A — 89 Minutes
This Earth Day, Disneynature released the film “African Cats,” centered on a family of lions and a family of cheetahs on the Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya.
“African Cats” is an excellent film that gives a predominately accurate portrayal of life in the savanna. It follows two mothers: Layla, a lioness, and Sita, a cheetah. Each mother faces unbelievable complications in raising children. It’s more than them just bumping their heads on the coffee table — these babies have to deal with hungry hyenas, pride rivalries and dying parents.
Yes, this movie generally doesn’t gloss over the often-heartbreaking aspects of life in the wild. The audience (filled with energetic, animal-loving toddlers) is perfectly silent as everyone waits to see if Sita will find all of her cubs after a hyena attack. Viewers cannot help but become invested in the lives of these majestic large cats.
And that’s another achievement for “African Cats.” Directors Alastair Fothergill and Keith Scholey manage to find a true story behind both cat families. There is a defined beginning, middle and end with various setbacks and successes along the way. They even throw in a bit of humor to lighten the mood after some particularly harsh scenes of savanna life. And the directors manage a heartwarming ending despite all of the trials and tribulations. It’s not bright and sunny — as the wild rarely is — but it lets the audience leave on a happy note. The movie gives the perfect balance between exceptionally cute cubs snuggling, and gazelles falling victim to hungry felines.
However, Samuel L. Jackson, the narrator, sometimes fails to capture the right mood in his storytelling. At some points, he makes the Masai Mara seem like a catty high school with his overly dramatic voice. It seems as though Morgan Freeman probably would have been the better choice (as he almost always is).
Additionally, some of the animals are unfairly pegged as the bad guys. It’s inevitable — one of the pitfalls of having an actual storyline. Every good story has someone to root for, and someone to hate. The film seems to follow in “The Lion King’s” steps as the hyenas are obviously meant to make the audience cringe. Viewers cheered for Sita and Mara, but spurned Kali, Fang and the hyenas. The film doesn’t quite emphasize the “circle of life” part, avoiding the fact that all animals have to live somehow — even if it means hurting a favorite character.
Otherwise, “African Cats” gives a fantastic look into the lives of two wildcat families struggling to survive in an environment built to bring them down. Cat lover or not, the film is a must see for the stunning views of African wildlife. The camera shots are breathtaking and it’s impossible to drag your eyes away from a high-speed cheetah chase.
If you purchase a ticket during the film’s opening week, $0.20 of each ticket will go to the Amboseli Corridor project by the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF). The project aims to preserve and protect the Amboseli Corridor, a stretch of land that goes beyond national park borders and is frequently used by animals to travel to different regions of the savanna.
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