As the next wave of seventeen and eighteen-year-olds say goodbye to life at home and say hello to a little thing called college, there's one thing that's different from years prior. The Lion King has been re-released into theaters, and it makes one wonder if it has really been seventeen years since the Disney movie has been on the big screen. It certainly did not feel like it as it played, and the intro played once more.
The 3-D was tastefully done, and it added to the movie instead of taking away from the quality that many people had grown up with, and allowed their children to enjoy the movie as well. It increased many of the things that one enjoyed about The Lion King in years past .Some examples include the beauty of the oasis in which Timon and Pumbaa live, the frightening scene of Scar about to jump onto Simba at the final battle and the amazing film work at the beginning of the movie.This movie was a movie that the whole family would enjoy seeing—something that has been lacking in the theater with the increasing number of overhyped summer blockbusters, action thrillers and horror movies being released.
The profits that Disney has gained from the re-release of one of the more popular and beloved Disney Classics caused the company to decide to extend the time that the blast from the past is in the cinema, which had originally been two weeks. Top of the charts for the second week running, The Lion King reclaimed its spot as King of the Movies, beating top movies such as Contagion and Moneyball out of the top slot.
While I usually agree with the statement, "The past can hurt," I have to disagree with Raffiki on this count. Nothing hurt from this childhood classic. The music sounded like the original version that had come out in 1994, which made it ten times better than the "Special Edition" DVD that came out a few years back—even though it had the "benefit" of an added song. The only thing that really hurt was the pocket book of the viewers, but I don't think anyone really minded all that much. The chance to relive one's childhood and have an outing with the whole family is worth more than the fifteen dollars one would spend on just a ticket—never mind the cost of snacks and drinks.
If you have not gone to see the movie yet, take the chance and reacquaint yourself with the beauty of the Pride Lands, the menacing aura of the Elephant Graveyard, the playfulness of Simba expressing his desire to become king, and the awe inspiring animation in general. But do hurry up as the exact amount of extended time has not been confirmed, so try to be prepared. Get your chance to enjoy Hakuna Matata before The Lion King takes its place once more in The Circle of Life.
