Worthy of the original but doesn't take the throne

Rating: 8/10 (19 July 2019)

I am impressed. Lion King 2019 is very similar to the original in terms of storyline, scenes, soundtrack, and script but as I'd hoped, they've added more to it.
First of all, I love the visual appearance and voices of all of the characters. I thought it would feel weird to hear them with a different cast (other than Mufasa - I'm so glad they kept James Earl Jones at least!) but they actually suit their voices really well. When I first heard Scar's voice in the trailer, I have to admit that I was immediately disappointed - I thought that his new actor Chiwetel Ejiofor sounded very weak, especially in comparison to Jeremy Irons' steely voice. However, he proves otherwise in the movie, and the new Scar also really suits this adaption. There's an ominous chill about him and just something a little extra sinister. Having said that, I love both Scars - the 1994 Scar for his smooth charisma and the 2019 Scar for his outright menace.
The movie stays true to the original and adds just a little bit extra. I love the additional scenes of Nala and Zazu - I especially love how the animators really focused on cub Nala's fear and unease when the hyenas were introduced to Pride Rock, and how Zazu later helped her escape. The latter is a nice contrast to the elephant graveyard scene when he was determined to keep the cubs under control. I also want to do a shoutout to Rafiki. He's a little less nuts but he's just as cool.
I also like Timon and Pumba more in this adaption. I've always found them overly loud and dim in the first one. Their over the top personalities are a little toned down here and they are ultimately funnier and more charming. I especially love a particular Disney reference they made.
I do have some nitpicks and they are the new version of Can You Feel The Love Tonight and the addition of the new song Spirit. Beyonce is a good singer but she flaunts her notes and as a result, her singing sounds bumpy and overall just distracts and detracts from the Simba and Nala scene. I think that the addition of the new song Spirit is misplaced - it sounds too happy considering Simba is about to return to his homeland and possibly die. The original soundtrack for his decision and return had much more emotional impact. Other than those two snags, I liked everything else about the soundtrack. It is very similar to the original, only even grander.
Assuming they remake the second Lion King film, an addition I would have liked to see would have been some sort of reference to the Outsiders. Their appearance in the original Simba's Pride felt random because there was no previous mention or hint of them - it was clear that they were introduced just to make a plot for the second movie. Introducing or mentioning them in this film would have made the transition to the next plot smoother, although again that's provided that they do plan on reanimating the second one.
Lastly, I absolutely adore the photorealistic animation but like others have said, it restricts how much emotion the characters can convey. The empty-eyed look works well for Scar and the hyenas but less so when it comes to emotional scenes between the other characters. However, I appreciate that the animators did what they could.
Overall, it's a very decent effort, but the lack of emotion that conveyed among the characters keeps it from topping the original.