Visual Lion King treat that is too disorderly to be as memorable

This follow-up to Jon Favreau’s live-action remake is a sort of biopic on Mufasa that expands on the origins of his lethal feud with his brother Scar.

Screenwriter Jeff Nathanson expands on the Disney legend with this prequel that heralds the coming-of-age of Mufasa. A young Mufasa (Braelyn Rankins) is caught up in a flood, separated from his parents, and saved from alligators by Taka (voiced, as a cub, by Theo Somolu). The two become fast friends, with Taka admitting that he’s always wanted a brother.

Taka’s parents are, however, divided on whether Mufasa can be permitted to stay with their pride. His mother Eshe (Thandiwe Newton) wants to help the orphan, but his father Obasi (Lennie James) is suspicious of the stray. Mufasa is forced to earn his place by winning a race against Taka. Obasi, though, orders him to hang out with the female lions. It’s an arrangement that works well for Mufasa. He learns how to hunt and develops a gifted connection with nature.

This backstory-followup to the 1994 classic in the same photorealistic animated style as the 2019 reboot, is a drama that gives us an origin myth for Mufasa, Scar, Sarabi, Rafiki, and the geological form of Pride Rock itself. The pompous servant bird Zazu (voiced by Preston Nyman) is not funny anymore. He just keeps flapping his wings in a no-joke zone.

There are, in fact, way too many characters populating the narrative that goes in flashback mode to tell Mufasa’s story. Some of the main characters here don’t get the mileage they deserve. Sarabi (Tiffany Boone), a crucial character, has little to do and doesn’t even get a song of her own. Not that the songs or music are anything to write home about. Lin Manuel Miranda’s original work is rather disappointing this time round. Not a single hummable tune figures in the list here.

Even Taka’s evolution is not presented with any nuance. It’s not a revelation when we learn of what he becomes eventually. Clunky exposition and scattered narration play spoilsport here.

Jenkins and his long-time cinematographer James Laxton capture the majesty of Africa. The special effects render the grasslands, lush forests and snow-capped mountains with a realism that is quite wondrous.

While the photo-realistic imagery, CGI and expressions on the faces of the lions are all creditworthy, the jumpy low-level pans and garbled narrative make it a little tough to endure. ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’ has lovely visuals but the story feels too disorderly to be memorable.

Given that Indian superstar Shah Rukh Khan and his youngest son AbRam are lending voice to the older and younger Mufasa in the Hindi version of the film, it’s a forgone conclusion that they are likely to attract a larger audience. The film is also being promoted on a larger scale in India. Also, the Hindi version of Jon Favreau’s 2019 reboot had done much better at the box office in India, with SRK voicing the main character. So, there’s every likelihood that the Hindi version would rake in more moolah than the original English one.