You know the main problem with theĀ ālive actionā Lion King? Why it looks so lifeless?
The hyper realistic style is actually limiting the animators, rather than freeing them. The style makes it much harder to have memorable character designs and good expressions. Real lions donāt need to do things like emote in a way that humans can understand ā but characters in a film do.Ā The original movie was more cartoony not due to animation limitations of the time, but because that style genuinely serves the story better.
To show you what I mean, compare these two shots of Simba, from right after Scar saysĀ ārun away and never return.ā
Here is a clear reaction, with a strong beat for us to connect with before the character makes a decision. Even without any dialogue, even without any context, you can understand the emotion there just by the expression and the mannerisms. Is it realistic? No! Heās bright yellow and has eyebrows. But do we empathize with him? Yes!
Meanwhile, here isā¦ a lion. Turning and running. No expression, no beats, no character moments, nothing. He actually canāt express himself because the animators are locked into the realistic style. If they tried to animate a strong expression as warranted for the scene, it would look terrible. Is it realistic? Hell yeah! Look at those textures! Look at that fur! But do we empathize with him? ā¦nah. Not really.
To conclude: when youāre retelling Hamlet with a bunch of animated lions, cartoonish-ness is your friend, not your enemy.
