Such a shame

Rating: 8/10 (1 April 2020)

The new Lion King has a few moments of genius and the best animal animation that I've ever seen. But it is let down by pacing mistakes and sub par orchestration.
The images in this movie are so gorgeous and the animal behavior (especially the facial expressions in the lions) so realistic, I hugely enjoyed the movie despite flaws that I feel could have been relatively easily avoided. It seems that this was a work of love for the animators but somehow the whole was off. Great to hear James Earl Jones again. Pumbaa and Timon were great. I loved the new Simba's hair scene. But why rush over the love scene and some other buildup moments that made the original so great.
I also feel that Hans Zimmer missed the mark on the score. I find it wonderous how he succeeds in making an orchestra sound like a collection of electronic instruments. It's not super bad necessarily, but it doesn't match the original in warmth and depth. This soundtrack is nowhere near as good as some of Zimmer's other scores.
Such a shame. The first-rate (did I say: awesome?) animation and some moments of wonder made this an above-average 8 for me. But with more love this could have so easily become a 9 or 10.