The Lion King (1994)

Hi fellow animation fans, welcome to my review of The Lion King.

Synopsis: In the deep heart of Africa at a place called Pride Rock the King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and his Queen, Sarabi (Madge Sinclair) welcome the birth of their son Simba (Jonathon Taylor Thomas as the young Simba), much to the disgust of the king's brother Scar (Jeremy Irons). Simba of course is a very inquisitive cub who likes to push the boundaries, so Scar uses this to enact a dastardly plan with the help of his hyena friends, this sees him obtain the position of king and has Simba running away thinking that he is an outcast. On the verge of death Simba is saved by a warthog named Pumbaa (Ernie Sabella) and a meerkat called Timon (Nathan Lane), together they raise him with their 'no worries' values. When he obtains adulthood, Simba (Matthew Broderick) is found by his old childhood friend Nala (Moira Kelly) who tells him how Scar has ruined Pride Rock and begs him to come back. Now it's up to Simba, will he keep running or fight to claim his rightful place as King.

The Good:

* For the age of the movie the animation is still amazing, with bright colors, beautiful landscapes and well-designed animals.

* The voice acting is brilliant, as to be expected considering the cast, but my highlights would have to be Rowan Atkinson as Zazu and Cheech Marin as Banzai, both of them were hilarious in their roles, Rowan Atkinson even has a surprisingly good singing voice.

* The music is brilliant with catchy song after catchy song, all of which are great fun to sing along with.

* The story is really well done and at no point does it get boring, even after multiple watches.

The Bad:

* There are some themes that may not be suitable for all audiences.

                       IMDB 8.5/10                Rotten Tomatoes 92%             Me 9/10

Simba being presented to the animals of Pride Rock.

The Adventures of Tintin (2011)

Hi fellow animation fans, welcome to my review of The Adventures of Tintin.

Synopsis: While at an outdoor market, the young reporter Tintin (Jamie Bell), with his loyal dog Snowy, purchase a realistic model of an ancient sailing ship known as the Unicorn. A mysterious man Sakharine (Daniel Craig), and an American, Barnaby (Joe Starr), attempt to acquire the model from him, but Tintin declines. Then quite by accident he finds out that the ship holds a clue to a concealed treasure. So, jumping on a ship to go find it, Tintin runs into trouble when Sakharine bribes the crew to revolt against the inebriated Captain Haddock (Andy Serkis). Escaping this trap Tintin, Snowy and Captain Haddock set out on a grand adventure to find the secret of the Unicorn together.

The Good:

* I honestly loved this strange style of motion captured animation, it just looks so clean and smooth.

* The story is a lot of fun, the adventure starts a little slow but then Spielberg sticks the throttle in, and it takes off on a bumpy rollercoaster all the way to the end, keeping you glued to the seat.
* As I fan of the original comics, I feel the movie hit exactly the right tone, with comedy, action, mystery and intrigue in a near perfect balance.

* I am also glad that they stuck to the comics and didn't try and give Tintin a back story or an over-the-top personality, while that may sound strange it fits in perfectly with what the comics portray, Tintin is a reporter that's why he has these adventures, even though we never see him doing any actual reporter like work.

The Bad:

* The movie feels like it is made for an older audience but quite a few of the jokes, especially those using Snowy feel like they were aimed at children, it's a tiny bit jarring.

* When they do find the treasure, it feels a bit anticlimactic.

                            IMDB 7.3/10              Rotten Tomatoes 75%                    Me 8/10

Tintin (Jamie Bell) holding up a likeness that comic fans will instantly recognize.