(3rd Released PE-Spoilers)The Lion King

[Ivy]

The Lion King takes place in the Pride Lands of Africa where a lion rules over the other animals as king. Rafiki, a wise old mandrill, anoints Simba, the newborn cub of King Mufasa and Queen Sarabi, and presents him to a gathering of animals at Pride Rock ("Circle of Life"). Mufasa takes Simba on a tour of the Pride Lands, teaching him about the "Circle of Life", the delicate balance affecting all living things. Taking advantage of the cub's naive nature, Simba's scheming uncle Scar(who is very angry because Simba's birth means that he's no longer next in line to the throne) tells him about the elephant graveyard, a place where Mufasa has forbidden Simba to go. Simba asks his mother if he can go to the water-hole with his best friend, Nala. Their parents agree but only if Mufasa's majordomo, the hornbill Zazu goes with them. Simba and Nala elude Zazu's supervision ("I Just Can't Wait to Be King") and go to the graveyard instead. There, the cubs are met by Shenzi, Banzai and Ed, spotted hyenas who try to kill them, but they are rescued by Mufasa. On the way home, Mufasa orders Zazu to take Nala home so as to 'teach his son a lesson'. Once left alone, Mufasa tells his son how very disappointed he is in him and how he put both Nala and his lives in danger. He further explains to Simba that being brave doesn't mean to go looking for danger, and reveals he was scared he might have lost him. Having reached an understanding, they play together in the fields, where Simba asks his father if they will always be together. Mufasa tells him that the Kings of the Past are among the stars in the sky. They will be there to guide him and, when Mufasa's time comes, so will he. Meanwhile, Scar gains the loyalty of the hyenas by claiming that if he becomes king, they'll "never go hungry again" ("Be Prepared"). During the song, Scar tells the hyenas that for this to happen they must kill Mufasa and Simba, thus establishing his plan of regicide. Simba as a cub some time later, Scar lures Simba into a gorge for a "surprise from his father" while the hyenas create a wildebeest stampede. Alerted by Scar, Mufasa races to rescue Simba from the stampede. He saves his son but is left clinging to the edge of a steep cliff. Scar, instead of helping Mufasa, flings his brother into the stampede below. Simba sees his father fall and rushes down the cliff after him, only to find him dead. Scar convinces the young cub that he was responsible for his father's death and recommends that he flee from the Pride Lands. Scar once again sends Shenzi, Banzai and Ed to kill Simba, but he escapes. Scar informs the pride that both Mufasa and Simba were killed and that he is assuming the throne as the next in line. Scar proclaims that "this is the dawning of a new era, in which lion and hyena come together", thus allowing the hyenas into the Pride Lands. In a distant desert, Simba is found unconscious by Timon and Pumbaa, a meerkat-warthog duo who adopt and raise the cub under their worry-free philosophy ("Hakuna Matata"). When Simba has grown into an adult he is discovered by Nala, who tells him that Scar has turned the Pride Lands into a barren wasteland. She asks Simba to return and take his place as king but Simba refuses, still believing he caused his father's death. Simba shows Nala around his home and the two begin to fall in love ("Can You Feel the Love Tonight"). Nala, however, tells Simba that she does not understand why he will not return to Pride Rock and they end up in a quarrel. Rafiki arrives and persuades Simba to return to the Pride Lands, aided by the appearance of the ghost of Mufasa. Simba and Nala reunite as adults once back at Pride Rock, Simba (with Timon, Pumbaa and Nala) is horrified to see the condition of the Pride Lands. Timon and Pumbaa create a diversion, allowing Simba and Nala to sneak past the hyenas guarding Pride Rock. After seeing his mother Sarabi struck by Scar for criticizing him, Simba announces his return. In response, Scar tells the pride that Simba was responsible for Mufasa's death and corners Simba at the edge of Pride Rock. As Simba dangles over the edge of Pride Rock, Scar proudly reveals to Simba that he was actually responsible for Mufasa's death. Enraged, Simba leaps up and pins Scar to the ground, forcing him to admit the truth to the pride. Atop Pride Rock's peak, Simba corners Scar. To gain Simba's mercy, Scar blames everything on the hyenas but Shenzi, Banzai and Ed overhear this betrayal. Simba demands that Scar go into exile. Scar pretends to leave but turns to attack Simba, resulting in a final duel. Simba triumphs over his uncle by kicking him over a low cliff. Scar survives the fall but finds himself surrounded by the now-resentful hyenas, who attack and kill him. Simba and Nala become the new king and queen of the Pride Lands. The film concludes with the Pride Lands turning green with life again and Rafiki presenting Simba and Nala's newborn cub as "The Circle of Life" continues.

Review: Who doesn't know The Lion King and it's wild African sahara and vibrant colors and technique. It's a wonderful tale of hope, love, and finding the King/Queen within' yourself. I mean, come on, when 'I Just Can't Wait To Be King' starts blaring and you see all the movement and excitment the film brings to your screen, you can't help but sing and sway along. And I will admit, when I was young, okay younger, I used to cry everytime Mufusa took that death hurtling fall. And the King will always live on, in you and me, don't let this classic end with our era, pass it on for generations to come, this movie doesn't need to be forgotten!!!

[yoshi]

The Lion King >>>>> every other Disney production. matter of fact, it's the best animated movie i've ever seen. i love it. i remember when i downloaded it and watched for the first time since like.. iono, 7 years? seriously, it brought back all my childhood memories and how i used to watch it daily on VHS.

the plot, dialogues, music, songs, the characters.. it's a classic. and i loved how they put so much of the African culture in it, even if it means only naming the characters or using the 'hakuna matata' expression. i doubt there will ever be another movie that i'm gonna fall in love with as much as i did with The Lion King.


haha i found on youtube this short movie about subliminal messages in the movie. iono, i don't believe in all the 'sex' words that are supposed to be put in there, but obviously someone took the time to find 254356 'sex' words some sneaky bastard put in between the leaves.

[yoshi]

^ yeah, i know this one, but there's more. some guy found 'em and jeez, i'd never thought of it. remember the part when Timon and Pumba show Simba around that valley? after they sing that Hakuna Matata song, they lift up leaves and there's big valley and blue sky and some high rocks. apparently the clouds and rocks form [besides looking like dicks] a giant "SEX" word rofl


lol
http://pl.youtube.com/watch?v=1Xm1V-9xfjU

[Ivy]

There have been many instances of racism identified in Disney movies including The
Jungle Book (1967) which portrays gorillas and orangutans that sound like black people and
Oliver and Company, with a Chihuahua named Alonzo that is typecast as a Latino troublemaker.
At one point in the film, he talks about stealing cars. This negative stereotype is what children
may remember when they hear someone speak with a similar accent. Lady and the Tramp
features the Siamese cats that negatively portray Asians. They clearly have stereotypical Asian
features such as slanted eyes, buckteeth and very heavy accents and are depicted as sinister,
cunning and manipulative (Sun, 2001).
Some of the more current releases with racial stereotyping include Aladdin, the Lion
King, Tarzan, and Pocahontas. “The Aladdin character in that movie portrays “bad” Arabs with
thick foreign accents while Anglicized Jasmine and Aladdin speak in standard Americanized
English” (Giroux, 1995). Aladdin looks and sounds like a fresh-faced American boy. One of the
evil characters, Jafar, looks very Arabic. Some of the lyrics in the movie convey racist
overtones: “I come from a land…where they cut off your ears if they don’t like your face. It’s
barbaric, but hey, it’s home” (Maio, 1999).
In The Lion King, the hyenas clearly speak in a kind of street, inner city African
American dialect. They are considered the bad guys. Tarzan, which was released in 1999, is set
in Africa but does not feature any black people. It is difficult to identify animated Disney
movies with positive black role models.
Another common stereotype noted in Disney movies is that of the Native American. In
the film Peter Pan, Princess Tiger Lily’s father represents the negative stereotype of being
uncivilized and savage as he holds Wendy’s brothers hostage. In Pocahontas, she represents the
positive stereotype who respects the earth and communicates with the trees and animals (Reese,
1996). Although Pocahontas is portrayed in this more positive role, it still typifies a stereotype.
Another major issue with this film is the historical inaccuracies it depicts. Pocahontas was a real
woman, but very different from the Disney image. She was a child when she met John Smith
and there was no romance between them (Maio, 1999).