Mufasa: The Lion King (2024, dir. Barry Jenkins)

by Jack Martin | Dec 20, 2024

Certificate: PG

Running Time: 119 mins

UK Distributor: Disney

UK Release Date: 20 December 2024

WHO’S IN MUFASA: THE LION KING?

Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., John Kani, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Donald Glover, Mads Mikkelsen, Thandiwe Newton, Tiffany Boone, Lennie James, Blue Ivy Carter, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Preston Nyman, Keith David, Anika Noni Rose, Joanna Jones, Folake Olowofoyeku, Thuso Mbedu, Sheila Atim, Abdul Salis, Dominique Jennings, Braelyn Rankins, Theo Somolu, Kagiso Lediga

WHO’S BEHIND THE CAMERA?

Barry Jenkins (director), Jeff Nathanson (writer), Mark Ceryak and Adele Romanski (producers), Nicholas Britell and Dave Metzger (composers), James Laxton (cinematographer), Joi McMillon (editor)

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

The story of the future lion king Mufasa (Pierre), and his adoptive brother known as Scar (Harrison Jr.)…

WHAT ARE MY THOUGHTS ON MUFASA: THE LION KING?

You have to feel a little bit bad for Barry Jenkins. By signing on to direct Disney’s follow-up to its live-action photorealistic take on The Lion King, the Oscar-winning Moonlight and If Beale Street Could Talk filmmaker has gotten himself into a difficult situation. The discourse surrounding the 2019 box office hit was less than kind, with some calling it among the worst of the studio’s trend of live-action remakes, and news of a sequel/prequel – with the revered Jenkins at the helm – has not gone down well either, leading to some rather nasty accusations of Jenkins “selling out” after his acclaimed awards contenders.

The resulting lack of excitement surrounding Mufasa: The Lion King, as well as its projected financial underperformance, has also put Jenkins in an even more uncomfortable position. While the filmmaker will no doubt find work after this whole mess has blown over, some will no doubt use this film to make the argument that a genuinely talented director like Jenkins should not be allowed to make any big-budget blockbusters for the foreseeable future (and sadly, bigotry will also play a role in this argument). My personal counterargument would be that, by this ingenious logic, the likes of Michael Bay and David Yates would have been kicked out of Hollywood years ago… or do they get a free pass because they’re white?

Either way, all of that would overlook the fact that while Mufasa: The Lion King isn’t an especially great movie – though it is at least better and more interesting than its predecessor – Jenkins’s soulful and sensitive touch is undoubtedly present, which if nothing else shows that even with hundreds of millions to play with he can tell a coherent and passionate story. So long as he’s allowed to tell it in the way he wants to tell it, of course.

Before getting into the meat of the story, the film first establishes a framing device, one that sees our current Lion King Simba (Donald Glover) and his partner Nala (Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, brought in for no more than three lines of dialogue) leave their young cub Kiara (Blue Ivy Carter) in the hands of wise old mandrill Rafiki (John Kani), along with Timon and Pumbaa (Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen respectively). Rafiki then recounts to them the story of Kiara’s grandfather Mufasa (Aaron Pierre), who as a cub is separated from his family and taken in by a royal family of lions, befriending the prince and heir Taka (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) in the process. Eventually, both Mufasa and Taka are placed together on a journey toward the fabled utopia known as “Milele”, where new friends (and a few enemies) are made, but most significantly the inseparable adoptive brothers become divided as one of them embraces their new regal position, and the other one… well, let’s just say they’re not always known as Taka.

There are plenty of moments throughout Mufasa: The Lion King where you know exactly who is in charge – and it sure isn’t Barry Jenkins. Try as the director does to maintain a consistent flow in its pacing, tone, characterisation and even its musical numbers (here provided by Lin-Manuel Miranda), Disney’s smudged fingerprints are all over this film, whether it’s in the repeated visual and dialogue callbacks to the original animated classic – or the 2019 version in this instance, though both are practically the same movie so either one is fine – or the constant interruptions by Timon and Pumbaa to perform their irritating schtick right after some particularly heavy dramatic scenes. Jeff Nathanson’s rather basic script ultimately follows a template some will find familiar from the days when Disney churned out direct-to-video sequels (this movie even lifts characters and one or two scenes from The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride), which is an era not many of us are willing to relive. Though between this and Moana 2, at least this film doesn’t feel quite as haphazardly slapped together from pre-existing televisual material.

That’s because the visually stunning film is genuinely cinematic in places, with some impressive CGI creating photorealistic environments and sets of animals (who can actually emote this time round) that don’t necessarily look real but look good enough to at least steer clear of uncanny valley territory. It’s here where Jenkins gets to fully utilise his unique filmmaking skills, capturing gentle moments as characters absorb the surrounding winds and waters of the African plains, and playing around with certain visual metaphors in ways that almost recount his similarly soulful approach in Moonlight. Though much of his direction here is ultimately hampered by Disney’s authoritative control over the material, Jenkins makes the most of a tight spot by inserting as much humanity – ironic, for a film without any humans in sight – into the story and characters as he can, while still delivering the film he was hired to make.

It’s near laughable to think that Mufasa: The Lion King will sway anyone who was even the tiniest bit iffy towards the 2019 version, so I wouldn’t bother if you’re a part of that crowd. However, unlike that film, this one at least has a bit more going for it, and much of that has to do with Barry Jenkins’ noble effort to sculpt something respectful out of the mess he’s inherited.

Still, if you see one 2024 blockbuster prequel by a visionary filmmaker with a title ending with “sa”… make sure it’s the one with Anya Taylor-Joy.

SO, TO SUM UP…

Mufasa: The Lion King sees director Barry Jenkins nobly attempting to insert his soulful style into this mandated Disney prequel, but the studio’s authoritative fingerprints ultimately hamper the filmmaker’s good intentions.