Daily Dialogue — February 26, 2014

WITH THE STAMPEDE

Mortally wounded, Mufasa makes a valiant leap up a steep incline. He climbs up loose rock that gives way. He struggles up the incline and climbs just beneath a rocky overhang. He digs his claws in and dangles.

ANGLE — SCAR

Looking down at his brother, who clings for his life.

MUFASA

Calls to Scar:

Mufasa: Scar, help me! Brother — help me?

SCAR AND MUFASA

Unmoved, Scar glares at Mufasa. Hold a beat. Then Scar DIGS his claws into Mufasa’s forearms, pulls him closer and whispers:

Scar: Long live the king.

Scar releases his grip. Mufasa slides down the steep incline to his death.

SIMBA

runs over the rise JUST IN TIME TO SEE Mufasa disappear into the thundering wildebeest. He does not see Scar. He cries:

Simba: Nooooooo!

— The Lion King (1994), written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, Linda Woolverton

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is agony, suggested by Illimani. Today’s suggestion by Aarthi Jayaraman.

Trivia: In early drafts, Scar was a rogue lion with no relation to Mufasa. Eventually, however, the story writers thought relating him to Mufasa would be more interesting; a threat within. This is why Scar and Mufasa differ so much; They weren’t originally designed to be related.

Dialogue On Dialogue: Commentary by Aarthi: “A most magnificent heart-pounding scene with tension evoked physically as well as emotionally by characters — smaller conflict of brother vs.brother and father vs.son. Further conflict is superimposed by the giant cataclysmic wildebeest run destroying Africa.”

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