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Mufasa review: Nepo baby Blue Ivy's debut film is dragged down by forgettable songs and tiresome banter, writes BRIAN VINER

Mufasa: The Lion King strains with every sinew to make us feel the love tonight - to paraphrase one of the original song titles, writes Brian Viner.

Here we see wise old mandrill Rafiki (John Kani) telling the stirring life story of Simba’s late father, Mufasa, to his wide-eyed granddaughter, Kiara (voiced by Blue Ivy Carter – herself the daughter of US pop royalty Beyonce and Jay-Z). After being swept far away from his parents by raging floodwaters, Mufasa (Aaron Pierre) reaches adolescence as the adopted son of kindly queen lioness Eshe (Thandiwe Newton), whose disagreeable mate Obasi (Lennie James) is less accepting of a ‘stray’. The youthful Mufasa forms a strong fraternal bond with Eshe’s natural son Taka (Kelvin Harrison Jnr), which intensifies when a belligerent army of white lions arrives to conquer Obasi’s pride.

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