The conventional Disney masterpiece The Lion King is as much a joy to watch with my wife at the age of 27 as it was when I was a child.
I truly believe that my generation grew up in the golden age of Disney movies but I have always considered The Lion King a cut above the rest. Although it wasn’t clear to me at the time, The Lion King is full of life lessons and an opportunity to learn about bearing our burden and taking on responsibility.
As I said, I watched this film when I was a child. Repeatedly. Nearly nonstop. From what I remember the movie was only of momentary sadness. I now see the lessons beneath and wondered to myself upon rewatching it, “Is this how I learned about death?”
The central premise involves a reoccurring theme, “The Circle of Life”. Peter Travers writes in his Rolling Stones article (1994), “Except for a few indigestible Tim Rice lyrics about the ‘circle of life,’ this Lion is more snappy than sappy.” I tend to agree with him but find that as an adult, its harder to ignore the underlying message about death and owning personal responsibility.
The film wastes no time in getting to its main theme. The opening scene features Simba excitedly waking up Mufasa to watch the sunrise and learn a little bit more about life. Mufasa immediately asserts himself as the perfect hero archetype. He is patient, wise, and even in the face of danger allows for mercy towards the same hyenas who threatened the young prince. Because of this, I have to admit that Mufasa’s death made me cry as a child, it made me cry as an adult, and I can be assured that when I have a child of my own I will ball along with Simba. I can definitely relate to the recent review by Johnathon Allford, “The Film that Makes Me Cry: The Lion King“.
After the film’s main tragedy, Simba leaves the prideland in search of anywhere else. It is years before he and his cubhood friend, Nala, reunite in the Oscar winning “Can you Feel the Love Tonight” scene. It isn’t until then that Simba is confronted with the responsibility he has to his pride. It all comes full circle that same day when Simba receives his message from Mufasa in the sky and he realizes that he has not lived up to his full potential.
Speaking of that scene: I said that Disney’s work on The Lion King was masterful and this scene is the best piece of evidence. The animation, the colors, the spark of hope, the music, all contribute to this powerful pivot in Simba’s attitude about his role and encourages the excitement of the audience.
One a side note: I did wonder why he couldn’t be bothered to let Nala, Timon, or Pumba know that he was headed back to Pride Rock.
After doing some research, I realize just how amazing it is that this team was able to put this film together. As Matthew Broderick describes, though this movie collaborates like an orchestra, there were many people involved in putting it all together. Even the movie’s main star did not see the animated version of his character matched with his voice until it’s debute on the big screen. Matthew Broderick describes his delight when he first heard his voice pop from the vibrant Simba on screen. This was a definite benefit. I found myself paying attention to this point in the middle of the movie.
I love Disney movies and am delighted to have still felt the spark of this remarkable film. I am even more excited about the new iteration of The Lion King due this summer.
Hi Joei,
I really enjoyed how you said ‘cubhood’ instead of ‘childhood’. I also liked how you were able to blend the in-text citations really well which is something I need to practice. The Lion King is by far my favorite Disney movie and I love the soundtrack. I could listen to ‘The Circle of Life’ on repeat for hours. I will also admit that, like you, I cannot watch Mufasa’s death scene without crying.
Hi, Joei, it’s an exciting thing to read your post about The Lion King. I also have watched the movie again and again. This movie was my favorite cartoon when I was a child. I watched it with my siblings on weekends when we were in primary school. The movie made me know what responsibility is. In your post, you wrote that you become to understand the underlying message about death, which makes me think about it. I never think about it until I read your post. I believe that I learned new opinions from you. I admire your description of your impressed scene. Reading your writing, it seems that I am personally on the scene. I want to learn it in my future writing from you.
I also watched the Lion King all the time when I was a kid. It was always a fun and stressful watch for me because of the hyenas and Scar. I haven’t watched the film in a while, but next time I watch it I’ll have to pay more attention to the score and voice acting, which I have always taken for granted. I really liked how you blended a concise plot summary throughout your paper, it made your paper a really smooth read.
-Wyatt
I really surprised that you wrote this film which reminds me of my childhood. At that time. I don’t know more about the theme of the film. When I grow old, it’s about the life and responsibility. Growth is a hopeful but cruel thing. When we are child, our parents protect us very well and I think that the world is so wonderful and warm and full of sunshine. However, lonliness makes us mature which pushes us to mature.
Dude, I love the Lion King so much. It is by far one of the greatest films to ever be made that teaches such important life lessons beneath the surface. It is a coming of age story which correlates to everyone lives as they get older. Life brings pain and suffering, but the people around you will always be there to support you, you just have to let them help. It also shows that with age comes responsibility, like the scene when Mufasa tells Simba he has not fulfilled his potential.