Disney has once again gone to their closet of previously-made films to create a live action movie based on a beloved animated film with Mufasa: The Lion King.  While not a retelling of the 1998 original, OR the “live action” 2019 remake, this new film definitely aims to draw that audience, or at least their children, for this new adventure. Will they show up, though?

(L-R) Afia (voiced Anika Noni Rose), Young Mufasa (voiced by Braelyn Rankins) and Masego (voiced by Keith David) in Disney’s MUFASA: THE LION KING. Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights

I had the opportunity to see this new film, out in theaters this Friday, Dec. 20, through Disney’s D23 membership events program. Somehow, I had missed that Disney had actually redone the original Lion King, that of Hakuna Matata and I Can’t Wait To Be King. I don’t know anything about that 2019 outing, except that reading reviews, the film included an origin story for Simba’s evil uncle Scar. AND, there was even an animated Lion King II, in 1998! This new film, however, reinvents that story, and gives a completely different background – if that matters to you. If it doesn’t, then you’re fine!

Rafiki (voiced by John Kani) in Disney’s live-action MUFASA: THE LION KING. Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved.

This is the story of Simba’s father, Mufasa, and how he became the original Lion King, as told by our old friends Rafiki, Pumbaa and Timon. Many of the voice actors from the 2019 film recreate their roles – with Seth Rogen as warthog Pumbaa and Billy Eichner as his wisecracking friend Timon, Donald Glover as adult Simba, and John Kani as wise mandrill counselor Rafiki. Some new voices filled out the cast – Beyonce as Simba’s mother Nala, Blue Ivy Carter (Beyonce and JayZ’s daughter) as Simba and Nala’s child Kiara, to whom the story is being told.

(L-R) Mufasa (voiced by Aaron Pierre), Young Rafiki (Kagiso Lediga), Taka (voiced by Kelvin Harrison Jr.) and Sarabi (Tiffany Boone). Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I definitely loved the live action Cinderella, with Lily James, Richard Madden and Cate Blanchett, and enjoyed Beauty & the Beast with Emma Watson, and Maleficent starring Angelina Jolie (I haven’t seen a few of the other live-action remakes, so please don’t infer that I didn’t like them. I just haven’t seen them yet). But how do you make a “live” all-animal movie musical? The real answer is you can’t. Animals don’t actually sing, they don’t actually dance. So you have songs played over scenes of lions running, nuzzling, play fighting, and attacking each other. You have very little of the fun stylized sequences that the original animated Lion King was famed for, and those are only in the first part of the film. You don’t have Sarabi and Mufasa singing to each other, giraffes moving in coordination, Zazu popping up with the classic “NOT. YET.”

Of course, since you can’t really direct animals the way you can direct people, the movie isn’t actually “live action” (Disney says “blending live-action filmmaking techniques with photoreal computer-generated imagery”). But it sure looks like it – the computer animation is extremely well done. Animals and scenery alike would make you think that this is filmed on location, with lions, elephants, giraffes, and even a warthog eager to take direction.

Kiros (voiced by Mads Mikkelson) in Disney’s live-action MUFASA: THE LION KING. Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Much of the voice cast is excellent. Mads Mikkelsen as the film’s big bad, the white lion Kiros, was terrific and frightening. Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner try hard to stand up to Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella, which of course is impossible, but they were definitely fun in their own right, bringing that same wisecracking energy to the screen.

(L-R): Pumbaa (voiced by Seth Rogen) and Timon (voiced by Billy Eichner) in Disney’s live-action MUFASA: THE LION KING. Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved.

But some of the big stuff is not quite up to the task. As I said, this gives a retelling of Scar’s origin story, one completely different from any previous version. In this, Mufasa is the young cub lost in a flood, and Taka, who becomes Scar, rescues him from the water, introduces the refugee to his parents, and convinces his mother, at least, to adopt him. Mufasa learns much from his loving foster mother, and develops skills not generally known to male lions. Taka has taken him as a brother, but their father has not welcomed him, and shuns the orphan. When Kiros and his band attack, Taka and Mufasa must set out to save themselves. They come across a lioness on her own, and… bam, love triangle. Boy loves girl, girl loves boy’s brother, brother loves girl… But does this make a man… er, lion, turn on his brother and betray him? Apparently it does. The film attempted to show Taka’s father poison Taka’s mind against Mufasa, but didn’t spend enough time on that, or show any results, so the turn came as a surprise in the love triangle/betrayal genre.

The other big issue for this, as a musical based on another very successful musical film, is that none of the songs were anywhere near as exciting or memorable as the original Lion King. Even with superstar  Lin-Manuel Miranda as the score’s composer, the only thing I can come close to remembering was Kiros’ big song that repeated “bye bye.” Part of that, I’m afraid, was the sound editing, as the background instrumentals overwhelmed vocals, so it was difficult to hear. But I can recall probably six songs from the original film, and nothing in this one touches any of that.

Zazu (voiced by Preston Nyman) in Disney’s live-action MUFASA: THE LION KING. Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved.

All of that said – I think this was a decent film. Younger preschoolers may be frightened by the lions fighting. I probably wouldn’t take anyone younger than 6 or 7, when they can understand that these aren’t real lions, and they aren’t really getting hurt (that’s an issue with something as realistic-looking as this – the animals resemble cute and cuddly zoo friends). The love triangle aspect will probably go over the head of most early grade school children, but they may be interested in the excitement of many of the scenes. And adults will enjoy Timon, Pumbaa, Rafiki and Zazu, even though we don’t get to these old friends until the last third of the movie.