The Lion King
This article has many issues. Please help fix them or discuss these issues on the talk page.
|
The Lion King is an animated movie made by Walt Disney in 1994. It was the most successful animated movie of the 1990s. The movie is about a young lion prince who learns about his role as prince and in the circle of life. It is dedicated to Frank Wells, who was the president of The Walt Disney Company and died shortly before the movie was released into theaters on June 15, 1994. It was the first full-length Disney movie to feature no human characters since Bambi. Much of the voice acting work was done by well-known actors, including Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Rowan Atkinson, and Jonathan Taylor Thomas. The Lion King is a musical; the songs have music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice. Computer animation was used a lot when making the movie, like during the song "Circle of Life" and others. When they were making it, this movie was thought of as just "alright" compared to the movie they were going to make after that, which would be Pocahontas. The studio released the trailer, and found that many people liked it, especially the song "Circle of Life". When it was released, the movie became the most successful movie worldwide (in the United States, Forrest Gump was most successful of that year) and the most successful animated feature movie of all time until Finding Nemo. Since then, Shrek 2 has become more successful than Finding Nemo, making The Lion King the third most successful.
The Lion King | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Directed by | |
Produced by | Don Hahn |
Written by | |
Story by |
|
Based on | Hell's Gate, Naivasha, Kenya |
Starring | |
Music by | Hans Zimmer |
Edited by | Ivan Bilancio |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 88 minutes[1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $45 million[2] |
Box office | $1.084 billion[2] |
The movie was also made into an award-winning stage musical. The stage show first opened on November 13, 1997 in New York City, and it was a big success. A version opened later in London, England. Many other shows of The Lion King have been shown across the world, and is one of the United Kingdom's biggest and most popular shows. It is supposed to be set in Kenya.
In 2019, a computer animated remake was released.
Release DateEdit
Country | Premiere |
---|---|
Israel | 23 June 1994 |
Canada | 24 June 1994 |
Tunisia | 24 June 1994 |
United States | 24 June 1994 |
Uruguay | 24 June 1994 |
Chile | 30 June 1994 |
Colombia | 30 June 1994 |
Brazil | 1 July 1994 |
South Korea | 2 July 1994 |
Venezuela | 6 July 1994 |
Argentina | 7 July 1994 |
Mexico | 7 July 1994 |
Hong Kong | 8 July 1994 |
Peru | 8 July 1994 |
Taiwan | 10 July 1994 |
Japan | 23 July 1994 |
Singapore | 10 August 1994 |
Norway | 18 August 1994 |
Australia | 25 August 1994 |
New Zealand | 25 August 1994 |
Thailand | October 1994 |
United Kingdom | 7 October 1994 |
Philippines | 12 October 1994 |
Ireland | 21 October 1994 |
Indonesia | 24 October 1994 |
India | 29 October 1994 |
Switzerland | November 1994 (French speaking region) |
Spain | 8 November 1994 |
Belgium | 9 November 1994 |
France | 9 November 1994 |
Germany | 17 November 1994 |
Austria | 18 November 1994 |
Switzerland | 18 November 1994 (German speaking region) |
Denmark | 18 November 1994 |
Poland | 18 November 1994 |
Sweden | 18 November 1994 |
South Africa | 23 November 1994 |
Netherlands | 24 November 1994 |
Italy | 25 November 1994 |
Greece | 1 December 1994 |
Hungary | 1 December 1994 |
Slovakia | 1 December 1994 |
Finland | 2 December 1994 |
Iceland | 2 December 1994 |
Portugal | 2 December 1994 |
Slovenia | 4 December 1994 |
Croatia | 8 December 1994 |
Czech Republic | 15 December 1994 |
Russia | 20 January 1995 |
Turkey | 20 January 1995 |
China | 15 July 1995 |
Estonia | 3 May 1996 |
Madagascar | 15 November 1996 |
Togo | 2 May 1997 |
IMAXEdit
Country | Premiere |
---|---|
United States | December 25, 2002 |
3D VersionEdit
Country | Premiere |
---|---|
Ukraine | 28 July 2011 |
Mexico | 12 August 2011 |
Israel | 25 August 2011 |
Peru | 25 August 2011 |
Brazil | 26 August 2011 |
Poland | 26 August 2011 |
South Africa | 26 August 2011 |
Croatia | 14 September 2011 |
Canada | 16 September 2011 |
Paraguay | 16 September 2011 |
United States | 16 September 2011 |
Iceland | 23 September 2011 |
Turkey | 30 September 2011 |
Netherlands | 5 October 2011 |
Argentina | 6 October 2011 |
Greece | 6 October 2011 |
United Kingdom | 7 October 2011 |
Ireland | 7 October 2011 |
Pakistan | 7 October 2011 |
Japan | 8 October 2011 |
Kuwait | 13 October 2011 |
Taiwan | 14 October 2011 |
Malaysia | 20 October 2011 |
Hong Kong | 22 October 2011 |
Singapore | 25 October 2011 |
Malta | 9 November 2011 |
Germany | 10 November 2011 |
Italy | 11 November 2011 |
Philippines | 14 December 2011 |
Spain | 21 December 2011 |
Portugal | 22 December 2011 |
South Korea | 29 December 2011 |
Sweden | 6 January 2012 |
Norway | 13 January 2012 |
Finland | 20 January 2012 |
Kazakhstan | 20 March 2012 |
Russia | 22 March 2012 |
France | 11 April 2012 |
StoryEdit
In the fictional opening scene, lots of animals and birds gather at Pride Rock to see Simba, the new prince who has just been born. Simba is the son of Mufasa and Sarabi. Rafiki picks up Simba and lifts him high up so that all of the animals can see. The animals celebrate and rejoice. But Scar, Mufasa's brother, is jealous because Simba will be king instead of him.
Scar lies to Simba about a dangerous place called the Elephant Graveyard. Scar says that only brave lions go there, causing Simba to be interested, even though Mufasa has forbidden Simba from going there. Simba lies to his mother, Sarabi, about going to the Water Hole when he is actually going to the Elephant Graveyard. Simba's best friend Nala and Zazu, the king's messenger, go with Simba. Simba and Nala trick Zazu with the song "I Just Can't Wait to be King" and run away from him. Simba and Nala find the Elephant Graveyard but are chased by the three hyenas Shenzi, Banzai and Ed. Mufasa saves his son and Nala and takes them both home. Mufasa speaks to Simba alone and explains to Simba that being brave is not about looking for danger. He also explains that the great kings of the past look down from the stars and watch over Simba. Scar, in the Elephant Graveyard, is angry with the hyenas because they did not kill Simba. It is revealed that the hyenas are working for Scar during Scar's song "Be Prepared".
The next day Scar takes Simba into a gorge (long, deep hole in the ground - also known as a "valley") where he explains that Mufasa has a wonderful surprise waiting. Scar has actually planned a wildebeest stampede with the hyenas. Simba is trapped in the gorge as the wildebeest run towards him. Scar tells Mufasa that Simba is in trouble and Mufasa rescues his son. Scar then throws Mufasa into the stampede and Mufasa dies. Scar blames Simba for the death of Mufasa and Simba runs away. Scar becomes king and tells everyone that Simba and Mufasa are dead. Simba runs to a desert and collapses. He is rescued by Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog. Timon and Pumbaa live in the jungle and are very relaxed, which they show in their song "Hakuna Matata". Timon and Pumbaa look after Simba until Simba is an adult lion.
One day a lioness (female lion) comes to the jungle and tries to kill and eat Pumbaa. Simba fights the lioness because he wants to save Pumbaa's life. While the two lions are fighting Simba finds out that the lioness is his friend Nala. They are very happy to see each other and they fall in love. Nala wants Simba to go home and fight Scar because Scar is a bad king. Simba will not go home because he thinks that he killed Mufasa and he does not want his family to know. Rafiki comes to the jungle and takes Simba to a field. In the sky above the field Mufasa's ghost appears and tells Simba that he must go home because Simba is the right king. After this Simba goes home to Pride Rock. Nala, Timon and Pumbaa follow him. When they get to Pride Rock they find that the land is dry and the animals have gone.
At Pride Rock, Simba sees Scar hitting Sarabi. This makes Simba's love for Scar turn to pure hatred and he tries to make Scar step down. Scar does not and makes Simba fall over the edge of Pride Rock. Simba does not fall and holds on to the edge. Scar thinks that he was won so he tells Simba the truth about the death of Mufasa - that Scar actually killed Mufasa. Simba is upset and a big fight happens. The lionesses fight the hyenas and Simba fights Scar. While the fighting is going on lightning hits a dead tree and starts a fire. Simba and Scar battle on top of Pride Rock. Scar does not want to die and lies to Simba that the hyenas are to blame for everything. Another fight happens and Simba throws Scar over the edge. Scar does not die after the fall, but the hyenas attack and kill him the hyenas are angry that Scar blamed them. Rain falls and puts out the fire. Simba walks to the top of Pride Rock and roars. Much later the animals come back. At the end of the movie, Rafiki picks up Kiara, Simba's daughter and Mufasa's granddaughter, and lifts her up high above Pride Rock so the animals below can see.
CharactersEdit
- Simba - Mufasa's son, Scar's nephew, Nala's eventual husband, and the future king of the Pridelands.
- Nala - Simba's eventual wife and the future queen of the Pridelands.
- Timon and Pumbaa - A meerkat and a warthog who adopt Simba as a cub.
- Mufasa - King of the Pridelands at the start of the film, Simba's father, Sarabi's husband, and Scar's older brother.
- Scar - Simba's arch-nemesis and paternal uncle, Mufasa's arch-rival and younger brother, and Sarabi's brother-in-law.
- Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed - Three hyenas who are Scar's henchmen.
- Rafiki - A mandrill shaman.
- Zazu - A hornbill who serves as adviser to The Lion King.
- Sarabi - Simba's mother, Mufasa's wife, and Scar's sister-in-law.
- Sarafina - Nala's mother.
- Kiara - Simba's newborn daughter, Mufasa's granddaughter, and Scar's great niece, who appears at the end of the film.
VoicesEdit
Actor | Role(s) |
---|---|
Matthew Broderick | Simba |
Moira Kelly | Nala |
Nathan Lane | Timon |
Ernie Sabella | Pumbaa |
James Earl Jones | Mufasa |
Jeremy Irons | Scar |
Whoopi Goldberg | Shenzi |
Cheech Marin | Banzai |
Jim Cummings | Ed Mole[3] |
Robert Guillaume | Rafiki |
Rowan Atkinson | Zazu |
Madge Sinclair | Sarabi |
Zoe Leader | Sarafina |
Jonathan Taylor Thomas | Young Simba |
Niketa Calame | Young Nala |
Singing voices
Singer | Role |
---|---|
Joseph Williams | Simba |
Sally Dworsky | Nala |
Jeff Bennett | Zazu (The Morning Report) |
Jim Cummings | Scar (last part of Be Prepared) |
Jason Weaver Evan Saucedo (The Morning Report) |
Young Simba |
Laura Williams | Young Nala |
Supervising animatorsEdit
CrewEdit
Crew Position | |
---|---|
Directed by | Roger Allers Rob Minkoff |
Produced by | Don Hahn |
Written by | Irene Mecchi Jonathan Roberts Linda Woolverton |
Executive Producers | Thomas Schumacher Sarah McArthur |
Songs by | Sir Tim Rice Sir Elton John |
Original Score by | Hans Zimmer John Powell |
Associate Producer | Alcie Dewey |
Art Director | Andy Gaskill |
Production Designer | Christopher Sanders |
movie Editors | John Carnochan Tom Finan |
Artistic Supervisors | Brenda Chapman (Story supervisor) Dan St. Pierre (Layout supervisor) Doug Ball (Background supervisor) Vera Lanpher (Clean-up supervisors) Scott Santoro (Effects supervisor) Scott F. Johnston (Computer Graphics supervisor) |
Artistic Coordinator | Randy Fullmer |
Supervising Animators | Mark Henn (Young Simba) Ruben A. Aquino (Adult Simba) Andreas Deja (Scar) Tony Fucile (Mufasa) Tony Bancroft (Pumbaa) Michael Surrey (Timon) Aaron Blaise (Young Nala) Anthony de Rosa (Adult Nala) Ellen Woodbury (Zazu) Russ Edmonds (Sarabi) James Baxter (Rafiki) David Burgess & Alex Kuperschmidt (Banzai/Shenzi/Ed) |
Production Manager | Dana Axelrod |
Box office performanceEdit
Source | Gross (USD) | % Total | All Time Rank |
---|---|---|---|
Domestic | $328,541,776 ($312,855,561 initially) | 41.9% | 16 |
Foreign | $455,300,000 | 58.1% | N/A |
Worldwide | $783,841,776[4] | 100.0% | 19 |
Domestic Opening Weekend | $40,888,194 | 13.1% | 99 |
Domestic Adjusted (2007) | $508,185,200 | N/A | 24 |
Awards and nominationsEdit
The Lion King received many award nominations, including the Academy Award for Best Original Score (by Hans Zimmer) and the Golden Globe award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, both of which it won. The song "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" by Elton John and Tim Rice won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the Golden Globe for Best Original Song, the BMI Film Music Award, and the Grammy Award for Best Vocal Performance Male.
These are the awards:
- Academy Awards[5]
- Best Original Score (Won)
- Best Original Song for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Won)
- Best Original Song for "Circle of Life" (Nominated)
- Best Original Song for "Hakuna Matata" (Nominated)
- Golden Globe Awards[6]
- Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy (Won)
- Best Original Score (Won)
- Best Original Song for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Won)
- Best Original Song for "Circle of Life" (Nominated)
- Annie Awards[7]
- Best Animated Feature (Won)
- Best Achievement for Voice Acting to Jeremy Irons for voicing Scar (Won)
- Best Individual Achievement for Story Contribution in the Field of Animation (Won)
- Best Individual Achievement for Artistic Excellence in the Field of Animation (Nominated, lost to The Nightmare Before Christmas.)
- Saturn Awards[8]
- Best Fantasy Film (Nominated, lost to Forrest Gump.)
- Best Performance by a Younger Actor to Jonathan Taylor Thomas for voicing young Simba (Nominated, lost to Kirsten Dunst for Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles.)
- Best DVD Classic Film Release in 2004 (Nominated, lost to The Adventures of Robin Hood.)
- British Academy Film Awards[9]
- Award for Best Sound (Nominated, lost to Speed.)
- Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music (Nominated, lost to Backbeat.)
- BMI Film & TV Awards[10]
- BMI Film Music Award for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Won)
- Most Performed Song from a Film "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Won)
- Grammy Award[11]
- Best Vocal Performance Male to Elton John for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Won)
- Song of the Year for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Nominated, lost to "Streets of Philadelphia" from Philadelphia.)
- Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Nominated, lost to "Streets of Philadelphia" from Philadelphia.)
- Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media for "Circle of Life" (Nominated, lost to "Streets of Philadelphia" from Philadelphia.)
- Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television (Nominated, lost to Schindler's List.)
- MTV Movie Awards[12]
- Best Villain for Jeremy Irons (Nominated, lost to Dennis Hopper for Speed.)
- Best Song From A Movie for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Nominated, lost to "Big Empty" from The Crow.)
- Kids' Choice Awards[13]
- Favorite Movie (Won)
Sequels and spin-offsEdit
The Lion King was so successful that Disney created a sequel called The Lion King II: Simba's Pride and a television series called The Lion King's Timon and Pumbaa. A second sequel, The Lion King 1½, was released on February 10, 2004. A preschool series called The Lion Guard is currently airing on Disney Junior.
The Lion King had a special edition that was released in IMAX cinemas.
ControversiesEdit
"SEX"Edit
In one scene of the movie it looks as if animators had written the word "sex" into some of the frames of animation. However, they wanted to show the letters "SFX" (meaning "special effects"). In The Lion King DVD the word has been taken out.
Kimba the White LionEdit
Kimba the White Lion is an animated TV show from the 1960s. It was made in Japan by Osamu Tezuka. Some characters and parts of the story in The Lion King are similar to Kimba the White Lion but Disney has said that it was not done on purpose.[14]
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight"Edit
In one scene with Timon and Pumbaa they both sing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". This has caused disputes between Disney and the family of South African Solomon Linda, who composed the song (originally titled "Mbube") in 1939. In July 2004, the family went to court, seeking $1.6 million in royalties from Disney. In February 2006, Linda's heirs (family) reached a legal settlement with Abilene Music, who held the worldwide rights and had licensed the song to Disney for an undisclosed amount of money.[15]
Hidden racismEdit
Upon its release, some critics complained that the hyenas in the movie were negative (bad) racial stereotypes of African-American people and Hispanic people.[16] It has been said that "despicable hyena storm troopers speak...in racially coded accents that take on the nuances of the discourse of a decidedly urban, black, and Latino youth." [17]
Hamas' propagandaEdit
In August 2007, the Hamas terrorist group produced an animated propaganda (information) movie that made fun of the style of The Lion King. The programme was shown on their television station, Al-Aqsa TV. Hamas was shown as a lion that chased and killed rats that looked like members of the secular (separate from religion) Fatah group in Gaza. The programme was shown for a short time but was taken off the air for changes.[18][19]
SongsEdit
- "Circle of Life"
- "I Just Can't Wait to Be King"
- "Be Prepared"
- "Hakuna Matata"
- "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?"
- "The Bait Song" (Timon & Pumbaa's Hula)
Titles in other languagesEdit
- Afrikaans: Die Leeukoning
- Albanian: Mbreti luan
- Arabic: الأسد الملك (Al-Asad Al-Malik)
- Armenian: Առյուծ արքան
- Bulgarian: Цар Лъв
- Chinese: 獅子王
- Catalan: El rei lleó
- Croatian: Kralj lavova
- Czech: Lví král
- Danish: Løvernes konge
- Dutch: De Leeuwenkoning
- Estonian: Lõvikuningas
- Finnish: Leijonakuningas
- French: Le roi lion
- Georgian: მეფე ლომი
- German: Der König der Löwen
- Greek: Ο Βασιλιάς των Λιονταριών
- Hebrew: מלך האריות (Melech Ha-Arayot)
- Hungarian: Az Oroszlánkirály
- Icelandic: Konungur Ljónanna
- Indonesian: Si Raja Singa
- Italian: Il Re Leone
- Japanese: ライオンキング (Raion Kingu)
- Korean: 라이온 킹
- Latvian: Karalis Lauva
- Lithuanian: Liūtas Karalius
- Maltese: L-Iljun Sultan
- Mandarin Chinese: 狮子王
- Norwegian: Løvenes Konge
- Persian: شیر شاه (Shir Shah)
- Polish: Król Lew
- Portuguese: O Rei Leão
- Romanian: Regele Leu
- Russian: Король-Лев
- Serbian: Kraљ Лавова
- Slovak: Leví kráľ
- Slovene: Levji Kralj
- Spanish: El Rey León
- Swedish: Lejonkungen
- Thai: เดอะไลอ้อนคิง
- Turkish: Aslan Kral
- Uzbek: Qirol Sher
- Vietnamese: Vua Sư Tử
- Welsh: Llew Frenin
- Zulu: Inkosi Bhubesi
ReferencesEdit
- ↑ "The Lion King (U)". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "The Lion King". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-10-04.
- ↑ Grant, John. Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters - Encyclopedia, 3rd edition hardcover. New York City: Hyperion Books, 1998. ISBN 0-7868-6336-6
- ↑ "All-Time Worldwide Box Office". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 17 September 2006.
- ↑ "Academy Awards, USA: 1995". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "SEARCH - Lion King, The". Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "Legacy: 22nd Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (1994)". Annie Awards. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA: 1995". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "BAFTA Awards: 1995". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "BMI Film & TV Awards: 1995". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "Grammy Awards: 1995". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "MTV Movie Awards: 1995". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ↑ "Kids' Choice Awards, USA: 1995". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
- ↑ Hong, Peter (2002-05-19). "The Lion King/Kimba controversy". Los Angeles Times. pp. L4. Retrieved 2009-11-14. Check date values in:
|date=
(help) - ↑ "Disney settles Lion song. dispute". BBC news. Retrieved 31 August 2006.
- ↑ Staff (24 February 2006). "Film Comment Selects 2006".
- ↑ http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/courses/ed253a/Giroux/Giroux2.html
- ↑ Nidal al-Mughrabi (September 4, 2007). "Hamas "Lion King" cartoon re-enacts Gaza takeover". Reuters. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
- ↑ "Hamas battle cartoon mimics "Lion King"". International Herald Tribune. 2007-08-24. Retrieved 2007-12-24.
Other websitesEdit
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: The Lion King |