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The Lion King
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The Lion King
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- 1994
- Roger Allers
- 84 mins
- U
Summary
Disney's Oscar-winning animated musical adventure, featuring the voices of Matthew Broderick and Jeremy Irons and songs by Elton John and Tim Rice. Simba, a lion cub born to be king, learns the hard way to accept the burdens that come with his birthright.
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IMDB
Review
A star rating of 5 out of 5.
Alex Berry
Reigning as the highest grossing traditionally animated film of all time, Disney's ambitious tale of betrayal and destiny remains a landmark for the artform. Set against the sweeping vistas of the African savanna, the story follows lion cub Simba, whose wholesome world is soon shattered by tragedy. Fleeing home, he finds unlikely pals in the carefree Timon and Pumbaa, before a reckoning with his past calls him back to face his evil uncle Scar and reclaim his rightful place in the circle of life. This Shakespearean tale is brought to life with stunning, suitably epic visuals and an impressive voice cast, including Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones and Rowan Atkinson, who steals scenes as the fussy but loyal hornbill Zazu. Hans Zimmer provides the Oscar-winning score alongside one of Disney's most celebrated songbooks, courtesy of Elton John and Tim Rice, whose Can You Feel the Love Tonight and Hakuna Matata are among the catchy numbers bringing even more colour to the drama. Inspiring a Tony award-winning stage musical and a billion-dollar live action remake in 2019, the film's legacy has rippled through generations of fans, which is unsurprising - its combination of lovable characters, irresistible songs and a rock-solid story solidifies The Lion King as an all-time family classic.
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8.5/10
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Credits
Cast
rolenameYoung SimbaJonathan Taylor ThomasAdult SimbaMatthew BroderickMufasaJames Earl JonesScarJeremy IronsAdult NalaMoira KellyYoung NalaNiketa CalamePumbaaErnie SabellaTimonNathan LaneRafikiRobert GuillaumeZazuRowan AtkinsonSarabiMadge SinclairShenzi the HyenaWhoopi GoldbergBanzai the HyenaRichard "Cheech" MarinEd the HyenaJim Cummings
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Crew
rolenameDirectorRoger AllersDirectorRob Minkoff
Details
Theatrical distributor
Buena Vista
Released on
2011-10-07
Languages
English | Xhosa | Swahili | Zulu
Guidance
Available on
video, DVD and Blu-ray
Formats
Colour
News & features about The Lion King
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How to watch Mufasa: The Lion King – is it streaming?
The Lion King prequel arrived in UK cinemas just before Christmas.
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Mufasa: The Lion King – release date, cast and trailer for prequel
Everything we know about the upcoming live-action prequel.
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Mufasa: The Lion King review – A flawed but fitfully powerful CG prequel
Moonlight director Barry Jenkins adds currents of personality and style, but there's still a weird cognitive disconnect seeing photoreal big cats talking.
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Mufasa: The Lion King soundtrack – Lin-Manuel Miranda on inspiration behind new songs
Miranda, who previously composed music for Moana and Encanto, is creating the soundtrack for the new Lion King film.
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The Lion King sequel to be directed by Moonlight creator Barry Jenkins
Disney has hired the Oscar winner to direct the sequel to the 2019 film.
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There's a live-action Lion King prequel in the works - here's what we know so far
Be prepared for a return to Pride Rock.
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Sir Elton John was not a fan of The Lion King remake
The singer said film bosses "messed the music up"
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A lion expert on the reality behind The Lion King
Lion expert Dr Craig Packer speaks to RadioTimes.com about why Scar would be the sexiest lion and whether Simba and Nala are actually related
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The Lion King's Beauty and the Beast reference changes a much-loved joke
Disney's The Lion King live-action remake changes a joke to reference Beauty and the Beast
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Is The Lion King on Netflix? How to watch and stream original Disney film
With The Lion King remake out this year, we take a look at how you can watch the original The Lion King (1994)
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The Lion King 1994 v 2019: What they changed and what stayed the same
Disney's live-action remake of The Lion King has some key differences, for better and for worse – here's how they compare to the 1994 original animation
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Meet the star-studded cast of The Lion King - from Beyonce to Donald Glover
Donald Glover, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Ejiofor and James Earl Jones lead the impressive cast for Disney's live-action 2019 remake
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Original The Lion King enters official film chart following remake release
The Lion King enters the official film chart while Alita: Battle Angel takes the top spot defeating Captain Marvel - here's the full top 10 list
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Since The Lion King was released in 1994 the lion population has halved - but Disney has a plan
When The Lion King was released in 1994 lions ruled Africa, now the remake is being released into a very different world
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The Lion King's Hukana Matata clip has fans conflicted as they compare to original
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The Lion King 2019 soundtrack gets second companion album The Gift by Beyoncé
Beyoncé has curated an additional album for The Lion King movie which will be released after The Lion King 2019 soundtrack
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"A peculiar hybrid of nature documentary and coming-of-age tale"
Marvel at the computer-generated craftsmanship but this "live-action" refit cannot quite match the emotional heights of the Disney animated classic
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The new Lion King trailer is guaranteed to make you feel nostalgic
It's the circle of life: Disney's reboot of The Lion King will be coming to cinemas this summer
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Beyoncé's The Lion King Gifted album is finally here - full track list and artists
The Lion King: The Gift album has been curated by Beyonce bringing together African artists as a "love letter to Africa" - here's the full tracklist and how to buy
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The Lion King star dies aged 89
The US actor voiced Rafiki in the 1994 Disney animation
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Beyonce WILL star in the Lion King remake as full cast is confirmed
Queen Bey will star alongside Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Chiwetel Eijofor and many more
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Chiwetel Ejiofor in talks to voice Scar in Lion King remake
The 12 Years A Slaved actor would join Donald Glover and Seth Rogen in the cast
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Donald Glover and James Earl Jones join The Lion King remake as Simba and Mufasa
James Earl Jones was the original voice of Mufasa in the nineties animated Disney movie
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Lion King animator creates the perfect tribute to Cecil the Lion
Aaron Blaise borrows one of Mufasa's lines for his incredible depiction of Zimbabwe's prized animal
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