel a bit disorienting to audiences in the early moments to see the photo realism on display, viewers will begin to suspend their disbelief relatively early into the film and settle into the narrative as a whole where their enjoyment of “Mufasa” is less related to what they are seeing on screen, but the larger narrative that is playing out.
For a family friendly film like this Disney would be hard-pressed to find better musical talent with which to score and write the soundtracks to of their films than the team of Oscar winner Nicholas Britell as composer and celebrated “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda to write songs in the film.
The original “Lion King” has such iconic music from Tim Rice and Elton John that it's difficult for anything within “Mufasa” to truly stand out. Though it is quite likely as the film finds its ultimate home being endlessly replayed on the Disney+ streaming services, younger viewers will become more engaged with the music over time.
However, the likelihood that even Miranda's music will strike a chord on the same level as “How Far I’ll Go” or “You're Welcome” from “Moana” or even the infamous “We Don't Talk About Bruno” from “Encanto” is unlikely.
Ultimately, “Mufasa: The Lion King” serves its intended young family audience well, though there isn't an appreciable need to rush out to the theaters in a busy holiday season in order to catch the film unless families are truly looking for two hours of escapism for their children. More casual audiences would be much better served waiting until the film arrives on Disney+ sometime next spring.
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