The Lion King II: Simba's Pride 1998

Synopsis: In this follow-up to the Disney smash hit, Simba and Nala now have a daughter, Kira, who is as mischievous as young Simba himself. When Kira goes exploring, she finds those Simba banished in the aftermath of Scar's murder of Simba's father, Mufasa. They seem to be bent on destroying Simba and his family at any cost...except for their son Kovu, who has fallen in love with Kira. Will his love for her win out?

The Good: Prior to watching this, it had been a while since I've done any regular Disney animation; I've done live-action from the House of Mouse, as well as Studio Ghibli, but not something like this, especially a direct-to-video sequel. While I doubt any movie will live up to the epic original, this one had great animation, good music, super voice work...all the hallmarks of Disney animated fare.

The Bad: The songs were lame; then again, the musical aspect of Disney animated movies is something I've never really liked. Also, this movie is a bit short compared to the original.

Content Concerns:
Sex: Lions romantically nuzzling and pawing at each other.
Nudity: None.
Language: Name-calling, at worst.
Violence: Animal fights throughout, including a rather intense final battle where at least one character dies; a flashback to the stampede scene from the first film.
Drugs: None.
Frightening/Intense Scenes: The evil lions are a bit scary; a dark mood in some scenes, particularly the climax.
Other: A bit of bathroom humor; communication with the dead.

Conclusion: Disney's direct-to-video sequels have drawn the ire of many a movie fan. Ever since The Return of Jafar, video stores have been flooded with many a film that never made its way to theaters, most of which have been scathingly reviewed by both amateur and professional critics everywhere. While I can't comment on most of the others, because I've never seen them, I have to say this one was surprisingly good for what it was. As long as you don't expect it to be as epic as the original Lion King, you might enjoy it; I know I did.

'The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride' frustratingly copies its predecessor too much, but there is still enough fresh material for it to be enjoyable.

I have split feelings for this film. I like a lot of the story progression, as we follow Simba's Pride. A few of the new characters are decent, too. However, a lot of the film comes across as too much of a retread; particularly across the first half. If it was more original from beginning to end, then I'd be rating it higher.

Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Robert Guillaume and, minorly, James Earl Jones all return to voice Simba, Timon, Pumbaa, Rafiki and Mufasa respectively. Kiara, Kovu and Zira are all newly created. Jason Marsden does a good job as Kovu, while Neve Campbell and Suzanne Pleshette are solid as the other two. I like the cast.

The animation, considering it's a Disney sequel, is excellent. The songs aren't quite so grand, though one-or-two are alright; namely "Not One of Us". The score is satisfactory, coolly sharing parts that can be heard in 2003's 'Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl' - my favourite film.

One of the best animated sequels from this studio, though that probably says more about their previous attempts with follow-ups in truth. Still, this is worth giving a watch.

The Good:

• The Lion King 2 keeps many of the things that made the original film so good: the central characters, the flow of the story, the best songs.
• Feels familiar enough to feel like a natural continuation of the story, while also adding enough new elements to become a new story altogether.
• Bigger and bolder action sequences are the biggest stand-outs of the sequel.

The Bad:

• The animation is noticeably lower in quality compared to the original. The colours aren't quite as bright, the movements of the character's aren't quite as vivid. It's a shame really, because the animation in the first one still holds up today while the sequel is very dated.
• The story features much of the same elements as the original, making it quite boring to follow. The story makes little to no attempts at actually developing the characters from the first film further.
• The musical numbers aren't all that interesting or memorable. Most of the songs have just been rehashed from the first movie.
• The villain and her motives are, if possible, even more clichéd than Scar was in the original. She also isn't nearly as charismatic as Scar is.
• They changes some of the original voice actors, so it doesn't feel like a true sequel.

Verdict:

The sequel to Disney's animated classic is a tired attempt at trying to replicate the success, mostly falling flat due to a lack of any real investment into the project.