THE LION KING rereleased in theaters on 9/16 for two weeks

[Ethros]

Ha I have a vague memory of watching a pirate copy of it on video at my friends house as a kid once (he used to have pirate videos of everything) but can't remember anything about it. Its not like I don't know what is; just never seen it. Is it basically Bambi with lions?

I've just never been a fan of Disney, I remember someone making me watch Monsters Inc when I was 18 and I thought it was so dull. Even when Toy Story came out in cinemas, when I was 11/12, I know I went to see it, but I also remember I never felt the need to watch it again (as I haven't), especially when at that age I used to watch my favourite films over and over. So I guess I wasn't too impressed.


I guess I grew up watching cartoons (thanks to my older brother) like G1 Transformers, Thundercats, MASK, Real Ghostbusters, Bucky O'Hare, Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors, even The Simpsons...
and films like Star Wars, Back to the Future, Indiana Jones etc, saw Terminator 2 when I was 7...

so I can't say some talking cat and dog in love, a mermaid, or a princess with some singing dwarves ever really appealed to me if you know what I mean

 

[RoJoHen]

I have no idea what you mean. I grew up watching the same kind of stuff you did, but I loved Disney movies too. I still love Disney movies. "Tangled" and "Toy Story 3" are two of the best movies I've seen the last few years.

 

[Gepard]

Is it basically Bambi with lions?

No, it's basically Hamlet. With lions.

 

[RoJoHen]

Yeah, not that it's bad to dislike Disney movies, but I think a lot of people go into that kind of stuff with the mindset that it's a kid's movie and that adults can't enjoy it. The Lion King is absolutely written for adults and children alike, and it's actually got some fairly dark, mature stuff going on.

It's like people who refuse to watch Farscape because it has Muppets in it.

 

[trekkiebaggio]

This only comes out in the UK on Friday, and I'm taking my new romantic interest too see it (as being a big Disney fan she basically begged me)

Anyway I can't say I've ever been much of a Disney fan myself, even as a kid. I never liked the sugary sweetness of it all and the music numbers were seriously not to my tastes. Haha, so what I'm saying is, will I actually enjoy this film?
Obviously I've matured since I was a kid, so is there a story I can appreciate in it? Nice animation, characters etc? Its not just like some kiddy mush is it full of crap jokes and cheesy songs?

I'm doing the same! Although it's the other way around, I had to suggest it to her.

The Lion King is my joint favourite movie along with TWOK. It's funny, has heart, good drama, impressive visuals, great songs. I love it so much

 

[Tialeoni]

oh just arrived back in england few days ago .. and so pleased the lion king is on big screen! im in chelmsford atm for few days visiting relatives before back to the lakes ,but be checking out the cinemas here ,hope they have big screens ,i am taking my hubster with me haha hes a big fan of so ,any comments if anyone seen it yet today in 3d ,any gd 3d bits?

 

[Tialeoni]

This only comes out in the UK on Friday, and I'm taking my new romantic interest too see it (as being a big Disney fan she basically begged me)

Anyway I can't say I've ever been much of a Disney fan myself, even as a kid. I never liked the sugary sweetness of it all and the music numbers were seriously not to my tastes. Haha, so what I'm saying is, will I actually enjoy this film?
Obviously I've matured since I was a kid, so is there a story I can appreciate in it? Nice animation, characters etc? Its not just like some kiddy mush is it full of crap jokes and cheesy songs?

I'm doing the same! Although it's the other way around, I had to suggest it to her.

The Lion King is my joint favourite movie along with TWOK. It's funny, has heart, good drama, impressive visuals, great songs. I love it so much

totally agreed its a brilliant disney movie all round! hope your other halfs enjoy , me and mine love the film!

 

[Ethros]

Well we saw it last night. Yeah, I mean it wasn't terrible, but I'm sorry Disney films just aren't my cup of tea, still don't think its anything more than a kids film. And it literally was Bambi with lions. I worked out the entire plot about a minute in and it never deviated from that at all.

Ha I was hoping for some educational realism, maybe a scene where Simba rips a gazelle to shreds, or takes down some antelopes. I'm sure the kids would love that

Also some of the songs were hard to sit through. I guess if you've grown up watching it as a kid I can see why you'd love it, but can't say it's for me.
I don't mind 3D, but in this case it did seem a bit superfluous, just a way for Disney to get some more cash in their already bulging pockets.

Anyway, said romantic interest did make it up to me afterwards, so its all good

 

[Brikar99]

Is it basically Bambi with lions?

No, it's basically Hamlet. With lions.

This is always how I describe it to people.

 

[Saxman1]

Disney's TV channels seem to be dedicated to shows depicting how brainy/bratty the child leads are and how brain dead their parents are. As a parent, this really cheezes me off. The bratty kid has a scheme, it fails, said kid learns a lesson. Next ep: bratty kid is reset and repeat again and again. I hate it.

Say what you will about him, but Micheal Eisner NEVER allowed this kind of crap on TV when he was running the company. It has tainted my taste for all things Disney save Pixar.

 

[Cicero]

^ That's been more or less my impression of the Disney Channel since the late 90s, when I was in middle school. (At least one current show - iCarly - doesn't have a bratty lead, though. It almost goes out of its way to ensure that all of the main characters are fundamentally nice people.)

 

[Captaindemotion]

My wife I took our daughter and her friend to see the Lion King today. None of us had seen it before. I was in my early 20s when it was released and had no kids, siblings or nieces and nephews to take to it; ditto my wife.

I thought it was okay, but really didn't see what all the hype was about. It was lovely to hear James Earl Jones voice and there was some nice voiceover work from Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin etc. Jeremy Irons gave good villainy, but I dont think Scar was as memorable as say Shere Khan in The Jungle Book. Indeed, it reminded me of a cross between Jungle Book and Bambi, but not as good as either. The 3D conversion was hit and miss - impressive in some parts, non-existent in others and nowhere near as good as in the trailers that preceded it. And yes, I know tat most of those were shot in 3D, but I also include The Phantom Menace, which had a trailer beforehand and which looked amazing (it was like January 1999 all over again!)

I suppose it was a big improvement on the Disney movies of the 1970s and 1980s and maybe we've been spoiled by the quality of animated movies since Pixar began to dominate that field. I just expected a little more from what was the big Disney movie of the 1990s.

 

[RoJoHen]

I finally got around to watching my Blu-Ray, and I have to admit, it wasn't as awesome as I remembered it. Unlike other Disney movies that still hold up really well, The Lion King seems pretty meh by comparison.

 

[Ethros]

I remember thinking "I doubt a lion could live off bugs alone, and in doing so grow up to be a big strong badass too"

 

[Saxman1]

I enjoyed it when it was first released, my kids liked it on DVD, I see no need to watch it in 3D in theatre. Neither did they. That says a lot. I just don't really care about it anymore nor do my kids or my wife. The thought of it is just, meh.

"Pinnochio?" I'd see that in 3D if it could be managed. That's one of Disney's greatest films. I was watching it the other day with my autistic sister and thinking, "Wow, that's a film for the ages. Walt was a genius!"