‘Mufasa’ review roundup: Barry Jenkins does his best to bring Disney’s ‘Lion King’ prequel to life

Mufasa: The Lion King, director Barry Jenkins’ photorealistic animated Disney prequel, opens in theaters on Dec. 20, and critics’ reviews are now rolling in. Critics say the film is imperfect, as all films that primarily exist as corporate franchise I.P. extensions are, but Jenkins, the Academy Award-winning auteur behind Moonlight and The Underground Railroad, manages to make it his own — though critics are not unanimous in their interpretations of how much Jenkins is able to bring to the movie. However, they all agree that it’s better than Jon Favreau’s 2019 Lion King remake, from which Mufasa spins off. 

In a 3 ½-star out of 4 review for RogerEbert.com, Matt Zoller Seitz — who wrote an excellent profile of Jenkins making Mufasa for Vulture — writes that “Mufasa never offers anything that can eclipse the shock of the new that accompanied the first photorealistic animated Disney remake in this vein, 2016’s The Jungle Book. But the movie is a technological step up from 2019’s The Lion King, finding new ways to make the creatures expressive and emotionally available to us while also somehow convincing us that they are indeed animals, whose every talon, whisker, and hair seems as real as imagery in a nature documentary. It’s also the best-directed and most thoughtful entry in Disney’s series of photoreal remakes, which have drawn barbs for replacing the figurative poetry of hand-drawn animation with something more literal-minded. It is visually very much a Barry Jenkins movie, with Jenkinsian signatures appearing in a context that would seem to be hostile to them, from wondrous closeups of characters staring directly at the viewer while framed by a blurred background to the camera moving slowly and gracefully around characters, the rhythm dictated by the characters’ energies.”

TheWrap’s William Bibbiani writes that Jenkins does an admirable job of finding emotion and artistry in what could have been a soulless project. “The idea of a brilliant, once-in-a-generation filmmaker dedicating years of their life to a Disney sequel or prequel is, to some, a discouraging thought. Jenkins does, however, seem to have been the right person for the job,” Bibbiani writes. “Mufasa: The Lion King is an enormous improvement on the 2019 remake, using visual techniques Favreau pioneered but abandoning the pretense of absolute realism. The characters in ‘Mufasa’ look plausible, but more expressive. The camerawork takes full advantage of the animated medium, flying across the screen with energy and wonder instead of limiting itself to what might have been possible in real life. The lighting is bright and vibrant, not dim and stodgy, because Jenkins would rather the audience be able to see his film than accurately reflect how dark it actually looks at night.” 

Not every critic was convinced that Jenkins managed to impose his vision, though. In a more negative review, IndieWire’s Alison Foreman writes that the film falls apart due to a “contrived script,” uninspiring and confusing visuals, and “unimaginative musical numbers” with forgettable songs from composer Lin-Manuel Miranda. “Jenkins’ pivot to a big-budget, kid-friendly project for a major studio was always intriguing,” Foreman writes. “But in hindsight, it’s hard to imagine he ever really stood a chance at revolutionizing from within Disney’s so-called “live-action” money machine.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Lovia Gyarkye expresses a similar sentiment that Jenkins tries his best, but the forces of franchise management are too powerful. ”Jenkins tries to allay a clunky narrative with his intimate and considered style,” Gyarkye writes. “There are instances where you can see the director experimenting and attempting to disturb Disney’s imposing order, deploying close-ups, almost ground-level pans and strategically sweeping views to find warmth and tactility within a cold technique. Though the film, which critics in New York watched in IMAX 3D, isn’t completely saved by Jenkins and his team of regular co-conspirators (including producer Adele Romanski, DP James Laxton and editor Joi McMillon), it’s certainly made better by their efforts.”

Mufasa tells the origin story of the titular king of lions, as well as his wicked brother Scar. Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., and Tiffany Boone lead the voice cast.