Malika the Lion Queen

Good nature show but it bashes and demeans the value and importance of males. Very unfortunate because both males and females are equal and should be respected.

A pride of lions in The Kruger National park with a specific relationship to a Lioness Malika and her life journey. I was expecting a wildlife documentary but found the narration to be belittling of the male species in a sharp feminist way that took largely from the footage and splendor of large cats in the wild. Adding a humanistic "voice" into the animal kingdom is both pretentious and for me was a nauseating experience. Nature has a survival mode and roles within the structure to help the group survival, a feminist, male demeaning narration took away the splendor of nature as it is. Highly doubt you would hear SIr David Attenborough give voice to such a text. I found it hard to give 2 stars as the experience was for me far to bias and not a neutral narration expected in a documentary.

It's a pride of lions in South Africa's Kruger National Park. It follows the life of Malika (Angela Bassett) from a cub to the best hunter of the group while the head male lead has turnovers.

I love the animals and the nature action visuals. I can do less with the narration. I'm not so enamored with giving a human voice to animals. It doesn't always fit. When the narration is talking about the animals, there is a respectable distance that isn't trying to put words into these creatures' mouths. This movie is giving these creatures human concepts and understanding. Also Angela Bassett is acting too much. I'm not saying that it's impossible for this to be the truth. I just don't want to impose something onto these creatures. This would be better with a more traditional narration.

This movie is a refreshing take on a classic tale. Instead of focusing on the "King of the Jungle", it focuses on the life journey of a lioness in South Africa and highlights the important role she and her female family members play in keeping their pride strong while maintaining balance within the ecosystem.

I have seen reviews criticizing the movie for adding a human voice, and thereby human assumptions, to what the main character may be thinking and feeling. However, I feel the producers were aiming to make a film that was educational, engaging for people of all ages, and empowering for girls and young women! Likewise, I have seen some folks claiming that the film "bashes men" and promotes feminism. To this, I would respond by saying I believe the second half of the statement is true and the movie simply shares facts (some of which may indeed paint males in an unflattering way, but are still true). I feel it is trying to promote some critical thinking about society in general, using lions as the messengers.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this movie! It may be a little graphic for young children, as it shows realistic hunting scenes, but I think it could start some great conversations when watched with an adult.

I dvr's this back at Easter-time, and watched it today.. I watched it not as a documentary, but as a movie about a lion and her life.. I liked it very much! I do not ever like scenes where there's a predator/prey hunt in nature (I know it happens, I just feel awful seeing it) so I just kind of covered up for those parts, but other than that I rooted for Malika.. you could tell it was a "female-empowerment" themed watch, but I just watched it for the movie about a life that it was, and both cried and enjoyed it..