The fart jokes say it all

Rating: 2/10 (21 July 2019)

As much as it might seem I would rather not be hateful towards things. In fact, I don't want to be one of those people that just trashes Disney remakes based on principle. There is potential for a remake that expands and improves the emotional depth of the original. The Lion King (2019) is a far cry from this philosophy and opts for the exact opposite. The film rushes through each emotional beat of the original and fails to understand how facial expressions and dialogue can be used to sell a scene. Take Scar, for instance, everything he says feels misplaced and voidless. He doesn't feel intimidating and is honest to god a slap in the face to the original. A lot of the voice acting feels very underwhelming and could've used some refining. Others have mentioned it but realism doesn't make for a good movie.
People want to see movies where they can attach their own emotions onto it. This film completely disregards this and ultimately doesn't understand how to make a competent film. If I want to see real animals I'd watch Animal Planet. I'm in the minority on this but I think the CGI on the animals looks awful. The animation aesthetic looks dated to me and is completely devoid of colour or vibrancy. Not to mention some unintentionally goofy scenes. The jokes in this film that worked in the original, completely fail here. This due to no comedic timing and lack of body language. The new ones they've included don't appeal to me and feel like a lesser version of the jokes in the original (The fart jokes ooft). I just want to make it clear that I don't think the original is a flawless masterpiece. The second half of the original feels rushed and misses the emotional strength of the first half.
However, this one makes this issue even more obvious. This new remake stretches the pacing too its very limits. At times I felt like I was watching a 5-hour movie and I was just waiting for the sweet release of the end credits. The music was handled okay but none of the instrumentals, production and vocal performances captured the urgency and expansiveness of the original soundtrack. There is also some ill-fitted terrible Beyonce remix during the film that almost made me block my ears at how bad it was. The last thing I want to mention is the lack of originality. They didn't try to create a unique vision instead they opted for a safe version. If you have seen the original there is no reason to see this. Apart from additional jokes, alternative lines and unnecessary exposition, it felt like a more stale carbon copy of the original.
So yeah, everything I dreaded it would be. Disney has hit rock bottom and for a company that has brought so much happiness into people lives, it feels downright manipulative.