It’s 25 years this year since The Lion King animated movie released. Two thousand and nineteen sees a computer-animated (or computer-generated imagery, CGI) re-release of the same story. The visuals in this new release are absolutely stunning. And the same unforgettable music that defined the first one is used, such as Hakuna Matata, Nants’ Ingonyama and The Lion Sleeps Tonight.
The same well-rounded, satisfying coming-of-age story features. A young lion, Simba, is destined to be king. Through the machinations of 
his evil uncle, Scar, tragedy strikes Pride Rock and Simba flees. He befriends a comic warthog and meerkat pair who teach him not to worry about anything. Simba then spends his days avoiding his past, shirking his responsibilities, and generally living in a world that doesn’t function as it should. Duty calls, however, and Simba returns to Pride Rock to put things right.
The 1994 The Lion King was the very first video (note: not DVD) owned by my – then very young – children. It was also the only one for a long time. Hence it was watched over and over again and my children and I became brilliant at quoting lines and singing music lyrics.
Timon and Pumbaa, and their counterparts the snivelling, servile, sneaky hyenas became embedded in our memories. The well-defined characters of Mufasa and his anti-hero brother Scar (Simba’s father and uncle respectively) and their motives were clear in our minds. And the emotions invoked by music, romance, visuals of the beautiful African plains, and the tragedy of death will remain with us forever.
Gosh, I’m being dramatic and terribly nostalgic here. But I couldn’t stop comparing the two films while watching the new one.
So how does the new The Lion King compare to the old? I think the old one edges out this exceptional new version. There’s just something about animation. Even young children know that animation is not ‘real’. In animation comedy, accidents, dialogue and drama can all be ramped up. This heightens the entertainment for the viewer. As marvellous as this computer animated The Lion King is, it looks so real that I think the antics have to be dialled back so as to be in keeping with the ‘realness’ of the medium. And in that you lose something.
The Lion King opens at cinemas in South Africa on 19 July 2019. Don’t miss it.
a feast of tales 