Continuing where "The Lion King" left off, Simba (voice of MATTHEW BRODERICK) is the regal leader of his lion pride. Along with his mate, Nala (voice of MOIRA KELLY), the two are proud, but quite protective of their new daughter, Kiara. As curious as her father was, Kiara is intrigued by the forbidden Outlands, a desolate place where Simba banished the followers of Scar, his late, but evil uncle who was responsible for the death of Simba's father, Mufasa (voice of JAMES EARL JONES).
Nonetheless, and despite the efforts of Timon (voice of NATHAN LANE) and Pumbaa (voice of ERNIE SABELLA) who've been assigned to babysit her, Kiara ventures off into the Outlands. There, she meets a scruffy, young male cub, Kovu, where the two eventually help each other escape from a perilous encounter with some hungry crocodiles.
Although they seem destined to be friends, Kovu's mother, Zira (SUZANNE PLESHETTE) and older brother, Nuka (ANDY DICK), separate the two young cubs. The leader of the outcast lions, Zira has long wanted revenge on Simba, and upon seeing the bond between her son and Kiara, she hatches a plan where Kovu will befriend the pride, kill Simba, and then reclaim the throne in Scar's honor.
After some time, and now a young adult, Kiara (voice of NEVE CAMPBELL) wants her freedom, but Simba still wants to protect her. Even so, he can't keep her away from Kovu (voice of JASON MARSDEN), who recently saved her life. Despite his wariness of the young lion and due to the insistence of the wise Rafiki (voice of ROBERT GUILLAUME) that the two "teens" should be together, Simba allows Kovu to join the pride. From that point on, it's uncertain whether Kovu will continue with his mother's evil plan, or succumb to his growing affection for Kiara.
What do you do when you set out to make a sequel to the biggest animated film at the time that was also the current champ for total video sales of any genre? You don't mess much with the story, you get most of the vocal talent to return to voice their well-know characters, and you release the film straight to video to diminish expectations and comparisons to the original.
The result? Well, while it doesn't have the mighty roar of its predecessor, 1998's "The Lion King II: Simba's Pride" was clearly one of the better straight to video releases ever to come out of Hollywood. Although the animation isn't quite up to par with the original, the new songs don't have that special touch that made them and "The Lion King" such a success, and the fact that the film suffers somewhat from a heavy dose of familiarity, this is still a pretty decent picture.
Comparisons to the original, of course, are inevitable and part of the risk (or benefit) a studio takes when releasing any sequel. As such, while this film's plot feels and plays out like a natural progression from where the original left off, it's impossible not to notice the lifting, copying, and imitating of elements from the first.
That's not necessarily a bad thing -- especially for kids who already don't mind repeatedly watching the same movie so often that its images are forever etched onto the family's TV screen, let alone their parents' minds -- but one can't help but get a feeling of deja vu (all over again) while watching this film.
Had it been released without the prior existence of the original -- somewhat of a difficult feat for a sequel, but you probably get the point -- the film easily could have stood on its own.
From the opening strains of "He Lives in You" (in a sequence that plays out very much like "The Circle of Life" opening in the original), through the comedic sidekick antics of Timon and Pumbaa, and the plot of an evil lion trying to unseat the reigning King, everything has a familiar feel to it, all of which -- depending on your viewpoint -- either plays in the film's favor or is just an unimaginative and safe retreading of the source material.
Beyond all of that, for a straight to video release, the animation is quite good. While not matching that found in the original or other subsequent animated releases, it's better than any non- theatrical release I've seen. While it's occasionally a bit rough looking and lacks the cutting edge razzle-dazzle its theatrical cousins sport, for the most part the figures, backgrounds and overall composition looks good and is always easy on the eye.
The songs -- while suffering from the absence of Tim Rice & Elton John and a long way from the fabulous stuff Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman put out in the early years of the recent Disney animation renaissance -- aren't too bad, and some, including the fun and toe tapping "Upendi" (performed by Robert Guillaume & Ladysmith Black Mambazo), are quite good.
While clearly not in the same league as its classic forebear, this is still a pretty decent film. As long as you can don't mind the strong imitative elements related to the original -- something now almost granted as commonplace in any sequel -- you, and especially any young kids in the house, will probably enjoy the film.
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