The Lion King PG
Out 18 November DVD, BD, 3D BD, 4K, Digital HD extras Intro, Commentary, Featurettes, Music Videos, Song selection, Sing-along option
According to his engaging commentary, Jon Favreau struggled to get on-song for one scene in his latest Disney redo. When it came to the evil lion Scar’s big musical moment, Favreau feared the flamboyant villainy of ‘Be Prepared’ wouldn’t suit his reality-slanted CGI reanimation of the 1994 Lion King. How could he overhaul a pivotal song without sapping its spirit?
If that makes Favreau sound stuck between a (Pride) rock and a hard choice, so it proves on-screen. Fav’s King was a roaring hit in many respects. Even if the summer’s franchise letdowns delivered few worthy challengers, King’s $1.6bn haul still suggests Disney perfected the market kill here. Scar would approve.
The employment of Chance The Rapper as “nostalgia consultant” indicates the extent to which all-ages nostalgia proved crucial. On a futurethinking note, the photorealistic visuals channel the influence of Planet Earth
into docu-style wonders of texture and detail, motion and setting. Gif-ready images of cute cubs can’t do justice to the soft pad of paws, the thunder of wildebeests, the mist from waterfalls – mist you’d want to bathe in, if only the images invited more immersion than admiration.
In 1994’s King, hyperreal colours epitomised the archetypal clout of a tale involving a murdered king, a wronged prince and a shadowy pretender to the throne. If Favreau’s near shot-for-shot redo tempts comparisons, many are unflattering.