Disney's Lion King remake is beat for beat. Director Jon Favreau explains why

If there is one question that keeps appearing in the reviews of Disney's Lion King remake it is this: "Why?"

Why go to the trouble of making a new Lion King film if you just recreate the original shot for shot?

Why not take it in a new direction?

"I think this story has been enduring now since it first hit the screen as a 2D animated film and then through the theatrical run of the musical production and people know it very, very well," he told the ABC.

"So millions and millions of people know it, have grown up with it, have seen it over and over again and certainly know the music.

Film critics have been quick to laud Favreau's reboot for its technical prowess, which brings the Savanna to life in stunning photorealistic fashion.

Yet for some, their awe at the effects is matched only by their frustration at taking the iconic story and not doing more with it.

Far from shy from this, Favreau leans into the similarities.

"What works to our advantage is that people know the originals so well, and the original it has the same emotional beats as this one does," he said.

"However, there was an opportunity using this new technology and this new cast to reinvent it for a new generation.

"And so we sought to stick to the traditions of what came before and trying to infuse a new way of telling the story so that a younger audience might be introduced to it."

Film critic Zak Hepburn said he understood the sentiment, but that rather than find it comforting many could find the similarities disconcerting.

"The best way I can put it is it's like you're watching a cover band that's really technically proficient and really impressive, but just don't have any soul or passion that the original source material has," he said.

Disney has been raiding its archives for the past few years, releasing live action remakes to mixed reviews but maximum reward.

And while the critics have been sceptical of recent reboots (particularly Aladdin and Dumbo this year), for the most part the audiences have lapped them up.

Critic and audience score based off Rotten Tomatoes averages. Box office takings are worldwide, measured in $AU millions, sourced from Box Office Mojo.

"I think you've got a fantastic collection of titles and stories and obviously nostalgia is very big business for a lot of audience members at the moment," Hepburn said.

"So you are seeing audiences who grew up with these films now having families of their own who want to have an experience with their family in the cinema."

What's more, while critics might rail against the remakes, Hepburn said the small target strategy might ultimately pay off for Disney.

"When filmmakers take an original concept and remake it and do something different with it, the risk of trashing the legacy of something is higher then," he said.

And it is not ending any time soon.

Disney has already announced live action versions of Mulan and the Little Mermaid, with reboots of Pinocchio, Lady and the Tramp, Lilo and Stitch and The Hunchback of Notre Dame also expected.

Source: ABC News (AU)

Powered by NewsAPI.org

Keywords:

The Walt Disney Company • The Lion King • Remake • Jon Favreau • The Walt Disney Company • The Lion King • Remake • The Lion King • Film • Shot-for-shot • Film • Animation • Animation • Film • American Broadcasting Company • Reboot (fiction) • Savanna • Photorealism • Narrative • Audience • Cover version • The Walt Disney Company • Live action • Film criticism • Reboot (fiction) • Aladdin (1992 Disney film) • Dumbo • Up (2009 film) • Film criticism • Audience • Film score • Rotten Tomatoes • Average • Box Office Mojo • Nostalgia • Big Business (1988 film) • Audience • Family • Movie theater • The Walt Disney Company • The Walt Disney Company • Live action • Mulan (1998 film) • The Little Mermaid (1989 film) • Reboot (fiction) • Pinocchio (1940 film) • Lady and the Tramp • Lilo & Stitch • The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996 film) •