Playing in Epcot's Land pavilion at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, Circle of Life opened in the Harvest Theater on January 21, 1995, as the Walt Disney Co. looked to capitalize on the recent overwhelming success of its animated movie musical, The Lion King. The film replaced Symbiosis, a film about human damage to the environment that provided some footage that was recycled in Circle of Life.
Recycling - how environmentally friendly! ;-)
Circle of Life follows The Lion King's Timon and Pumbaa, as the two dam local rivers to create a lake for their planned Hakuna Matata Lakeside Village. Simba points out that their actions are robbing other animals downstream of the water they need to survive. Then he really rubs it in by telling Timon and Pumbaa that they're acting like a bunch of human beings.
Timon and Pumbaa learn the lesson and remove the dam, restoring the environment for all the downstream animals. And the audience learns a lesson.
You know who also learned a lesson from Circle of Life? The writers of "Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa," who used the same device (a dam in Africa threatening downstream life) as a major plot point in that Dreamworks animated film.
As a 16-seed, Circle of Life faces the toughest road to the title in this bracket. We will find out how this film performs when voting begins in March.
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