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Post by Briar Rose's Dark Knight on Oct 30, 2008 20:59:25 GMT -5
An interesting note about so called "B" team animators. Quite often, the B team is really just the inexperienced animators. It's not a designation that they're less talented, but more a designation that they're less experienced. While I do not know if it the case at Disney, Pixar often has the B team animators work on their short features to give them experience in the art of animation. In the case of The Lion King, it sounds like the B team understood that this film represented a tremendous opportunity for them and in my opinion, The Lion King was the final film of Disney's second golden age.
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Post by Silver on Oct 30, 2008 21:45:11 GMT -5
Absolutley by no means were the animators or magicains less talented. But as you said inexperienced. This in turn was one of the greatest oppertunities for them. They had a chance to sort of compete with the best of the best. And put their names in the spotlight. But it was mostly considered the "B" project at the time because Pocahontas had so much enthusiasim going for it. That film was considered the project to work on due to it's dramatic story and lush score by Alan Menken. The Lion King on the other hand seemed be headed right down the rabbit-hole. Many of the leading animators and story supervisers said it was a flop waiting to happen. Pocahontas seemed to have a more stable structure as well as powerful piece. The Lion King was scripted as a Bambi and Hamelot combo placed in Africa with leading characters being animals. Many of the accopmplished employees found this laughable. Claiming no audience member would be interested. This is when all the underdoogs of the company came together to prove they weren't in this for record books. But the fact that they could have a great story, animation, and music if they had the passion and skill to work on it. And they did! Sure it took months of dedication, redrafting, reserch and reccording sessions to make it what it was. But hey, what turnout it was. Number one at the Box office almost all summer, two Oscar wins, the a Gloden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy, # 4 on AFI"s animated film list, and still considered one of the finest pieces of animation by critics and auduences worldwide! In that case, THANK YOU to the "B" squad for creating my "FAVORITE FILM EVER! I know I've said it a zillion times, but I can't help myself.
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Post by Shenzi on Oct 30, 2008 21:46:44 GMT -5
Be sure to look at Katherine's post. She hits the nail on the head with their similarities! Oh wow. That's serious. And I have to say for wanting to make TLK resemble a real lion pride they sure failed miserably...well ok maybe not miserably. They got the concept of only one male lion and 1 to 2 cubs per female correct. But there are a lot of things they didn't include which its actually a good thing that they didn't since it's not really appropriate. First of all the dominate male is not something passed down to the cubs(maybe sometimes it is). In fact male cubs are kicked out of the pride when they reach an age where they can potentially be a threat to their father's rule. Any rouge male lion could come along and challenge a Pride's dominate to his throne. And when a male comes and takes over a Pride he eats all it's cubs because all his pride's cubs HAVE to be his. Also I don't believe lions come in Scar's color in real life. I could be wrong on that one, but I have never seen any. But remember The Lion King also was inspired by Hamlet. And as for the bugs issue, it appears from Kathrine's post that Simba and Kimba ate bugs for entirely different reasons. Simba ran away after being blamed for his father's death and it was all that was around. According to the post Kimba wanted to rid the world of killing. So there are also a lot of differences it seems. Btw I didn't realize Kimba was an anime. That's interesting. EDIT: I just went over to youtube because this now has be interested in seeing some clips from Kimba and I found this little video comparing it to TLK. www.youtube.com/watch?v=72AVvgRNf2Q
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Post by Briar Rose's Dark Knight on Nov 2, 2008 1:31:03 GMT -5
The irony about Silver's comment is that Pocahantas fell far short of TLK. I've never even seen Pocahantas, nor am I particularly interested in seeing it. As I've noted before, I think that TLK touched the general public in a very powerful and meaningful way. To me it comes down to creating memorable characters. TLK accomplished that.
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Post by Silver on Jun 24, 2009 15:45:36 GMT -5
Okay I know this is corny but I figured since I'm such a big fan of this film I might as well say it. Today marks the "15th Anniversary for The Lion King!" Yes it has in fact been 15 years since this mega-blockbuster and beloved Disney film was released. Ever since the day it opened it was a smash hit at the Box Office and has become favored for diligence of combining physical comedic timing to it's dark content to appeal to many generations. It has since created a franchise on it's own including a just as finacially popular Broadway Musical! (It will be 13 years in November) Congradulations to all the crew members of this film for creating such a riveting but entertaning piece! On a side-note. While nothing has been officially announced rumor has it TLK will be released on Blue-ray and DVD again in between 2011-and 2013. I hope it comes sooner rather then later. I can't wait for that day to arrive. It would be crime as far as I'm concerned for this film not to be included among the modern classics of the "Diamond Collection".
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Post by Briar Rose's Dark Knight on Jun 24, 2009 20:20:24 GMT -5
I can't believe that the musical is roughly 2 years younger than the movie. That one surprises me. As for the blu-ray release, it will happen. Simply put, The Lion King made too much money for Disney not to include it in the so called platinum list. My guess is 2011, at least based on the pattern from the DVD releases. Snow White was released in 2001 and 2009, so I'm assuming Beauty and the Beast (2002)in 2010, and TLK (2003) in 2011.
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Post by Silver on Jun 25, 2009 13:48:40 GMT -5
And once again it's evident my proof-reading skills are way off. I meant to type it's the 12 year Anniversary for the musical. Which is still immensley impressive. It's currently the 9th longest running Broadway show. As of now it's predicted it will defenitley be sticking around til next March. (If it manages to keep up on it's finacial success it will tie if not surpass BatB's record) Despite the econimic crisis, this is one of the few shows where it has been grossing a million dollars if not more almost every week this year. Which is also ironic because if you were to go onto any Broadway site and ask critics or audience members what they thought had the stronger production and script. You would inevitably hear that BatB is far more beloved and praised. (Just like the film, which is rightly so) So it is a shock in many ways to see this production perform so well over that one. My opinion, it has to be because of the cravings of pop culture fanatics. What I mean by that is people in general love the glamour rather then the story being told. Just like how the Box Office success of say Transformers outweighs that of Slumdog Millionaire. It's obvious what has the better overall story but the bells and whistles is too tempting to pass up. But I guess in this case unlike the latter this show makes an effort to convey heavy themes. Even if it has a tendency to fall flat.
As for the DVD release, that makes sense and what I would predict would happen. But actually according to the charts TLK undersold it's merchandise last time around. Here's hoping the creative staff will market the film in more convincing light. Last time it was shown as a children's product rather then a family one. Since this is film is a demographic to older audiences it makes perfect sense that it should showcase those aspects of why it's appealing to them.
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Post by Briar Rose's Dark Knight on Jun 25, 2009 22:12:39 GMT -5
I'm not surprised that TLK is on pace to make more money than BatB. I think it comes down to songs. While I think the songs in both films are great(never seen the BatB musical), I think the songs in TLK are probably more memorable. None of the songs in BatB were really great for play on the radio, but TLK had "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" and "Circle of Life," which were really easy to translate to a non film audience.
Nor am I surprised that merchandise didn't sell as well. I think BatB has an easier sell for merchandise because of the princess factor where as TLK has a more limited appeal. Costumes for little kids are much trickier for lions than princesses. You can't really make lion dolls with assorted accessories, and so forth.
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D!lemm@
Disney Newbie
"My names Koda say it with me Ko Da"
Posts: 20
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Post by D!lemm@ on Jun 30, 2009 22:45:45 GMT -5
Oh this movie is a classic for sure. Who didn't love the Lion King back than. And who didn't kill there VHS tapes watching this end on end. And Simba is the best. He truely is The King of Disney. Cause no movie has ever been able to capture the popularity this movie holds.
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Post by crazyalice on Nov 20, 2009 23:44:26 GMT -5
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Post by Silver on Nov 20, 2009 23:52:29 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing the video. I haven't seen that one before.
So in your opinion, what is it that makes The Lion King so special and unique? I don't know about you but this literally my favorite film of all-time!
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Post by crazyalice on Nov 21, 2009 0:01:40 GMT -5
I sat here for around ten minutes trying to put to words what I felt but I just couldn't. Nothing seems to do it justice.
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Post by Silver on Nov 21, 2009 0:08:30 GMT -5
That's all right. Maybe the words will come later. I hope you don''t think I'm pressuring with questions. That's not my intension. That's mostly how I get a discussion to move along. Ask questions then build from that.
Dare I ask what your favorite scene might be?
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Post by crazyalice on Nov 21, 2009 0:12:59 GMT -5
Oh no I don't feel that at all. Normally I like to write and describe my views on things it's just this topic was a bit overwhelming Favorite scene...well as far as animation goes I really enjoy any scene with Simba and Nala or the other lionesses on screen. I think Disney did a fabulous job of drawing the huntresses. Slender and tinier than the male yet they all had a sense of power about them. My favorite scene far as raw emotion goes is from the moment Simba starts to ascend Pride Rock as the new King to the beginning of the credits. To me not only did that signify triumph for Simba but to me it was a reassuring message that no matter what adversities or tragedies you face if you stand tall and accept the world as is you'll be okay in the end. How about you? Do you have a favorite part or maybe a favorite character?
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Post by Silver on Nov 21, 2009 0:34:28 GMT -5
Oh good, I'm glad!
I have a tie actually. First there's the scene where Mufasa's soul appears in the sky. Now I'm not a very spiritual person but thise sequence was so profound and thought-provoking it touched me to the core. That must mean something. I found it so awe-inspiring because Simba had been seeking answers all his life and yet it wasn't the closure he was searching for. It was just guidence from unexpected time and place. But this is what sets his journey at full-throttle and his self-esteem is growing. Plus the animation of Mufasa's spirit is so beautiful and James Earl Jones's voice is astounding. I can't believe the filmakers alomst didn't include this in the final production! It wouldn't have been the same piece of art without it in my opinion.
My second is the same as your choice. I completley agree with everything you said. I think the entire scene is gorgeous! In fact I believe it was this very scene that helped me establish why this is my favorite film. It's celebratory, heartfelt, and rich in texture. Simba's journey of course isn't finished but he still has had a fullfilling experience that will carry him through the next stage of life. It's just like the song "Circle of Life" implies. There is always joy and pain, a beginning and an ending, and thriumph and failure. But it all depends on how you handle it. The music and the animation are such brilliantly artistic tools in this scene. It's astonishing how powerful they are. I think Hans Zimmer is a musical genius! In fact I can't think of one time where I didn't have chills running down my spine or I wasn't bawling with tears of joy. That's meaningful this film is to me. Breath-taking and inspirational are the only other words I can say.
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