On a personal note, this year was extremely hard for me. I went through a lot of things mentally and physically and at times it got in the way of my review writing. That being said, I would always find my way back to cinema; films have a way of transporting us away or to inspire us when we need it the most. When times got tough, I knew I could come back and lose myself in an incredible story and then to share my thoughts with all of you.
There have been some outstanding films this year. Incidentally my top five all came out towards the end of the year. There were also some that I wish I could forget.
Without further ado, here are my top five best and worst films of 2024. I look forward to seeing what 2025 will bring!
The Lion King is a classic beloved by many. In 2019 it was given the real life remake treatment. Now, five years later, the universe is expanding with a prequel story. Mufasa (Aaron Pierre) suddenly finds himself orphaned after a flash flood. He meets Taka (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) and the two form a brotherhood. As they embark on a journey through the Pridelands, their relationship is tested.
I was really torn on this film because I wasn’t fond of the 2019 version. I don’t understand why Disney feels the need to remake every single one of our childhood favorites in live action. While the CGI effects are impressive, particularly for the sweeping landscapes, I have to say that I can’t really take the animals seriously. They aren’t quite real and they aren’t quite computerized. It takes me out of the experience.
The story this time around felt convoluted. It was clunky to get going though I did enjoy seeing how Mufasa and Taka met and how they eventually run into Sarabi (Tiffany Boone), assistant Zazu (Preston Nyman) and Rafiki (John Kani). The second half was infinitely more exciting and I found myself getting into things more. It did seem like they were trying too hard to make call backs to the original. In some ways this was good, like the beautiful score and other Easter eggs, but after a while, I felt like I was just watching the same story over again.
The voice acting was good enough with many new additions joining the cast of the remake. Mads Mikkelsen portrays villain Kiros and he definitely fit the bill. Blue Ivy Carter is adorable as Kiara, Simba (Donald Glover) and Nala’s (Beyonce) daughter who we see in the future. Some of the songs were catchy though they were nowhere near as epic as the original. Nothing against Lin Manuel Miranda whatsoever, but I kept expecting to hear The Circle of Life.
Overall, Mufasa: The Lion King was a conundrum for me. There were some positives, but mostly it fell flat. While I understand that this is a cash cow for the company, I would have been more interested in seeing a remake of The Lion King 2 instead of a prequel story, but maybe that’s just me.
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