[35] The Lion King also inspired the 1995 release Rhythm of the Pride Lands, with eight songs by Zimmer, Mancina, and Lebo M.[36], The use of the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" in a scene with Timon and Pumbaa led to disputes between Disney and the family of South African Solomon Linda, who composed the song (originally titled "Mbube") in 1939. [168], The film has been criticized for race and class issues, with the hyenas seen as reflecting negative stereotypes of black and Latino ethnic communities. There is a good balance of both adult and child related scenes, often the adult subject matter is also complimented by exciting visual content and/ or musical content that children would find appealing. "[156], Takayuki Matsutani, the president of Tezuka Productions which created Kimba the White Lion, said in 1994 that "[q]uite a few staff of our company saw a preview of 'The Lion King', discussed this subject and came to the conclusion that you cannot avoid having these similarities as long as you use animals as characters and try to draw images out of them". [217][218], This article is about the 1994 animated film. We chose to highlight the opening scene as a focal point for our argument that Disney’s The Lion King displays numerous adult topics through a movie that is aimed at family audiences. The question is, why the hell would you do that?”. ), and let us know if you see any bit of baby Bahati in Simba." The digital surround sound of the film led many of those theaters to implement Dolby Laboratories' newest sound systems. The child would overlook the adult material in loo of the colorful landscapes and thoughts of the african plains populated with a variety of exotic animals. Allers, Minkoff, Chapman, and Hahn then rewrote the story across two weeks of meetings with directors Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale, who had just finished Beauty and the Beast. Thomas M. Disch wrote a film treatment, and Woolverton developed the first scripts, while George Scribner was signed on as director, being later joined by Allers. The film creatively integrates lessons about nature, right and wrong, as well as life and death with a colorful animation of african plaines wildlife. [61] In addition, 23 million units were shipped overseas to international markets. Laserdisc/DVD audio commentary for, Martin-Rodriguez, Manuel (2000) "Hyenas in The Pride Lands: Latinos/As and Immigration in Disney's The Lion King". [45][46] In 1994, Disney earned approximately $1 billion with products based on the film,[47] with $214 million for Lion King toys during Christmas 1994 alone. The 1994 release of The Lion King drew a protest in Japan, where Kimba and its creator Osamu Tezuka are cultural icons. In an exclusive behind-the-scenes look hosted by Robert Guillaume, Elton John speaks on the topics expressed in the song: “Its about succession, its about living, about dying, and the whole circle carrying on (Guillaume, pt. "[159] Tezuka's family and Tezuka Productions never pursued litigation. [197] It was released on July 19, 2019. The race differences of actors, however, actually work. Scar taunts Simba over his role in Mufasa's death and backs him to the edge of the rock, where he reveals to him that he murdered Mufasa. Happily, for those of us who generally stay far away from 'cartoons', they have succeeded. For example, The Lion King contains humor, images, and themes that appeal to children and adults. The way the sun came up is brilliant. Timon, Pumbaa, Rafiki, Zazu, and the lionesses fend off the hyenas while Scar, attempting to escape, is cornered by Simba at the top of Pride Rock. The main title was developed by Westwood Studios, and published for PC and Amiga computers and the consoles SNES and Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. [154] Madhavi Sunder has suggested that Allers might have seen the 1989 remake of Kimba on prime time television while living in Tokyo. Chicago Tribune 26 (1994). [21] English actors Tim Curry and Malcolm McDowell were originally considered for the role of Scar,[22] however, it was ultimately won by English actor Jeremy Irons. This is the subject of an argument with first Mufasa's majordomo, the hornbill Zazu, and then Mufasa himself. Realizing that he can no longer run from his past, Simba decides to return to the Pride Lands. [96] In North America, the 3D re-release ended its run in theaters on January 12, 2012, with a gross $94.2 million. How they created the exotic animals for the stage show is great. ( Log Out /  [40][91] An enhanced sound mix was also provided to, as Hahn explained, "make the audience feel like they're in the middle of the movie. This part is key, you guys. The Lion King is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. [145][146], In 2008, The Lion King was ranked as the 319th greatest film ever made by Empire magazine,[147] and in June 2011, TIME named it one of "The 25 All-TIME Best Animated Films". They are then asked a variety of questions surrounding fast forwarding and rewinding. Certain elements of the film were thought to bear a resemblance to Osamu Tezuka's 1960s Japanese anime television series, Jungle Emperor (known as Kimba the White Lion in the United States), with some similarities between a number of characters and various individual scenes. The Lion Guard is a sequel to The Lion King and takes place during the time-gap within The Lion King II: Simba's Pride,[176] with the last 2 episodes of Season 3 taking place after the events of that film. In January 2005, the film, along with the sequels, went back into moratorium. This discussion also brought up the issues of gender roles and female subordination, which would not be noticed by a child but are a key component in this animated film. [196], Production for the film began in May 2017. [204], The Square Enix series Kingdom Hearts features Simba as a recurring summon,[205][206] as well as a playable in the Lion King world, known as Pride Lands, in Kingdom Hearts II. A child’s interests may not involve a complete understanding of the underlying message and yet they will still be satisfied with the movie. Your group’s film analysis was clear, to the point and you chose relevant clips and paratexts. [59] The VHS releases have sold a total of 32 million units in North America,[60] and grossed $520 million in sales revenue. [79] The Lion King was also the highest-grossing G-rated film in the United States from 1994 to 2003 and again from 2011 to 2019 until its total was surpassed by the computer-animated Toy Story 4 in August 2019 (unadjusted for inflation).