MovieChat Forums > The Little Mermaid (1989) Discussion > Anyone else think this is better than Th...

Anyone else think this is better than The Lion King?


I personally prefer this and Beauty and the Beast way over The Lion King, even though I'm constantly hearing how TLK is the greatest Disney film ever. I was 11 when TLK came out and remember seeing it in the theater. However, aside from a really cool villain and villain song, I always found TLK to be just a bit overrated. Even though I love Frozen, I can understand the backlash it's received since I've felt the same way about The Lion King for the last 20 years. To me the music and characters in TLM are just way more enjoyable and it didn't need to resort to flatulence humor and stupid pop culture references to be entertaining (something TLK helped pioneer unfortunately).

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I totally agree with everything you wrote! I think The Lion King is highly overrated. I couldn't stand the flatulence humor in that film. I think you're right that The Lion King had influence on flatulence humor in animated films. Most of the characters in The Lion King annoy me to be quite honest. I thought cub Simba was a brat. I also thought Timon & Pumba were obnoxious. The only songs I like in the film are Circle of Life & Be Prepared. I feel because of The Lion King other Disney films such as Sleeping Beauty & Lady & the Tramp don't get a lot of attention. The Little Mermaid & Beauty & the Beast have always been my top 2 Disney films.

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Think? No. I KNOW The Little Mermaid is better than the Lion King in virtually every capacity. A far more dynamic and interesting lead character, a more practical and threatening villain, better songs that fit the context of the film, writing with layers upon layers of intrigue, side characters that aren't annoying and serve the plot...I could go on and on! The Little Mermaid remains the best of the Disney Renaissance and should easily be among the top five best Disney films ever!

"Unless you're an alien, time traveler, or esper, your opinion doesn't matter."

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Come to think of it, I agree with you there completely regarding The Little Mermaid and The Lion King. That being said, at least Lion King's main villain was better than Gaston. Even you have to admit that.

Though on the other hand, unlike Triton and his hatred of humans (yes, they eat fish, but on the other hand... they aren't an actual threat unless they can actually come underwater), Mufasa's wariness of the hyenas WAS proven to be completely justified.

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Even you have to admit that.


Again, stop telling other people what to think. They don't have to admit anything.

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I'm not telling them what to think, it's pretty obvious that Scar was better written than Gaston. Look, Scar managed to bribe those Hyenas into having a food surplus if they aided in disposing Mufasa, and the Hyenas had more than enough reason to hate Mufasa and Simba anyways. Gaston, on the other hand, basically divulged enough details of his blackmail plan in public to all but ensure that he was exposed as a dirtbag to everyone, yet they cheered him on without any indication of sugarcoating to make it more palatable for the masses, either by moral imperatives or by pragmatics such as bribery or threats, despite the fact that this is actually a good way to have people turn against you. By definition, that's better written.

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I'm not telling them what to think, it's pretty obvious that Scar was better written than Gaston.


No dumbass, that's an opinion, so you ARE telling them what to think.

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I can't stand Frozen or TLK, I think they are the most hyped Disney movies of all time. BatB and TLM are much, much better.

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TLM, certainly, was far better than Frozen or TLK. Can't say the same regarding BatB, though, especially given how they characterized the villains and their near successes (sorry, but when the main villain openly and loudly divulges, or sings, rather, enough key details about his evil plan to blackmail a woman by locking up her father to force her hand in marriage in front of a crowded tavern, to not only have everyone and their neighbor deduce EXACTLY what he was planning to do, but also expose him as such an indecent human being in the most blunt manner possible, and they cheer him on, that just breaks even suspension of disbelief, as even that has its limits, and Gaston crossed them in that very stupid, badly-written reprise [I don't care if they wanted to use Richard White's vocals every chance they got, it's still stupid, as they also had access to Pat Carrol's voice in this film and had every opportunity they can get to use it, yet even they at least had the sense to avoid having her divulge her entire plan to use Ariel right in front of her, unlike with Gaston, where it seemed as though the only reason for that reprise happening was because the writers were far too cynical about kids' intellects to know he's a bad guy.]. At least Scar bribed the Hyenas into following his plan to kill Simba and Mufasa in order to ensure they followed him, and at least Hans was smart enough to actually HIDE his true nature from Anna until the odds were stacked in his favor and even THEN try to dispose of her to ensure she couldn't stop him. And also how Belle handled Gaston's blackmail and nearly got Beast killed was beyond stupid as well, as even a kindergartner would realize that was just a bad plan with no chance at success. At least with Ariel, Anna, and Simba, their not knowing about the villains plans and their nearly causing the villains to win actually made sense, since for Ariel, Ursula had tricked her into thinking she had reformed; Anna had no reason to suspect Hans was up to something, and Scar was Simba's uncle, whom he had thought was a nice guy, even if a bit weird and would not have known about his murderous intentions against the cub. Belle knew exactly what kind of guy Gaston was like, especially after deducing his attempt at blackmail, and would most certainly have known how the villagers were like regarding anything different just from personal experience, and yet she ended up exposing Beast to them and then nearly getting him and his servants downright murdered.).

And before anyone complains about my ripping into BatB in this post, Stratego mentioned BatB in the post I'm responding to, so I don't see any reason why I shouldn't mention it.

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And before anyone complains about my ripping into BatB in this post, Stratego mentioned BatB in the post I'm responding to, so I don't see any reason why I shouldn't mention it.


I mentioned BatB, you moron, because the OP did. But this is not a thread about BatB, so there's no good reason to go on a rant about how bad of a villain Gaston is. That has nothing to do whatsoever with the subject. You're absolutely pathetic.

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I wouldn't say that this movie is better then The Lion King or Beauty and the Beast

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While I like The Lion King, I definitely like Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid better. EDIT: Also, I know I'm the minority, but I also like Tarzan, Rescuers Down Under, Pocahontas, and Mulan better than The Lion King too for that matter.

RIP
Jeff Hanneman
1964-2013

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i prefer it, but then i'm not that fond of lions. mermaids are more my thing.

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Did I miss anything?


Yes, the fact that The Lion King completely sucks.

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I liked Lion King, but I think TLM is the best of Disney's classics.

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Yes, the fact that The Lion King completely sucks.

(The Office also sucks, by the way)

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No, I have wonderful taste as I think The Lion King, The Office AND Frozen suck big time.

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Nono, I'm right about everything!

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Because it's true!

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What do you know?! You like TLK and The Office!

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Dude, you should become a stand-up comedian and perform in front of a mirror, at least there'll be one person laughing at your jokes!

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Yes, I hope that some day I'll be as great as you, so I can laugh at my own quips as well...

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You need a new prescription for your glasses, Mr. Fox, I am most certainly not a man! I am actually a very "foxy" lady.

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Foxy on the INSIDE, ofcourse!

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See, that's why everybody should watch Beauty and the Beast and learn from it!

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Considering what happened when girls fell for Jean-Paul Sartre using that exact message (I'll tell you one thing: They certainly ignored his donkey-ugly face, and it's no insult as even Sartre himself acknowledged he was physically hideous), sorry, but I'm pretty cynical about that message coming from ANYWHERE, much less that film, (yeah, you heard me, I also have a major problem with it regarding Shrek and The Hunchback of Notre Dame largely because I still remember how those girls were manipulated by Sartre and then tossed out like garbage, and they clearly didn't even focus on his looks when they fell for him. Looked beyond the surface, yet still got manipulated. Can you blame me for being cynical about the message? Heck, I'll even post a post making it clear as if it wasn't already clear enough as it was: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-559137/Dangerous-liaisons-sex-teens-The-story-Sartre-Beauvoir-told-before.html And this was coming from someone who DID learn to adopt that idea when I was a kid and looked up to it.). I will admit, there are people who are hideous on the outside yet are beautiful on the inside, like Mother Teresa, but that's unfortunately rare.

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Can you blame me for being cynical about the message?


I blame you for everything, otness. Hunger in Africa, poverty, natural disasters, the US presidential election, EVERYTHING.

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I was born in 1990. Hunger in Africa had existed since, what, the 1970s, 1980s even? It happened before I was even born. I also don't have any control over poverty, natural disasters or any of that, any more than you or Anonymous Fox do. And as far as the US Presidential Election, those happened even before I was born, and if anything, I actually voted both times AGAINST Obama in the two elections I DID have involvement in (2008: John McCain; 2012: Mitt Romney), so don't blame me for Obama being elected into office if that's what you're referring to.

Fine, you hate me, but don't blame me for stuff that I obviously had no control over. I'm not going to blame you for the US presidential election, natural disasters, poverty, or Hunger in Africa, because I know you aren't responsible for that (and before you decide to remind me of the atheism bit, let me remind you that unlike those examples, you ARE in control of that bit, and you can choose to not become an atheist, and actually go out and try to LEARN about religion and its benefits). I wish you would extend the same common courtesy.

And I'm just stating why I'm cynical about the message. Next time, read that link and THEN reply to that link, instead of making a non-sequitor. I'm getting sick and tired of you going out of your way to bash anyone who disagrees with you even slightly.

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Childish AND hypocritical, that's you in a nutshell.

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You bet ya! That definitely does it for me!

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I see, it's a crack pipe!

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