Mufasa: The Lion King

Let's get to the "mane" event of Disney's Christmas season.

Mufasa: The Lion King is the sequel and prequel to Disney's "live-action" remake of The Lion King. Jon Favreau, who directed the previous film, is swapped out with Barry Jenkins, who retains Jeff Nathanson as the screenwriter. Let's see what they did.

As King Simba & Queen Nala (Donald Glover & Beyoncé Knowles-Carter) head off elsewhere, their cub Kiara (Beyoncé's actual daughter, Blue Ivy) stays at Pride Rock with Uncles Timon & Pumba (Billy Eichner & Seth Rogen). Rafiki (John Kani) shows up to tell Kiara the origin story of her Grandpa Mufasa.

As a cub, Mufasa (voiced as an adult by Aaron Pierre) got swept up by a flood. He's adopted into a royal pride at the insistence of Prince Taka (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) and the reluctance of King Obasi (Lennie James). Unfortunately, the good times end when an evil pride of white lions, led by Kiros (Mads Mikkelsen), show up. 

Mufasa and Taka, the only survivors of their pride, head off to Milele, a paradise spoken of by Mufasa's parents, Masego & Afia (Keith David & Anika Noni Rose). They're joined by the lioness Sarabi (Tiffany Boone), the hornbill Zazu (Preston Nyman) and the younger Rafiki (Kagiso Lediga). During their journey, Mufasa tries to help Taka confess to Sarabi, but she's into Mufasa, and he eventually falls for her too. That drives Taka to team up with Kiros and eventually take on the moniker Scar. That's basically it.

The change in directors is immediately obvious with the wildlife. The CGI animals are as impressively rendered as those in the previous film. Unlike the previous film, the animals not only look like animals, but they emote like characters. I think Favreau tried too hard in the previous film to make his talking animals realistic; I think Jenkins found the right balance. It’s thus easier to get invested in their dramatic moments, particularly when they’re expressed in song form by Lin-Manuel Miranda. A few memorable numbers include Kiros's villain song (Bye Bye), Mufasa & Taka's song (I Always Wanted a Brother), and Mufasa & Sarabi's love song (The currently Oscar shortlisted Tell Me It's You). 

But it's not exactly perfect. Be Prepared to sit through a rather slow plot which unfolds over nearly two-hours. A lot of it is spent walking as the good guys outwalk the bad guys. Kiros hates Mufasa because Mufasa killed his son during the white lions' first attack. That son doesn't even speak, at all, so that revelation comes as an odd surprise. That Taka turns evil because of a love triangle is a bit underwhelming, though the call-forwards to his eventual regicide of Mufasa are impactful. I thought my ears were deceiving me as Mufasa seemed to have two different voice actors as a cub. Actually, I wasn't, for siblings Braelyn & Brielle Rankins voiced cub Mufasa, and I'm sure you'll notice the differences too.

So, why isn't Taka's Face-Heel Turn completely underwhelming? It goes back to Tell Me It's You; after the love song, we get a dark reprise where he sings of his dejection. He's such a lovable dork when he tries talking with Sarabi, so to see him go bad is perfectly tragic. What makes it underwhelming is how quick he goes bad, even if we see some personality seeds planted by Obasi. When Taka saves the day, you already won't want him to go bad even if he has to because "prequel." Obasi, meanwhile, fluctuates between "not so bad" and "still bad" at the end of his screentime. As Kiros, Mikkelsen is just as good voicing villains as he is physically playing them; to put it bluntly, his villain song rocks

Now for a few others. Mufasa is compelling throughout his life, particularly with his brotherhood with Taka. Their camaraderie as cubs is delightful, while their ultimate fallout is as devastating as it is inevitable. Pierre's commanding cadence as Mufasa is as memorable as the recently deceased James Earl Jones, who gets a quick dedication at the start. Timon & Pumba have the best lines, even if some of them are a bit implausible (they've seen the Broadway musical!). Meanwhile, Zazu and Taka's lazy uncle Chigaru (Abdul Salis) have the best lines among the flashback cast. Chigaru, at least, is more likable than Obasi by a mile.

Although its story could have used some work, Mufasa: The Lion King is still more interesting than its predecessor. Its explanations for a few bits of lore - like the shape of Pride Rock - are pretty decent. Its improved visual effects and buoyant soundtrack are pretty good reasons to see it. Otherwise, there's another talking animal film that might appeal to your kids a bit more. Conveniently enough, I have time for both these films this holiday season; that review is next!