#lion5

Film Data

Title: The Lion King Director: Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff Date of Release: June 15, 1994 Country: United States Genre: Animated Musical Budget: $45 million Box Office: $1,586,753 Source: http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lionking.htm

Synopsis

The film begins at a ceremony in the safari in Africa. The lion king Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and Queen Sarabi (Madge Sinclair) are presenting their newborn Simba to all the animals in the kingdom at the top of Pride Rock. The birth of Simba make Mufasa’s brother Scar (Jeremy Irons) incredibly jealous and wrathful because he is no longer heir to the throne. When Simba (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) has grown into a cub Mufasa gives him a tour of the kingdom, known as the Pride Lands, and teaches him about the responsibilities of being a king. Later that day Scar tricks Simba into exploring the forbidden elephant graveyard, a place Mufasa explicitly told him was outside the borders of the kingdom. Simba takes his best friend Nala (Niketa Calame) and they are able to shake off their chaperone bird Zazu (Rowan Atkinson), Mufasa’s most trusted advisor.

At the graveyard Simba, Nala, and the caught up Zazu are attacked by three hyenas, Shenzi (Whoopi Goldberg), Banzai (Cheech Marin), and Ed (Jim Cummings). Alerted by Zazu Mufasa intervenes and fends off the hyenas. Mufasa chastises Simba and tells him that he is only ever brave when he needs to be. He tells Simba about the great kings in the sky watching over them, and that someday he will be up there watching over Simba. The hyenas fled to their hideout where their ally Scar waits for them. That night they plan to murder Mufasa so Scar can be king. The following day Scar takes Simba to the gorge and tells him to wait for a surprise. He signals to the hyenas and they create a stampede of wildebeests into the gorge. Scar alerts Mufasa and stops Zazu from getting any more help. Simba desperately tried to dodge the wildebeest and clings to a low branch. Mufasa arrive in time to save Simba and tries to save himself by climbing the wall of the gorge. He begs Scar to help him up but Scar claws his paws and forces Mufasa to fall to his death. When Simba finds Mufasa’s body Scar is able to convince him that it was his fault and urges him to run away from the kingdom. As Simba flees Scar orders the hyenas to kill him but Simba is able to escape. Scar returns to pride rock and informs the lionesses of the king and prince’s death then assumes the throne brining the pack of hyenas into the Pride Lands.

Simba is later found in the desert severely dehydrated by the meerkat Timon (Nathan Lane) and the warthog Pumbaa (Ernie Sabella). They raise Simba in the jungle and teach him to live by their motto, “hakuna matata,” which means no worries. When Simba is a young adult (voiced by Matthew Broderick) he saves Pumbaa who was being hunted by a lioness. The lioness turns out to be Nala (voiced by Moira Kelly) who informs him that the Pride Lands have turned into a wasteland with no food or water. After they spend the night reconciling, and falling in love, Nala begs Simba to come home and take his rightful place as the king but Simba refuses due to his guilt of killing his father. Simba storms off into the deep jungle and is found by Mufasa’s old friend Rafiki (Robert Guillaume). Rafiki leads Simba into a pond telling him that Mufasa is still alive inside of Simba. Shortly after Simba is visited by the ghost of Mufasa in the sky telling Simba that he has forgotten who he is and therefore forgotten his father. Mufasa tells Simba that he must remember who he is and take his rightful place as king. Simba realizes he can no longer run from his past and decides to go home. Timon, Pumbaa, and Nala agree to help him fight to win back the Pride Lands.

When the group arrives to the wastelands that was once Simba’s home war breaks out between the lions and hyenas. Simba confronts Scar and his uncle forces him to take the blame for Mufasa’s death. Simba and Mufasa fight until Simba is clinging to the wall of a rock in the same position his father was killed. Scar reveals that he was the one who killed Mufasa and Simba leaps up and forces Scar to reveal the truth. Scar begs Simba for mercy and tries to blame the hyenas for Mufasa’s death. When Simba shows him mercy and exiles him Scar attacks him once again. Simba fights Scar and is able to throw him off the ledge of Pride Rock. Although Scar survives the fall he is cornered by the hyenas who end up killing him due to his betrayal.

Simba then walks up to the top of Pride Rock and roars to symbolize him becoming king. Sometime later the Pride Lands are restored to their former glory and all the animals have reunited at Pride Rock once again. Simba stands at the top with Nala, Timon, and Pumbaa. Rafiki steps up to reveal Simba and Nala’s newborn to the rest of the animals.

Commentary

Seen with adult and critical eyes, as opposed to the wondrous and naïve mindset of childhood, The Lion King is not only a fun film about the rise of a king, but it is more importantly a basis for morality. Two themes presented in The Lion King which struck me most deal with the depiction of light and dark and the presence of the seven deadly sins. Both themes are critical in The Lion King’s lessons.

The difference between light and dark in film symbolizes the difference between what is right and what is wrong. Light in the movie represents good. When Rafiki lifts Simba up, immediately the sky parts and light is beamed down upon him. The audience therefore knows that Simba is good; he will be the hero of the story.

Shortly after Simba is pronounced as the hero, Scar is immediately presented as the villain. He is hidden in the shadows of a cave, and even his stylistic choices are dark; he is the only lion with a black mane. While some may argue this artistic choice is racist, I disagree. The black mane serves to add a permanent shadow over Scar’s appearance. Even when he is in the light, the shadow he carries on himself reminds the audience that he is the villain. In almost every instance where Scar is shown, it is beneath the shadows.

The Pride Lands represent a kingdom of good, where the king who rules is just, as Mufasa is. The shadow lands, a place Mufasa specifically warns Simba to stay away from, are beyond the limits of the kingdom and they are home to hyenas. As Zazu mentions after, the hyenas are nothing more than “slobbering mangy stupid poachers.” Therefore, those who consciously live within the shadows are evil and cannot be part of the heavenly kingdom.

Simba’s fall from innocence occurs once he disobeys Mufasa and consciously steps into the shadow. He allowed himself to be tricked by Scar, a scene where both Scar and Simba were shown underneath a shadow, and made a choice that is inherently wrong.

The Lion King in this sense presents an instance where disobeying one’s parents is the equivalent of a sinful action, much like the Ten Commandments stresses that one must honor their father and mother.

It’s important to note that there is a difference between the darkness of night and that of the shadows in the movie. When Simba or any other character is consciously in the shadows they are outside of the boundaries of good and into that of wrong. Night, however, is inevitable; the movie uses night as a time for moral ambiguity. The following scenes occurring at night highlight the struggles Simba faces in his morality.

In his older age, Simba is shown as confused and troubled during the night. When he recalls his father’s words about the stars in the sky, he shrugs it off as “pretty dumb” just as Timon and Pumbaa do; however it is clear that thoughts of his abandoned responsibility trouble him. Simba’s inner turmoil is at its peak after Nala goes to visit him, again, during the night. He is confused and feel hopelessly lost until Rafiki guides him and he is confronted by Mufasa’s spirit. Light once again plays a role when Mufasa appears to Simba. Mufasa is the light in the sky, the voice of reason and Simba’s ultimate guide. Once Simba has seen this light he is able to understand his place, and the actions he must take in order to assume his responsibility. Of course, in the end, the light Mufasa represents, as Rafiki told Simba, is actually within him.

The Lion King teaches the audience that during the night, in other words, in times of moral ambiguity, one has to find the light within oneself. It is the strength in one’s own character that will help them make the choice between what is right and what it wrong.

Scar’s musical number “Be Prepared” clearly presents five of the seven deadly sins. The most evident is pride. At the beginning of the song Scar demands attention from the hyenas because his words “are a matter of pride.” Scar believes he is the rightful king, the only one suitable for the job, and he is sure that as king, he will be “seen for the wonder [he] is.” Next is envy; Scar is clearly envious of his family’s right to rule, from Mufasa to Simba skipping him completely. The jealously is further pronounced with abundance of green in the color scheme of the scene.

Greed is also present in Scar; he wants all of the power simply because he’s never had it, “decades of denial is simply why I’ll be king undisputed.” The scene also features a high angle shot reminiscent of Nazi and Hitler power/greed. This shot appears to be drawn as a parallel to shots from The Triumph of the Will. The following shot continues the Nazi theme but from a low angle placing Scar as the most powerful character.

The wrath in Scar’s song is present in the deed Scar wants to commit; the murder of Mufasa and Simba. Wrath is also present by the presence of red in the scene.

Finally, gluttony is presented through the hyenas. All the hyenas worry over is whether or not they will have food in the new rule, Scar of course promises that they “will never go hungry again” and at the end of the song, the hyenas chant, “we’ll have food, lots of food, we repeat, endless meat.” While lust and sloth don’t necessarily make an appearance, I believe it is evident that Scar represents the different aspects of sin. The final shot of this scene is overwhelmingly dark and Scar's placement at the top of the frame further emphasizes his role as the main villain capable of the most evil.