Does the Movie Magic Maintain?

Lauren and Morgan give their honest reviews of Disney remakes

Lauren Tinberg| Staff Writer

Morgan Grudniewski| Staff Writer

Lauren: Even though both movies are amazing, the original “Lion King” is better. It’s kind of a nostalgic thing for me. When I think of the original “Lion King” I picture myself at six years old. The music was my favorite part. The lyrics and tune of “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” and “Hakuna Matata” are always stuck in my head. The movie is filled with iconic songs that everybody remembers. After seeing the new version, I still thought it was good, but it made me feel old. Kids now are going to know the live-action version rather than the original. I watched the original “Lion King” religiously, now kids won’t get to experience that. Even though the graphics in the new version are incredible, there’s just something about the original that makes me feel like a kid. The casting in the new version also didn’t sit right with me. Casting Beyoncé as Nala was too bold of a choice in my opinion. Since she is such a huge superstar her involvement in the movie seemed to take away from the movie as a whole. Instead of talking about “The Lion King”, people were talking about Beyoncés new role.

Morgan: I’m starting to sense a common theme with my best friend and remakes of Disney movies. We decided to spend a cool summer night at Boulevard Drive-In, watching the double feature with Toy Story 4 and Aladdin. Most people start nodding of during the second movie, but I remember trying so hard to stay awake because of how excited I was to watch this movie. With Will Smith as the Genie, I was thrilled to see how it would play out. I felt that this remake had an astounding soundtrack. “Friend Like Me” reminds me of a dance I performed when I was younger, and I loved it. I felt that many elements just could not be recreated with correct morals and accurately. Even with the help of CGI, some of the animated features felt rushed and simple. The plot is very charming and Princess Jasmine is a headstrong role model, especially for younger children watching. Remaking this original love story into a modern romantic musical is the perfect revamp.

Morgan: From her charming persona, to her shrewd mind, and her accepting character, Belle is the epitome of a Disney princess. I can’t think about my elementary days without Beauty and the Beast coming to mind. As exaggerated as it might sound, this movie is the closest thing to nirvana. When I heard that a remake was coming to theaters, I could not wait to spend all two hours and ten minutes with my eyes glued to the screen, not blinking once. Emma Watson serves as the perfect embodiment of Belle. From that softhearded look in her eyes, to her gorgeous brunette hair, and the way her lines just roll of of her tongue, I could not imagine a diferent actress for this role. This remake will always remind me of my best friend, because we went to the midnight premiere together on my birthday, (yes we thought we were so cool, but hey, we were 12). The original and the remake will always get a 10/10, 5 star rating, 2 thumbs up, 100%, however you want to describe it.

Lauren: “Maleficent” is 100 times better than the original “Sleeping Beauty”. The small change in the storyline and perception makes for a better movie overall. The movie is shown from Maleficent’s point of view. This allows us to see how things were for her. Throughout the entire movie there is character development. Giving Maleficent more humanity and purpose and not just making her a cold-hearted villain gives the story more depth, it’s not just a love story between some random prince and princess. In my opinion, the younger generations needed to see that happy endings aren’t going to just find you, you make your own happy ending. We see a bond made over the course of sixteen years between Aurora and Maleficent. But overall the original is kind of bland compared to the new version.