A Powerful Roar

Rating: 9/10 (15 October 2018)

Quick warning: This review DOES contain some minor spoilers like plot elements, but there's nothing too major and I'm sure most of you reading this have already seen the movie.
Many people consider Disney's The Lion King to be one of their greatest films ever made, often praising the emotions, the character development, the humor, and the musical aspects. These much-praised aspects of the film are indeed worthy to be titled one of the best by Disney.
What's the story? A lion cub crowned prince is tricked by a treacherous uncle into thinking he caused his father's death and flees into exile in despair, only to learn in adulthood his identity and his responsibilities.
There are many great things to say about this movie, but without a doubt the best aspect of the whole movie is the animation. The way it breathes fresh air onto the environments, the designs of the animals, as well as having tons of color and energy, is very well done, and renders beautifully onto the screen. It's certainly one of the best looking Disney movies of all time. Another great thing about this movie is that the emotion is played very well. Unlike some other emotional films like The Good Dinosaur, the emotional scenes are appropriately emotional and they don't overdo anything on a sad scene. The reason why Mufasa's death is considered one of the most heartbreaking scenes in cinema history is because they play the emotion on very well, and they don't go absolutely crazy on making it sad. The musical numbers are not just catchy and timeless, they're examples of what Disney can do by taking a simple plot and turning it into a revolutionary musical. Many of the songs, like The Circle of Life and Hakuna Matata are well known by pretty much everyone. The only criticism I have to give is that sometimes it skips over some important plot elements, making some scenes feel either a bit rushed, or dragged on just to hit the film's 88 minute runtime. Fortunately, those scenes are uncommon, and the rest of the movie is fantastic for the most part.
In conclusion, The Lion King is a powerful and uplifting Disney story that continues to be one of Disney's most iconic and exemplary films ever made. No matter what upcoming releases Disney pushes out, this film will always be remembered for an eternity.