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Weasel84
Reviews
The Lion King (1994)
The Most Wonderful Story Ever
My feelings for The Lion King are like the feelings one would have for the book of their religion -- my main source of knowledge and my hope and my confidence comes from the characters and music of this work of art. I would be a much unhappier person if this story --which in my opinion is the greatest ever sent straight from whatever higher power there is to the minds of the writers-- had not been made. From it I have learned how to be happy with myself, how to have hope even during the worst times of my life, and it has lead me to a best friend and a loving girlfriend.
No matter what your past life experience, if you watch this movie with an open mind, you can find yourself in one of the characters. Surely all of us can find ourselves in Simba at least. A young, naive cub who, due to events beyond his control or knowledge, is forced away from his beloved home of happiness and far away, to a place where he forgets his problems and himself -- for a time. Then it is realized that you must remember who you are, and learn from your past instead of running from it. So then a return to the kingdom is made, where you are happy once again -- because, if you always remember who you are, that sadness, that evil, can never keep you away from your happiness. You fight for it until it is yours again. That is a very simple summary of Simba's lesson. Looking at different parts of his life, interaction with other characters, and other characters themselves, countless more lessons can be learned, depending on what you have and what you are going through in your life. But whatever that happens to be, there are things in this movie that can help you.
I haven't even spoken of the animation or music yet.
The animation is perfect -- there's been no over-use of computers--, and everything --from the whiskers on Simba's nose to the grasses swaying in the savanna-- is detailed perfectly. The instrumental music always brings out powerful emotions in me, and is at the top of my list along with 'Cinema Paradiso', 'Scarface(1983)', and 'La Vita E Bella (Life is Beautiful)'. The songs, when looked at with the way the story is going along with what you are learning, tell you much. For example, 'I Just Can't Wait to be King' reveals the ignorance of Simba to any of life's problems--he's completely innocent to such things, unsuspecting, unprepared, and so is caught off-guard by the life-altering events that take place soon afterwards.
This movie has changed my life. I hope that you too, watching it while keeping in mind what can be learned, find out more about yourself, and the answers to the questions you may be faced with during difficult points in your life.
"The past can hurt... But the way I see it, you can either run from it, or... learn from it."
The Return of the King (1980)
More Than Just a Book-to-Movie
Some of you may have read my review of 'The Hobbit' on IMDB. If not, I suggest you do, as I think it brings up some things that should be realized.
Like it's prequel, this movie has been plagued by bad reviews by mainly Tolkien-fans who believe that it oversimplifies the story, and that it takes things away until it has transformed their much-loved story of the beginning of the age of man into a kids-movie with no more value than being such.
I strongly disagree. This movie is far from being a children's-film, though it is definitely enjoyed by many. As a child I watched it many, many times, until the point that the tape lost quality. And yet, after all those viewings, I didn't realize the important lessons it teaches.
This movie tells a lot of its lessons through song. These songs can mean different things to different people, as all things in all movies do. The story, also, means different things in different perspectives -- to some, the loyalty or realizations of Samwise might be familiar to their own personality, and they will see what he goes through as their lessons. Others will see themselves as Frodo, having to go through a time of not only global(outter)-conflict, but inner as well, as they travel through that time and end up changed, and then have to move on past the troubled times they've triumphed over. Or it could be more complicated, those combined, or maybe also with the Ring becoming something they know.
There's a lot to be learned from this movie, however you look at it, so long as it's not looked at with eyes that are searching only for the story from the book. If you watch it with an open mind, you'll learn something that will help you.
I don't go into as much detail as I did in my review of the Hobbit, as this movie's lessons are much more broad, with there being more going on than in the prequel. It takes a mind looking for answers to see them in this movie, as everyone who looks at it with their different life-experiences and personality will interperet the songs and actions and deeds of characters differently.
This movie and its prequel are wonderful things to experience for people of any age.
"...and they [humans] may wonder... Is there 'hobbit' in me? Well, is there?"
The Hobbit (1977)
More Than Just a Book-to-Movie
Many Tolkien fans who have written reviews say that this movie has done bad things to the book. They say it oversimplifies it, that it takes out parts that shouldn't've been taken out, that it turns it from a novel for mature readers into a movie for 'kids'. I've read the book, and been watching this movie for many years. I have to disagree that this is a movie just for children-- when I was younger and watched this movie, I did not realize the philosophical lessons present from beginning to end. Bilbo begins his day just like any other day-- he washes his dishes, cleans his hobbit hole, and leaves it to go outside and smoke his pipe. Then, from the suddeness of destiny, his life is changed. He's taken from his quiet home in the Shire, to begin his Greatest Adventure. An adventure that changes him from shy, unsure, afraid, and reluctant, into a confident, wiser, and better man. "The Chances, the Changes, are all yours to make. The mold of your life is in your hands to break." This happens to all of us in our lives. We leave our happy, unknowing-of-danger homes, and are taken through hard times, until finally, we take those steps into the cave, and we face our fears. "...but to take those last steps. That would be the bravest of all things. Whatever happens afterwards is nothing."
The songs are beautiful, with tunes that will have you humming at work. The song 'The Greatest Adventure', if you listened to carefully, can tell you much about what you will have to do in your own hard times. This is a beautiful, wonderful movie. Not just the animation and the music, but the lesson it can teach.
"So, Mr. Bilbo Baggins... Do you turn back?"