The Lion King

My rating: 10/10

Ok, so first of all I will start by saying that this is my ALL TIME childhood favourite. I have watched it more than I could possibly count and even bought it on DVD when I had it on video just because it felt criminal not to.

So, it may seem like the review I am writing is obviously going to be biased towards my childhood attitude. However I think that that cannot be further from the truth because anyone who has actually seen this film CANNOT deny how brilliant this film is in everyway.

I will give a brief outline but I am assuming the vast majority of the population have seen this at some point in their life. The lion king follows a young cub 'Simba'. Heir to a thrown that he is manipulated to believe he does not want by his evil Uncle Scar, Simba runs away from his family and friends. Growing into a man with his new best friends Timon and Pumbaa guiding him he eventually ends up going back to claim what is rightfully his.

The Lion King was left to the hands of Disney's C Team as everyone else was sceptical of the idea and didn't think it would be a success. It was the first Disney film that was completely their own idea and what a fantastic job they did of it. The storyline in itself is just incredibley original and manages to be very engaging, humorous and emotional.

All of the character's are amazing and very strong. We are provided with some very famous voices as well that just improve the stength of them even more, Jonathan Taylor Thomas/Matthew Broderick (Simba), Rowan Atkinson (Zazu), Whoopi Goldberg (Shenzi), Jeremy Irons (Scar), James Earl Jones (Mufasa).

The music...Elton John? Need there be anymore said? One of the best soundtracks in a Disney film. Written perfectly to suit the whole mood and feel of the film and its characters. The Circle of Life as an opener? Engaging and sets up the story so brilliantly. 'I Just Can't Wait to be King' being my favourite Disney song of all time. I Defy anyone to not love that song! 'Can you feel the love tonight' - magical song which is perfectly parallel with the magical setting. 'Hakuna Matata' one of the best songs that sums up the sillyness and comedic essence of two characters.

You have probably picked up on my love from this film as even when I'm typing I cannot contain my enthusiasm and love towards it. It is overall such a beautiful film. The storyline is brilliant and it brings up so many emotions. We become attatched to Simba's character as we see him grow physically as well as, as a (I want to say person but I'm thinking the correct word to use here would be Lion?) The songs just capture the essence of the story amazingly and the balance between seriousness and comedy is done to perfection.

This is without a doubt the best Disney film. With regards to the sequels...number 2, fairly entertaining worth a watch. Number 3 - ATROCIOUS! It completely spoils the concept of the first film.