Today marks the four month countdown to the release date of the legendary, and highly anticipated Lion King (19 July 2019).
There is much excitement amongst the staff at Londolozi about the imminent blockbuster. However, living where we do, we’ve had to start thinking up logistics behind getting ourselves to the nearest cinema in time to watch this new rendition of a fond childhood memory. With all this enthusiasm and with the odd snippet of the movie slowly being revealed, so many of our long-standing guests have asked the same question: was The Lion King set at Londolozi?
We have to say that we’ve also come to notice a few similarities. Enough to make us think that the Lion King could have been filmed here along with a Londolozi based cast too. We do know that it was originally based in East Africa, but we are going to ignore this based on the photographic evidence we’ve provided below:
As we all know very well, the Lion King starts off with a song called ‘The Circle Of Life’. The sun begins to rise … “Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba Sithi uhm ingonyama”, translating to “There comes a lion, Oh yes a lion”.
“From the day we arrive on the planet, and, blinking, step into the sun”… Marabou storks are in the next scene feeding in shallow water. These intriguing birds are unmistakeable at Londolozi, and are often described as old, bald men wearing trenchcoats.
“There’s more to see than can ever be seen, more to do than can ever be done”… we unfortunately don’t have flamingoes here (or at least we haven’t since the one time we saw them during the drought in 2016), but the game paths making their way to our Sand River and buffalo scattered around drinking do make for a similar scene.
“There’s far too much to take in here, more to find than can ever be found”… The landscape at Londolozi resembles Pride Rock. Koppies (rocky outcrops) that scatter our horizon have also denned many cubs in their rock crevices, making their shape and purpose very similar to that of Pride Rock.
“But the sun rolling high, through the sapphire sky, keeps great and small on the endless round”… Zazu, the British-accented hornbill, is one of my favourite characters in the film. We are definitely not short of these birds at Londolozi, and it must be said that they are just as full of character as Zazu himself.
“It’s the Circle of Life, and it moves us all”… This photo comparison is enough to convince anyone that we have our very own Mufasa at Londolozi.
We’ve had a few discussions about whether these are meant to be nyala or kudu. They have horns which look like nyala, but the humps on their backs are more reminiscent of kudus. We’ll choose to go with calling them a Disney Artist’s interpretation of a generic kudu/nyala cross…
This is the scene in the film when Simba is raised up by Rafiki on Pride Rock and all the animals below start to celebrate. In this case the zebras begin to rear up. I don’t think we’ve ever had zebras celebrate the birth of a new lion cub, however they do rear up when fighting each other.
In the same scene as the zebra, the giraffe begin to bow down before the lion cub – something I don’t think any Londolozi Ranger has yet witnessed (I stand to be corrected). However, we could argue that a giraffe drinking water looks similar to one bowing.
Now this is a more realistic scene. A lioness grooming her cub: the most soothing and therapeutic scene to witness. I think the cub on the left is enjoying its bath time more than Simba on the right.
Simba and Nala playing, another spectacular scene to witness in the bush. On the left we have two of the Ntsevu cubs playing together in October 2018.
Nala and Simba. This is one of those comparisons that needs no further convincing…
A warthog and Pumba, definitely could be cousins or distant relatives.
I couldn’t believe the accuracy of these two images! I think it’s safe to say that the adult versions of Simba and Nala are currently residing in Londolozi.
This is the triumphant scene in the film when Simba walks back up Pride Rock in the rain after Scar has been in power.
And lastly, the hyenas. We have often mentioned that the Lion King does put these creatures in bad light but all films need villains. Just as in the Lion King, hyenas ‘giggle’ when they’re excited.
These pictures are pretty convincing, right?
In the end, it doesn’t matter where this film originated from, it is a work of art. From our point of view, it has inspired such a fascination with safari, wild animals, their ecosystems and how they are interconnected. We have so many families who visit us based on a love for this movie. And, as more of the trailer comes out, we don’t mind where you choose to go on holiday as long as it’s Africa.
Great comparisons Jemma. I agree as long as you are on holiday somewhere in Africa, anything is possible.
As a writer myself, let me tell you something; creative inspiration comes to us like a river flowing past our feet that had risen high in the mountains of a far-off land, a strange and misty Shangri-La, a mystic land that we can never find while we are earthbound here – however beautiful ‘here’ may be. JK Rowling said that she saw Harry Potter for the first time in London’s Underground. And Baroness Orczy saw the Scarlet Pimpernel on an Underground Station. He smiled at her through his lorgnette, bowed – and vanished. Arthur Conan Doyle writes about Sherlock Holmes practicing Neuro Linguistic Programming on an astounded Dr Watson – a hundred years before the technology was formally identified. East Africa, you say – where’s that?
I’m sure a lot of your guests, especially first time to Africa visitors from the US, speak fondly of this animated film and are thrilled when guides refer to “Pumba” and so on at sightings.
I have to say, however, that this film and the consequences have annoyed me for years. The depictions of hyenas, just to mention one thing, are false and stupid.
I can only hope that the professionalism of guides that I know and respect at Londolozi can tactfully set the story right when dealing with enamoured, naive guests?
Hi Cindy, I totally agree with you. I’m a big fan of the Lion King, however I can see how some characters are not true reflections of those in the wild. You might be interested in reading Ranger Kevin Power’s blog: The Lion King: Debunking Myths, here’s the link http://bit.ly/2FhNsyE
Thanks Jemma. I read the blog you linked to, and really liked it.
Hi Jemma. We love your post today….so much fun to see the comparisons. We do think “The Lion King” was inspired by Londolozi! Thank you for such a great story,….
Hi Roger and Gayle, thank you so much. I’m glad you agree with me, the Lion King could have been inspired by Londolozi. Your recent blog was wonderful too, thanks for sharing with all of us.
Imaginative blog, Jemma! I never realized that the film was such an inspiration for people to go on safari. We saw the trailer in a theater recently-and that little lion cub almost looks real! The new film should be exciting!
Fantastic Jemma! You can see why the Hollywood Animators win their own special Oscar for such amazing observation, even if they muddle Kudus and Nyala (artistic license?) – Londolozi needs a few Oscars too!
Loved this blog…and I will definitely be heading to the cinemas in 4 months time to watch this movie!
Very clever indeed!!! And from our experience, no other place gives us a true a touch with the “Circle of Life” like what we see on safari at Londolozi! LOVE your creativity and comparisons with actual images from Londolozi!
Thanks so much Bob and Lucie, i’m so glad you enjoyed it. It was such fun finding images which matched the film.
At the time of the first film, a friend and I had a licence from Disney to produce fun rubber stamps of The Lion King. The artists who drew the characters were show real live animals to watch how they walk, how they behave so that their depictions could be accurate. It must be amazing to work for Disney! The stage show was super and the costumes were mind blowing. Thank you for your great picture likenesses to the film. The real is always the best.
Thank you Patricia. Thanks for sharing that info, they did a great job of depicting the animal movements in the film. Will be interesting to see how accurate the new rendition will be.
Creative blog Jemma! The comparisons of the live animals and Disney creations side by side does give rise to – “could it be?!”
Very convincing comparisons I’d say!!