SYNOPSIS: Set in the Pride Lands of Tanzania, the new musical drama “Mufasa: The Lion King” is both a prequel and sequel to the 2019 remake of the 1994 film “The Lion King.” It’s the origin story of two lions, Mufasa and Scar, one who would become king, the other a villain.
CAST: Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, John Kani, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Tiffany Boone, Mads Mikkelsen, Thandiwe Newton, Lennie James, Anika Noni Rose, and Blue Ivy Carter. Directed by Barry Jenkins.
REVIEW: “Mufasa: The Lion King” is filled with visual tricks courtesy of the photo-realistic computer animation. For instance, a lion’s face is reflected in a single drop of rain. The topography changes from sunburnt savannahs to lush landscapes with a CGI flourish. You might even think a lion can sing Broadway style show tunes.
Yes, there’s lots of tricks on display, but very little magic.
Sure, fans learn where Rafiki (John Kani) found his famous bakora staff and how Pride Rock came to be, but even with the easter eggs, the sweeping cinematography, beautiful scenery, some action (which may be too intense for younger members of the family) and songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda, “Mufasa: The Lion King” feels inert. Instead of being enhanced by the endless possibilities of CGI, the film feels limited by it.
The rendering of the characters is impressive. They lions, and many of the other animals, look as though they just wandered in from a National Geographic nature doc. That’s great, but the photorealism doesn’t offer the range of expression of the original’s hand drawn work (which was enhanced by digital coloring). Those stylized characters had more opportunity for facial expressions and therefore had far more personality.
The new CGI work looks real… until the characters begin to speak.
Then the illusion shatters.
Ditto when they sing. Near the end Taka—the lion who will become Scar—sings “Brother Betrayed,” a song of heartbreak that would have benefitted from more emotion and less realism.
“Mufasa: The Lion King” is a technical achievement but feels bloodless. Familiar “Lion King” themes of family, loyalty, love and discovering purpose in life are present, but they feel lost amongst the pixels in this generic prequel.
On the Saturday February 17, 2024 edition of The Richard Crouse Show, get to know Reinaldo Marcus Green, director of the Oscar winning film “King Richard.” He returns to theatres this weekend with “Bob Marley: One Love,” a story of how reggae icon Bob Marley overcame adversity, and the journey behind his revolutionary music. We talk about why Bob Marley’s influence still resonates today, when his life was cut short in 1981, when he was aged just 36.
Then we’ll hear from Bob Marley’s son Ziggy Marley who talks about his father as an icon, a father and a musician.
Rik Emmett also joins me. He left Triumph in 1988 to pursue a solo career, and released records in a variety of styles, including rock, blues, jazz, classical, bluegrass, and flamenco. He’s he won the Canadian Smooth Jazz Award for Guitarist of the Year and now has written a book called “Lay It On the Line: A Backstage Pass to Rock Star Adventure, Conflict and Triumph,” available now wherever you buy fine books.
Finally, Chris Hadfield joins the show. He is an astronaut, engineer, singer, fighter pilot and author of many books, including the one we’ll talk about today, “The Defector.”
Each week on the nationally syndicated Richard Crouse Show, Canada’s most recognized movie critic brings together some of the most interesting and opinionated people from the movies, television and music to put a fresh spin on news from the world of lifestyle and pop-culture. Tune into this show to hear in-depth interviews with actors and directors, to find out what’s going on behind the scenes of your favourite shows and movies and get a new take on current trends. Recent guests include Chris Pratt, Elvis Costello, Baz Luhrmann, Martin Freeman, David Cronenberg, Mayim Bialik, The Kids in the Hall and many more!
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“Bob Marley: One Love,” a new biopic starring “Peaky Blinders” actor Kingsley Ben-Adir, and now playing in theatres, places the iconic reggae musician’s songs in the personal and political context in which they were written.
By and large the story takes place in the two years after the 1976 assassination attempt on reggae icon Bob Marley (Ben-Adir) at his home compound in Kingston, Jamaica. A decade-and-a-half after the island country declared independence from Great Britain, civil war looms.
After agreeing to perform at Smile Jamaica, a concert intended to counter political violence, Marley found himself caught in the conflict between supporters of Prime Minister Michael Manley’s left-wing People’s National Party (PNP) and the pro-US opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). Two days before the concert, armed gunmen broke into Marley’s home, shooting the musician, wife Rita (Lashana Lynch) and manager Don Taylor (Anthony Welsh).
To ensure the safety of his family, Rita and their children are sent to stay with relatives in America, while Marley and his band, The Wailers, decamp to London. While there, work begins on his career defining “Exodus” album.
Add to that, flashbacks to Marley’s childhood, burgeoning relationship with Rita and a truly wonderful recollection of The Wailing Wailers audition for the Studio One label.
Produced by Marley’s widow Rita, daughter Cedella and son Ziggy, “Bob Marley: One Love” documents how Bob Marley became more than a music star, it’s about how he became a symbol of peace and unity.
“King Richard” director Reinaldo Marcus Green falls prey the usual music bio traps as Marley grapples with his meteoric rise to fame, the expectations of a record company looking for hits and the personal toll from the heat of the increased spotlight, but it is buoyed by the performances and, most of all, the music.
The movie is wall-to-wall with classic Marley tunes, but two performances stand out. The first, a nervous audition at a record label, sees Marley and The Wailing Wailers rip it up with an enthusiastic version of “Simmer Down.” It’s filled with youthful energy, swagger and raw talent.
Later, in London, the adult Marley is struck with the inspiration for one of his best-known songs when he overhears a band mate listening to Ernest Gold and the Sinfonia of London’s soundtrack for the 1960 film “Exodus.” It’s a typical music bio struck-by-inspiration scene, but the experience of watching the song come together, beat by beat, note by note, in the unassuming living room of a London flat is exhilarating.
“Bob Marley: One Love” may not be the in-depth, definitive story of the reggae icon’s life and impact, but it is an entertaining reminder of the mark made by the incredible music Marley left behind.
“In the Heights” (in theatres and on PVOD) is a crowd pleaser that offers heart and uplift in almost every frame. HERE’S Richard’s interview with stars Jimmy Smits and Olga Merediz! HERE’S a a shorter version OF “Vax for Joy!”
“In the Heights,” now playing in theatres, is a joyful movie based on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony award-winning musical, that will make you feel better by the end of the movie than you did when it began. Energetic, exultant and empathetic, it feels like a long weekend away from real life.
A series of connected stories, “In the Heights” transcends its Broadway bound beginnings with a production cut loose from the confines of the stage. Shot on the streets of Washington Heights, New York, the story of a bodega, gentrification, a winning lottery ticket, love, community and the dreams of its characters is lovingly painted in big, bright colors by director John M. Chu.
The spider-web of a story weaves in and out of its character’s lives, centering around bodega owner Usnavi, played by the charismatic Anthony Ramos. Like almost everyone in the film Usnavi has a dream of a life beyond his neighborhood, and, in a sentiment borrowed from another famous musical, soon, most everyone discovers there’s no place like home.
“In the Heights” is a story of the immigrant experience that touches on the DREAM Act and fear of deportation, but is more concerned with its characters and their day dreams of creating better lives for themselves. It’s a story of resilience, of hope and it’s a tonic during these pandemic times when it seems the media, both social and mainstream, are incapable of delivering anything but unsettling news.
In an eager cast, Olga Merediz, who reprises her Broadway role as the neighborhood’s grandmother Abuela Claudia, and Melissa Barrera as Usnavi’s love interest Vanessa, are standouts.
The sheer spectacle of it all, however, may be the real star. Chu’s camera is in constant motion, capturing the many ensemble dance numbers that accompany the soundtrack’s hip-hop, salsa, merengue, soul and R&B, in an eye-popping manner. The Busby Berkeley-style “96,000” number, shot at a public swimming pool is a total throwback to Hollywood’s Golden Age, as is a terrifically staged gravity-defying dance on the side of a building.
It doesn’t all work, however. A framing device that sees Usnavi tell his story to a group of kids is clunky and the opening number, “In the Heights,” an almost eight-minute set-up to the story, is stylish but overstays its welcome.
Still, those are small issues in an invigorating crowd pleaser that offers heart and uplift in almost every frame.
In the now-shuttered world of musical theatre the name “Hamilton” is said in hushed reverential tones. The groundbreaking show, which mixes-and-matches hip hop, R&B, pop, soul and traditional show tunes to tell the story of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, was called “the phenomenon of the season, perhaps of a generation,” by Forbes. Its appeal to a younger audience, who packed NYC’s Richard Rodgers Theater night after night, gave Broadway a desperately needed shot in the arm and at one point the show was responsible for more than 5% of the Broadway districts total gross.
A new, filmed version, headed by creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, offers up a chance for people who couldn’t afford to blow a mortgage payment on tickets to the original production, to watch the show from the comfort of their Disney+ stream.
The movie, shot in June 2016 at the height of “Hamilton”-mania is anything but hushed or reverential. The show, which features a diverse cast including Black, LatinX and Asian actors to tell the story described as being about “America then, as told by America now,” is passionately political, raucously rebellious and emotionally deep. “Just like my country, I’m young, scrappy and hungry,” Miranda sings in a phrase that could be about the musical as much as it is Hamilton’s personality.
A toe-tapping history lesson, the show details the American Dream life of Hamilton, from an outsider born to unwed parents on the Caribbean island of Nevis to war hero to George Washington’s Revolutionary War aide, and, as first Secretary of Treasury under Washington’s administration, the founder of America’s economic system. It’s a bootstrap story about legacy, reputation, honor and if that wasn’t enough, there’s an extra-marital affair and, of course, the fateful duel with Aaron Burr.
Director Thomas Kail, who also directed the show’s Off-Broadway and Broadway productions, keeps the camera work to a minimum, simply and effectively capturing the show from a front row center perspective. It’s handsome work that tries to preserve the integrity of the live presentation while still creating a kind of cinematic experience.
As far as the show goes, what the filmed “Hamilton” presents is a moment in time when the musical lived at the very center of pop culture. The original cast, including Miranda, Phillipa Soo, Leslie Odom Jr., Daveed Diggs and Jonathan Groff among many others, are working a peak form. As a document of a special show the filmed version doesn’t add anything to the presentation, but perhaps that’s the point. Miranda’s daring, genre busting show speaks for itself, often with beautiful tongue-twisting wordplay, and doesn’t need flashy cinematic theatrics to bolster what is already a provocative and timely story of creating a union where none existed.
A fitting tag line for the new, photo-realistic “The Lion King” would be something along the lines of, “You will believe a meerkat can sing! And lions too!” The good folks at Disney and director Jon Favreau have created computer-generated animals that chatter and sing like high-tech Mr. Eds but does it improve on the original or is it a deepfake copycat of the 1994 classic?
Beat for beat the story is familiar. We see young Simba, the lion prince voiced by JD McCrary as a cub, then by Donald Glover as a full-grown king of the jungle, presented to his tribe by proud parents Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and Sarabi (Alfre Woodard). One day the Pride Lands, everything the sun touches, will be his (“It belongs to no one,” intones Mufasa, “but it will be yours to protect.”) unless his evil uncle Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor), who feels he is the rightful heir, has his way. After an attempt or two to jump the succession queue Scar succeeds, manufacturing the ultimate betrayal of his brother and nephew. Simba, riddled with guilt, wrongly thinking he caused the death of his father, goes into exile. “The king is dead,” Scar hisses, “and if it weren’t for you he’d still be alive. A boy who killed a king. Run-away Simba and never return.”
The young cub finds his way into the arms of a brave warthog Pumbaa and wise-cracking meerkat Timon (voiced by Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner). They teach him the philosophy of “Hakuna Matata”—essentially, “Turn the ‘WHAT!’ into ‘So what.’”—and how to survive without eating them or any of their friends. When Simba’s childhood girlfriend Nala (Beyoncé Knowles-Carter) brings stories of how Scar and his hyena henchmen are destroying the Pride Lands with over hunting and cruelty, Simba returns to reclaim his rightful birthright.
The photo-realistic look of “The Lion King” resembles one of those Disney nature documentaries. The visuals, made up of bits and bytes, are remarkable in their life-like appearance but ultimately feels like a triumph of technology over emotional storytelling. The Shakespearean narrative arc of the story still reverberates with echoes of “Hamlet” but with the realism comes less nuance in expression. Simba and Nala look like lions who have learned to speak but the character work, a raised eyebrow or a scrunched face, the things that make characters really come alive, is missing. They sing and dance but their faces are weirdly without the joy that should come along with their actions. Favreau takes pains not to anthropomorphize the animals any more than necessary but in staying faithful to the innate inspirations for the characters he misses something crucial, the human element that connects with the audience.
The intense scenes, particularly the death of the patriarch, may be too intense for younger viewers. The animated version was one thing but the hyper-realistic version of events is horrific the first time we see it and even more-so in flashback.
The voice work mostly works. It’s a pleasure to hear James Earl Jones’s dulcet tones and the inclusion of African actors like John Kani, who plays the mystical mandrill Rafiki, is a very comfortable fit in the film’s soundscape. Rogen and Eichner provide some much-needed comic relief and enliven any scene they’re in.
The songs will be familiar to “Lion King” fans, although they appear in altered form. “Hakuna Matata” and “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” brim with fun but two of the original film’s best-known songs—Scar’s “Be Prepared” and “Can You Feel the Love Tonight”—have been reworked. Scar’s song is underplayed while “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” is, for no good reason, set during daylight hours.
“The Lion King” is a stunning technical achievement, but feels like a risk-free exercise in nostalgia that will entertain your eye but likely won’t engage your heart.
Playing an aspiring country-and-western singer in “Wild Rose,” “Chernobyl’s” Jessie Buckley embodies the elements that lay at the core of the music. It’s a breakout performance that delivers sincerity, heartache and most of all authenticity.
Set in Glasgow, the coming-of-age story focusses on Rose-Lynn (Buckley), a young mom with dreams of going to Nashville to become a country singer. “There’s nothing for me here,” she says of her hometown. “There I can hone my craft. I want to use my talent.” She’s so devoted to country music she even has a “three chords and the truth” tattoo on her arm.
But her life contains as much struggle and bad luck as the country-and-western lyrics she loves so much. As an ex-con, she also has an electronic ankle bracelet and can’t leave her apartment after dark, making booking gigs next to impossible. Her two kids barely remember her and only speak to her when forced, They’re being raised by Rose-Lynn’s mother Marion (Julie Walters), who scolds her daughter, “You don’t stick at things.”
During the day Rose-Lynn works, cleaning the house of Susannah (Sophie Okonedo), a rich woman who is very taken with her employee’s spunky attitude and beautiful singing voice. With her help Rose-Lynn may finally see her dreams come true and begin a journey of true self-discovery.
Part “A Star is Born” and part family drama, “Wild Rose” is a low-key story of over-coming adversity. Rose-Lynn may be her own worst enemy, refusing to take responsibility for her lot in life, but ultimately, she aspires to improvement for herself and her family. Without that this kitchen sink drama of musical boot strapping would be too downbeat. Instead we meet someone, beautifully played by Buckley, taking the hard road to personal success.
The movie is a showcase for Buckley, who impresses both when she’s singing and when she’s not. First, the voice. She can belt it out with the best of them but it’s the moments where she brings it down, gracefully and emotionally delivering Wynonna’s “Peace in this House” ballad, that she reveals the depth of her talent. It’s a heartbreaker and she breathes life into it; no frills, just raw emotion.
She manages to make Rose-Lynn compelling, flaws and all. Impulsive, she puts her wants and musical ambition ahead of everyone, including her kids but in her self-aware moments Buckley allows us to understand that it’s not simply irresponsible behavior that landed Rose-Lynn in her current situation but her inability to balance her dreams with her reality, desire with duty. She’s messy and often gets in her own way but despite all that Buckley’s charisma makes us root for her.
“Wild Rose” is very specific in its Glasgow setting—the accents may be a bit daunting for the uninitiated—but like the songs Rose-Lynn loves so much, it deals with universal themes of regret, love, family and redemption. You don’t have to be a country fan to like the movie, it wouldn’t hurt, just a fan of raw, emotional storytelling.
