Review by Robbie Fleming
Director: Barry Jenkins
Studio: Disney
The Lion King (1994) is my favorite Disney film of all time, and I didn't care for its 2019 remake because it was practically beat-for-beat with nothing new coming out of it. In 2024, Oscar-winning filmmaker Barry Jenkins comes along and decides to tell us a story about the origins of Mufasa and how he became the King of Pride Rock, as a sequel/prequel to the 2019 remake.
Before going into this film, I had mixed feelings since I wasn't a fan of the remake. However, since I enjoy Barry Jenkins' work, I still wanted to check it out mainly for him. So after watching this film for the first time, here are my thoughts on "Mufasa: The Lion King."
The film is framed with Rafiki telling Simba's daughter Kiara of how her Grandfather Mufasa became King of Pride Rock, along with Timon & Pumbaa cracking jokes throughout the film. While I do like these parts of Rafiki telling us Mufasa's story, they could be easily cut out to give the film a shorter runtime.
However, the actual story of Mufasa is interesting as we learn about his relationship with Scar (formerly known as Taka), how he meets Sarabi, Zazu & Rafiki, and how he came to be King of Pride Rock. Whereas the original film takes influence from Shakespeare's Hamlet, this film takes influence from the Book of Exodus and tells a compelling story centering around Mufasa. I'm going to start referring to this film as "Prince of Egypt with Lions" as it's the vibe I get from this film.
One thing that made this an improvement over the 2019 version is the animation as it gives more expressions to the characters and feels like a solid upgrade. The visual effects, along with James Laxton's cinematography, help create some fantastic visuals and shots that elevate this story to look stunning. I think Barry Jenkins' directing made this film the best it could be, even though I'm surprised he chose to direct a Disney Film after making two Oscar-winning movies.
I also liked the score as it felt similar to Hans Zimmer's iconic score from the 1994 & 2019 films. Composed by David Metzger, who worked with Zimmer on the Lion King films he scored, the score helps it feel in place in the Lion King universe by giving us a score with a Zimmer-esque feel to it. I also praise Lin-Manuel Miranda and Lebo M for bringing us some delightful songs that go well with the story and visuals.
The voice acting was also impressive with Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, John Kani, and Beyoncé reprising their roles from the 2019 version and still bringing life to these returning roles. Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr. bring life to Mufasa and Taka, respectively, and deliver some fantastic voice performances.
Lennie James, Thandiwe Newton, Keith David, and Blue Ivy Carter also give strong voice performances in their supporting roles out of the newcomers of the cast. However, the best performance of the film was from Mads Mikkelsen, who voiced the film's antagonist perfectly, bringing fear and intensity into his performance.
While I do like this film for what it is, if I would have made it, I would have given it a more traditional animation style in the same vein as the 1994 classic. The story could still work the same, and the voice cast could have been the same actors they cast for this film. I just feel like giving it the same style as the '90s original would have made it feel more connected to the original product. I could even see this being the backstories of the original Mufasa and Scar from the original Lion King film.
Besides that, I think Barry Jenkins has done a fantastic job with this film like no other high-class director has on a Disney film. It's watchable, it's functional, it's entertaining, and it might even give you a tear or two while you're watching this. Although it feels like "Prince of Egypt with Lions" on paper, it's a sweet tale about family and legacy brought to life with brilliant visuals, fantastic voice performances, and beautiful music.
I give "Mufasa: The Lion King" a rating of 4 out of 5 stars and an 8 out of 10. It's no Moonlight, but it's a solid entry in this fantastic director's filmography.
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