The Lion King 1 1/2 (Video 2004)
"The Lion King 1½" (original title)

Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog retell the story of The Lion King, from their own unique perspective.

Director:

Bradley Raymond

Writers:

Tom Rogers (screenplay), Roger Allers (additional screenplay material),

Stars:

Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Julie Kavner

6 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nathan Lane	...	Timon (voice)
Ernie Sabella	...	Pumbaa (voice)
Julie Kavner	...	Mom (voice)
Jerry Stiller	...	Uncle Max (voice)
Matthew Broderick	...	Simba (voice)
Robert Guillaume	...	Rafiki (voice)
Moira Kelly	...	Nala (voice)
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Shenzi (voice)
Cheech Marin	...	Banzai (voice)
Jim Cummings	...	Ed (voice)
Edward Hibbert	...	Zazu (voice)
Jason Rudofsky	...	Flinchy (voice)
Matt Weinberg	...	Young Simba (voice)
Jeff Bennett	...	(voice)
Corey Burton	...	Grumpy (voice)

Storyline

Timon and Pumbaa start to watch the original Lion King movie, but Timon keeps insisting to fast forward to when they come in, because they weren't seen in the beginning of the story or anywhere until halfway through. Pumbaa suggests telling the audience their story, which begins before Simba's journey begins. Through this, we meet Timon's mother and Uncle Max, discover why he left his meerkat colony, where he learned Hakuna Matata, how he meets Pumbaa, and the perils they encountered while searching for their dream home.

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Plot Keywords:

lion | retelling | prequel to sequel | remake | sequel | 

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Taglines:

The circle of life will never be the same.

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Family | Adventure

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Australia USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 February 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hakuna Matata

Company Credits

Production Co:

DisneyToon Studios, Walt Disney Animation Australia, Walt Disney Television Animation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The song Timon sings, "That's All I Need," is a re-worked version of "Warthog Rhapsody", an ancestor of the song "Hakuna Matata".

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Goofs

At their first home by the water hole, Pumbaa hands Timon a drink in a coconut shell with a straw and umbrella. As Pumbaa starts to leave in the next shot, the straw is gone, yet Timon seems to be holding and drinking through it. In the following shot, the straw is back.

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Quotes

Mom: Everything the light touches... . belongs to someone else!
Timon: Funny, I thought you were going in a whole different direction.

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Crazy Credits

The first few credits "fall apart."

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Connections

Spoofs Cool Hand Luke (1967)

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Soundtracks

"Sabre Dance"
Written by Aram Khachaturian

User Reviews

Another great straight-to-video sequel/spoof, that's worth a theatrical treatment.

My Take: A funny take on THE LION KING, posing as a sequel. Surprisingly amusing.

Surprisingly, "Lion King 1 1/2" is actually another funny straight-to-video, that's worth a theatrical treatment. I don't see why Disney released this straight to video, and release crappy movies like "Chicken Little" and "Return to Neverland" theatrically. Those movies are better off seen in the video stores (in the "new releases" area), rather than seeing their theatrical posters outside the theaters.

This one is merely a spoof of the first film (although the events in "Simba's Pride" hasn't taken place yet), on Timon (voiced by Nathan Lane) and Pumbaa's (voiced by Ernie Sabella) point of view. We get to see them make fun of the events in the first film. Original voices from the first film, like Matthew Broderick, Woopie Goldberg, Cheeche Martin and Robert Guillaume, return to their voicing roles from the first film, while Julie Kavner and Jerry Stiller give some hilarious comedy relief as Timon's mom and grumpy uncle.

So doesn't this sound fun. Maybe not now, but go watch it for yourself. The fact that it's not that serious in its plot makes it the more enjoyable. It's kinda like MST3000 with Timon and Pumbaa.

Video movie rating: ***1/2 out of 5.