‘Mufasa - The Lion King’ Review: Critics Give Mixed Reactions to Disney’s Live-Action Prequel Featuring Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr and Blue Ivy Carter

Mufasa: The Lion King is a 2024 musical action-adventure film directed by Barry Jenkins. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures, it is both a prequel and sequel to The Lion King released in 2019. The cast includes Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, John Kani, and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, who reprise their roles from the remake. New actors such as Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr, Tiffany Boone, Mads Mikkelsen, and Thandiwe Newton join the film. It is dedicated to James Earl Jones, who passed away on September 9, 2024. James was the original voice for Mufasa. Amid Jay-Z’s Rape Lawsuit, Beyoncé Celebrates Blue Ivy Carter’s Voice Role in Disney’s ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’. 

The Guardian: In turning the circle of life anti-clockwise to tell us this tale from the past, Mufasa: The Lion King duplicates ideas and personae from the earlier films – perhaps inevitably, as part of its ethos is that all lions are existential restatements of their ancestors. (However, the horrible – and for some, problematic – hyenas of the first film have vanished.) Mufasa gives no hint of the famous “great chain of being” speech that he gives to young Simba in the original film, in which he claims that eating antelopes is OK, because when lions die they become grass which is eaten by antelopes – notoriously passing over the fact that this grass will not feel fear and pain in the same way. But all the lesser animals will of course end up bowing, herbivores and carnivores, prey and predator alike. All in all, this is not a bad tale from the Disneyfied continent of talking animals, but a minor cousin to the first film’s movie-royalty.

IGN: Moonlight’s Barry Jenkins makes the leap to big budget, popcorn entertainment – and just like the CGI stars of Mufasa, he lands on his feet. This origin story stands alone by pitting familiar characters against new villains, resulting in a photorealistic film that’s driven as much by its storytelling as by its technology. The ungainly structure and self-aware winks at the audience can sometimes distract from Mufasa’s powerful mythmaking. But Jenkins’ knack for eliciting deep emotion and visual wonder remains sharp, especially when bolstered by Aaron Pierre and Kelvin Harrison Jr.’s delightful voice work.

Mufasa: The Lion King Trailer

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 18, 2024 01:21 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).