The Lion King relies on nostalgia and recognizable voices, but that’s okay.

The Lion King (2019, dir. by Jon Favreau) comes to theaters 25 years after the original, with an all-star cast and strikingly realistic animation like no other.

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There are many recognizable voices to obsess over, with notable ones including Donald Glover as Simba, Beyoncé as Nala, John Oliver as Zazu, and Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar. There’s also, of course, the legendary James Earl Jones reprising his role as Mufasa, and the unthinkable but satisfying comedic couple of Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen as the beloved Timon and Pumbaa. Each voice the film brings in is strong on its own, while also working in harmony with the others — the most remarkable duo being Glover and Knowles-Carter’s rendition of Can You Feel The Love Tonight. The solo where Nala sings “why won’t he be the king I know he is / the king he is inside?” OOF. The POWER. Only Beyoncé could.

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Not only is the cast itself impressive — the choices make sense too. For example, the headstrong Nala is fierce, powerful, and loyal — who better to portray her than the most influential female artist of our time? (That claim is not debatable). Equally notable for an entirely different reason is any scene with our dynamic duo, Timon and Pumbaa. Eichner and Rogen play off one another effortlessly, successfully doing the 1994’s iconic characters justice, while also adding layers of their own personalities to the roles. The quick-witted and neurotic Timon along with his not-so-witty but lovable pal Pumbaa are easily the film’s show stealers. It may have been some time since I’ve seen the 1994 film, I’m certain the pair were given more artistic freedom with their lines, and that shows.

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Despite all the buzz and excitement leading up to the film's release, The Lion King is not a movie you can walk into expecting something mind-blowing or new, something I'm sure most audiences understood.

The film’s concern with realism is both a positive and a negative. On the plus side, it makes for a beautiful story with convincing visuals and shots. I almost felt like the mouse-chase scene with Scar was part of a Disney nature documentary because of how real it looks, and how it is shot while the camera follows the poor little mouse. I wouldn’t be surprised if the shots absent of talking animals are actually real, like the jumping antelope or the infamous rising sun scene at the opening sequence.

On the not-so-plus side, the realism took a lot of the emotional impact out of the story. Disney’s animators of the 1994 film had the freedom of giving its animal characters humanlike facial features and muscles. This made it easy for us to understand their emotions, thoughts, and reactions. They lost that freedom in this film; the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of having realistic-looking animals. It's hard to look at an animal's face and quickly understand what's running through their head. The audience is left having to rely on emotional nostalgia of the past film to really feel what the characters are in order to properly sympathize. Take Mufasa’s notorious death scene. After being trampled-on mercilessly (may he rest in peace) by a stampede of frightened wildebeest in a successful attempt to save Simba, Mufasa’s limp body is then left out in the open for his poor son to see. It is heartbreaking and upsetting. What makes matters worse is seeing little Simba cuddle up next to his dead dad, terrified and alone because he doesn’t know what to do after several even more heartbreaking but futile attempts to get him to wake up. It’s downright distressing. We all know it was, we’ve seen it so many times. But during the 2019 film, it just isn’t as heart-wrenching, and whatever emotion I felt was because I was recalling my experience from seeing the same scene in the 1994 film. I wanted it to give me chills. I wanted to feel my heartstrings being tugged on as I openly sob in the theater. Alas, I didn't (though I’m sure some people did).

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The thing is, this movie wouldn’t be what it is without relying on the nostalgia of the past film. It wouldn't be strong on its own, and no one is asking it to be. Besides, if this did stand alone and come out in 2019, we would be asking questions like, why aren't Sarabi or Nala taking matters into their own hands? Why do they need to wait for Simba, who as far as they're concerned is DEAD?

Overall, The Lion King is perfectly cast — which in turn garnered a vast amount of support and excitement, and rightfully so. On top of being hilarious and entertaining, it is what we expected, but in the end, that’s okay. Accepting that remakes will always be around in the coming years, who doesn’t love a little nostalgia here and there, especially in a time where these remakes are often so underwhelming? Disney seems to have figured out the right formula with this film — promise nothing new plot-wise, but offer a new visual experience for all to marvel at.