MovieChat Forums > The Lion King (1994) Discussion > Arguably Disney's best cel animated movi...

Arguably Disney's best cel animated movie


Even though Disney made many 2D/cel animated movies after, in my opinion TLK still remains on top. The backgrounds are each a work of art, even if it only depicts a few rocks. The animation is incredibly detailed and very fluid. The zooming and revolving camerawork is captivating. I could go on and on.

Interestingly, this movie was NOT made by the A-list Disney animators. Most of them chose to work on "Pocahontas". That might just have been a blessing in disguise as the junior animators stepped up big time and really put their heart and soul into the movie, and it shows in the final product.

It's sad that 2D/cel animation has been totally abandoned by Disney.

"I'm the dude, playing a dude that's disguised as another dude".

reply

Inb4 this thread is filled with "Lion King is overrated" posts.

Yep, saw it again on the telly Christmas Day. My favourite movie for me. Pretty much marked the end of an era.

reply

Interestingly, this movie was NOT made by the A-list Disney animators. Most of them chose to work on "Pocahontas". That might just have been a blessing in disguise as the junior animators stepped up big time and really put their heart and soul into the movie, and it shows in the final product.


There were a few A-list supervising animators that worked on the film: Andreas Deja, Mark Henn, James Baxter, and Ruben Aquino. And actually some animators like Henn, Aquino, and Anthony DeRosa managed to work on both Lion King and Pocahontas.

That said, it's still sad the current management at Disney gave up on 2D animation.


What we do in life, echoes in eternity.

reply

Sorry I should have phrased my post a bit better. Yes, what I meant was that not all the A-list animators worked on the film like they did on previous movies.

I did feel gutted when Disney announced the "The Princess and the Frog" was going to be their last 2D animated movie. 2D animation has certain charm and beauty and spontaneity that can never be achieved in CGI. I'm not saying 3D animation is bad, it's just different.

I guess Disney are only looking at this from a profitable point of view. 3D animation appears to require a lot less manpower than 2D animation. Also in 2D one would need a lot of traditional artists who can draw and paint. With 3D the numbers are a lot less.

While 3D animation is somewhat "easier" to do than 2D, it doesn't necessarily produce the same quality of results. I remember back in the 80s and 90s when Disney used to make the Saturday Morning animated cartoon series like Duck Tales, TaleSpin, Darkwing Duck, Goof Troop, Aladdin, Rescue Rangers etc. All of them had great animation and story.

Nowadays when I look at Disney channel shows I shudder. The animation is horrible beyond belief and the stories are equally bad.

"I'm the dude, playing a dude that's disguised as another dude".

reply

I tried watching The Lion Guard last year and it was too dumbed down for me. The animation wasn't great, either.

reply

Same here. It is really targeted towards younger children. Then there's the "Roar of the Elders" deus ex machina which seemingly solves all problems.

The animation is average also, I agree. Especially when the lions are walking. It seems terribly mechanical. Just their legs are shuffling while their bodies are gliding along.

"I'm the dude, playing a dude that's disguised as another dude".

reply

This is a great 2D animated film but I also love Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid.

Steve Harris of Iron Maiden is a Brony

reply

"That might just have been a blessing in disguise as the junior animators stepped up big time and really put their heart and soul into the movie, and it shows in the final product."

That's exactly it. Despite this project being the B-project, the crew still did a heckuva good job. With "Pocahontas", though (regardless of my personal affection for it, too), the animators were trying a little too hard to be po-faced, PC and not offending everybody.

reply