The Lion King was written back in 1994 by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts and Linda Woolverton. The directors were Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff. Some of the famous cast were Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Moira Kelly, Niketa Calame, Ernie Sabella and Nathan Lane. There were many others that played parts in this film however these are some of the more common ones.
The Lion King is about a young lion cub who loses his father and fights with his uncle to become the King of the Pride Land. That would be considered the story. The plot is that young Simba is born, his father, Mufasa, shows him the Pride Land. Simba’s uncle, Scar gets jealous that Simba will eventually take over so he makes a plan to kill Simba and Mufasa in a stampede. Luckily, Simba survives that stampede but Scar convinces Simba that it was his fault that his father was killed so he runs away. When he runs away, he meets Timon and Pumba and eventually runs into Nala, his childhood friend. Nala convinces Simba to go back and claim that he is King. Simba and Scar end up fighting and Simba wins which ultimately means he is now the “The Lion King”. The movie ends with Simba and Nala having a child together.
Was the films presented chronologically or non-linearly? The Lion King was presented chronologically as the events started from the day Simba was presented to the gathering of animals at the Pride Rock and he learns from his father growing up what it is like to become the King of Pride Rock. Once he grows up and realizes that he is going to fight Scar to be the King, he ends up winning the fight. At the end of the movie, Nala and Simba are old enough to be parents as the have a baby cub of their own.
How did this aesthetic choice contribute to the general effect on the audience? Throughout the movie, there is constant scene changes that will portray the mood that is happening. For example, when Simba meets Timon and Pumba for the first time, there are bright colors, different trees and flowers and also multi-colored bugs to show happiness. On the other than when the fight occurs with Scar, it is dark and dreary to show fear and anger.
How are elements like character development or foreshadowing impacted by the choice of storytelling methods? Character development is very critical in this movie. As you watch the movie, you learn that Simba is growing up and learning what is right from wrong from his Father. Once his father passes away, he learns from Rafiki and Zazu on making sure he makes smart decisions.
If the film had followed a different presentation style, how would the general effect on the audience have been different? I’m not so sure how the movie would have been if it was presented non-linearly. It may have kept the audiences attention more as things were constantly changing and causing the audience to continue guessing on what was going to happen next. I’m not so sure that the movie would have been as good if it was created that way.
References:
IMDb. (1994). The Lion King. Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110357
Learning Plot Structure with The Lion King. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hL9N_1uJTgA
Lion King Mufasa and Simba. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw45nBcWNbQ
Casslan's Blog 