Arlene Reacts: The Lion King 2019, Hakuna Matata means No Worries Pero 'Sana All'
Sunday, January 17, 2021
It means no worries, philosophy, Hakuna Matata. It means no worries for the rest of your day, Hakuna Matata.
The Lion King is one of my favorite animated films from Disney, though I was not as excited when a remake was announced. I could not picture out how a live-action The Lion King would turn out, and I did not want to risk an episode of disappointment. I did not show or express interest in the news, but I did wonder what would be the end product of their attempt. I even thought that Simba and the rest of the characters would take the form of humans or they would have counterpart human characters in the live-action movie. Silly me! But it turned they were still animals, and that was for the better.
It was the year 2019 when the remake was shown in cinemas worldwide, and as I mentioned I was not interested so I did not bother to know when exactly was the dates of showing here in our country. A year had passed, 2021 arrived, and candidly I had the urge to binge-watch my all-time favorite Disney movies, those that had remake from recent years. The Lion King was my fourth movie in the year 2021 and my third from Disney.
Aside from the plot and moral of the story, another thing that I really loved about the movie was its musical aspect. The songs sang in the film were filled with meaning and inspiration, and definitely, anyone would sing along to the songs once they heard them. While watching the remake, I could not help but sing with Simba, Pumba, and Timon during their Hakuna Matata musical production, I was not even sure if I typed the correct lyrics at the beginning of this blog post, but anyway I just loved the song that it even became a theme song of my life during my teenage years, when I was so fearful of what others might think about me. And of course, let us not forget, the duet between Simba and Nala, again, I could not help but fell in love with them. The song Can You Feel the Love Tonight? was such a heartfelt song that despite the fact that animals sang it, no one would be able to resist the message of the song. It would make you sigh and say 'sana all'.
'Sana all', but Hakuna Matata!
After pondering for quite some time which book to get, she finally picked two hard bounds and one soft bound of contemporary fiction and hid them at the bottom shelf. She noted to buy them if her budget would permit them to be bought.
Only a few steps from that unpopulated corner, she made her way to the more exposed bookshelves which held more of the popular book category. It catered a bit more pricey books compared to what could be found in the corner where she just left off. There were paralleled shelves with a little space in between enough for just one person. Regardless of the book price in that area, she browsed with expectancy hoping to find books with sufficient discounts that would allow her to buy the books. A book by F. Sionil Jose always got her attention whenever she went to that area of the book store. She had an unusual fascination with classic Filipino authors ever since she came to realize that reading Filipino books was not a bad choice for her next reading escapade. That books written by classic Filipino authors were worth reading for.
She chose The Pretenders by F. Sionil Jose as her first book from his works. The title intrigued her and she wanted to know the pretenders in the story. But, that would take some time for her to discover the answers to her curiosity, and not too soon. She still had others waiting to be read on her bookshelves at home, and the first come first read policy was strictly implemented.
Upon entering the book store, there were tables with books on them in the middle aisle straight from the entrance, some with big discounts. They were huge discounts like from 365 pesos price of the book down to 25 pesos, and that was like 93% off. Wasn't that amazing for a thrift reader like her? She got two books about the healing powers of honey and vinegar, which were more on the category of an organic and healthy lifestyle.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt made a mental note that she had enough. She reached the limit of her budget for book buying. She returned to the unpopulated corner and brought out the three books she hid at the bottom shelf. In total, she had six books, two hard bounds, and four soft bounds.
Her cash was not sufficient for the total amount of the books, but it was a relief that the lady cashier accepted the debit card mode of payment. As she waited for the cue, she had doubts and uncertainties if it was wise and practical to spend money on those 6 books. She stood there in the line feeling conflicted. She was next in line before a couple who bought a lot of office supplies with lots of long bond paper. The agony was taking a toll on her and she just needed a step to get away from the line and return the books on their respective shelves or stay on the line and let the cashier punch her purchase.
The lady in a pink t-shirt and knee-length maong skirt finally had her moment with the cashier. Carefully, she placed all her skeptically chosen six books on the counter. The lady cashier was nice as she joyfully scanned the books and announced to her that there were more discounts than she expected like those two books with a price tag of 50 pesos were actually 25 pesos from 365 pesos or 195 pesos was actually 156 pesos from 475 pesos. She thought the prices were already the final discounted price, but there was more. She felt giddy every time the lady cashier made an announcement of bigger discounts she could get. That genuine smile would never leave her face as she heard the good news.
to be continued...
At first, I could not relate to what I was reading, I almost put down the book and proceeded to the next one. I thought this book was just about a boy-girl romantic relationship and I was getting sick of that topic. But it would be a waste if I let this book pass, so I decided to give it a second chance. I stopped reading this book and let some times passed by. Giving it the rest both of us needed.
Love and Light by Zara Louise is a book full of hope, forgiveness, and of course love and light. Every page took me back to the time I was nothing when I thought I was so full of something, where in fact I was just a fool pretending I got it all together, but deep inside I was broken. I was glad I gave the book a second chance and a time to redeem itself to me.
This book also reminds me that everyone still has a chance in life, that it is never too late to start over again, especially if it is with God this time around. Nothing is more wonderful than living a life surrendered to God, to Your Creator, the Designer of this vast universe. It is not easy to surrender, the process is hard and difficult, but you and I are never alone in that journey. He is with you every step of the way to thrive in life with courage knowing that you are good enough. That you don't have to please people or meet their expectations so you can feel and find happiness or satisfaction in doing so. And that life is not all about people pleasing and giving away your own happiness while others take advantage of you. You can serve others and be kind to yourself all at the same time. Don't beat yourself up just to do the hustle-bustle in this busy world of temporal things. Be brave and take courage in God's love, kindness, and provisions for you. You are well equipped of the blessings, gifts, and grace God has bestowed upon you to live a life of purpose, meaning, and happiness. You are not lacking in any way. He created you just for the right purpose. So continue to thrive and grow where you are planted and let the only true light shine upon you.
I am Hua Mulan.
Sort of I was her, I thought I could identify myself with her during those times I was having an identity crisis. I would love to sing the theme song Reflection, though I was completely aware I was out of tune and I did not care. I just wanted to pour my heart out while singing the song within the comforts of our house.
I grew up looking and admiring Mulan's character. She is loyal, brave, and true, such noble values that are definitely hard to live by.
The announcement of a live-action film of Mulan had me grinning from ear to ear. I was expectant since they confirmed the actor to play the title role, and it was none other than Liu Yifei. I thought she looked familiar and I was not wrong I saw her somewhere. The Return of the Condor Heroes, that was where I saw Yifei. I did not like her before since I first saw the animation version of The Return of the Condor Heroes and I detested her acting for the role and for even trying to copy an anime character. And that was me a long time ago, petty and so determined to protect the purity of my beloved anime heroes.
Liu Yifei is an American Chinese actor who played the part of Mulan in the live-action film by Disney. I liked how she portrayed the character of Mulan and thought she was the perfect actor for the role. She emanated the humanity of Mulan in the animated version and stuck with it like she came out from Mulan 1998. I was glad the production team did not force the singing and theatrical effect in the movie. The live-action film stood by for its own originality that it would never leave a bitter taste after watching the movie. Some would say that it was not faithful to the storyline and some of the characters of the animated version, but the changes were delivered with much gusto and careful consideration of the story's cultural background.
It was unfortunate that Mulan live-action film 2020 did not stream in major cinemas all over the world due to the CoViD-19 pandemic and a lot of other issues. Instead, the movie for the most part only streamed online. There were some who were greatly disappointed and on my part, I was not much awaited since I was not fond of going to cinemas. I just thought that maybe they were disappointed because the film did not receive the attention and clamor it deserved.
In conclusion, I was happy with what the movie offered to me. So, you should try seeing the movie too.
I am Manocot, Arlene Cahanap, signing off for now... good night.
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