Introduction
Alongside art, comedy, and music, cinema is one of the most subjective forms of media. However, since you have joined us here on this particular site, it’s also the most subjective. And that’s why it remains the most entertaining and inspiring!
One hotly, and affectionately debated topic is what was the best year for cinema. We are celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of one of the forerunners, 1994. Cinema Scholars continues to present a monthly retrospective, that focuses on a pick of the cinematic talking points of this truly golden trip around the sun.
Welcome to 1994 – Part Six: June – The Lion King Takes Disney’s New Golden Age to the Next Level
The Lion King’s Mighty Roar
The Lion King was released on June 15, 1994, receiving immediate acclaim for its animation, story (famously based on William Shakespeare’s Hamlet), and music, which in part garnered Sir Elton John an Oscar. It would become the highest-grossing film of 1994, the best-selling home video of all time with more than 55 million copies sold, and leading the ‘straight-to-video-sequel’ boom. It was also adapted into a multi-award-winning global megahit stage version and received the live-action treatment in 2019 to the tune of $1.66 billion.
The film became an immediate classic and hit the sweet spot of appealing to all ages worldwide. Little ones enjoyed the vibrant color and catchy tunes (thanks to Mr. John and Tim Rice), older kids enjoyed Pumbaa’s Gas Problem and adults enjoyed the themes of family and responsibility, cutting-edge animation, soaring Hanz Zimmer score, as well as the more adult humor provided by Timon, Scar and the hyenas. And it has entered public consciousness – how many newborn babies have been held aloft a la newborn Simba?! And the characters have become iconic, influencing fashion, art, and politics.
Not too shabby from the supposed Disney ‘Team B’ who worked on the film, while at the same time, Team A was busy with a priority project…Pocahontas.
A Circle of Life
From the opening moment and the call of ‘Nants ingonyama bagithi baba’… we the audience know we are in for something truly special and nothing like we have ever seen before. Indeed, the opening sequence is captivating, as the audience watches in awe as the sun rises over the savannah, and herd after herd of beautifully animated beasts make their journey together across land and air to the wondrous grandeur of the “Circle of Life”, setting the scene on a truly epic scale.
The beating heart of the film is Simba’s transformative journey, perfectly voiced by Home Improvement’s Jonathan Taylor Thomas in cubhood, and later Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) as they share Simba’s poignant and painful evolution from carefree pride prince to reluctant heir on a path to redemption.
While the rest of the cast provides powerhouse performances including James Earl Jones, in his second most well-known vocal performance as the noble Mufasa, with Jeremy Irons as one of Disney’s most complex and memorable villains. The vast array of loveable supporting characters provides not just comic relief but emotional depth and pathos, shifting the film from cute to classic.
Thirty years ago, this film set new standards for animation using traditional hand-drawn techniques but utilizing (and not relying upon) new CGI techniques that pushed new boundaries but did not overwhelm the story but rather complimented it. Animators allowed the geographical setting and respect for the continent’s cultures to create lush, vibrant landscapes, and the biodiversity allowed for a diverse palette where no color was allowed to go to waste.
Life Lessons and Cultural Impact
The Lion King became a new favorite across familial generations because of its rich mix of universal themes. The film explores natural order versus ambition and detachment versus self-discovery. Simba’s ongoing internal struggles including his guilt over ‘causing’ the death of his father, and turning his back on his place in the circle of life, in part due to the therapy method of Hakuna Matata offered by his new friends, and ultimate redemption attracts children and adults.
As well as a financial success, the film went on to become a cultural phenomenon and changed Disney’s approach to the exploration of source material, and experimenting with diversity including the honest celebration of African culture, expressed through its music, visuals, and characters, marked a departure from traditional fairy tales.
Thirty Years Later
The Lion King remains a cultural touchstone through its emotive storytelling, from youthful, carefree optimism to regret and self-evaluation. Indeed, the film’s animation, characters, and themes have led to it becoming an endlessly rewatchable, multimedia masterpiece.
