Will the lion king be... the Lion King?

If someone would ask me to tell which cartoon recalls my childhood, I will definitely answer "the Lion King". Practically, I have grown up with the cheerfulness of Timon and Pumba, and how to forget the cruel Scar or Simba's  love story with Nala ? The Lion King's song, were my favorite tunes for years ! So, you can imagine my reaction when I read that Jon Favreau (the director) would make a  live action on this... or, you may not. At first, I was very skeptical, really. When something (a movie/ cartoon) is so powerful that in your mind is as crystalized as an untouchable myth, you are playing a game against the resistance of all the so called fans-with- history. And, I bet, the road to the spectators heart is not exactely down the hill- although Dumbo's box office success can be read as a green light signal for other remakes(352.9 millions $).

 But, let's mention the details. The technology used is so advanced that the production has mixed real takes of the animals in their natural habitat with some savana computerized reconstructions. The result? According to the critics, the photography is breathtaking, but the concern is ... will the frenetic search of HD realism destroy the magical atmosphere of the cartoon? To answer this question, we have to wait until the realise of the movie, in Italy, the 21th of August. 

Will be interesting to watch both the original version, with Donald Glover as Simba and Beyonce giving voice to Nala and the Italian one, with the pop star Marco Mengoni doing the voice over of Simba, and the singer Elisa as Nala. Will the Italian version be able to maintain the tone of the movie intended by Favreau? Will the Italian songs be a "poor" reproduction of the original ones as happened in Aladdin? 

Micol Sartori