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THE WOLF AND THE LION

"Sweet Isn’t Quite Enough"

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What You Need To Know:

THE WOLF AND THE LION opens with a young lady named Alma returning home because of her grandfather’s death. While walking in the forest, she discovers a small, crashed plane that was carrying a baby lion cub meant for a circus. The cub falls into her arms from a tree branch. When Alma takes it back home, a local wolf brings her baby pup to her house as well. Now, Alma feels responsible for the care of these two animals. However, it’s a bigger responsibility than she was expected, especially when she realizes she’s not the only one who wants them.

THE WOLF AND THE LION is a passion project for the filmmakers due to their support for animal preservation. However, the movie feels a bit amateurish, although it has many cute moments. The lead actress feels green as well. Her performance doesn’t keep viewers fully engaged. THE WOLF AND THE LION has a light moral worldview with strong environmentalist content. MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children because of a strong profanity and other foul language in THE WOLF AND THE LION.

Content:

(B, EE, L, V, N, A, M):

Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements:
Light moral worldview shows kindness and compassion prevailing, with a strong environmentalist attitude promoting conservation of nature and against caging wild animals

Foul Language:
Seven obscenities and profanities, including one GD profanity and one use of “screw you”

Violence:
Light violence includes some animal abuse is insinuated, animals are shown being shot with tranquilizers and trapped in nets, a girl falls and hits her head on a rock causing her to pass out, and a man’s hand is slammed in a door

Sex:
No sex

Nudity:
Light nudity including a few examples of upper male nudity of circus performers

Alcohol Use:
Light alcohol use with one scene in a bar where people have drinks

Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse:
No smoking or illegal drugs, but animals are drugged to sedate them in order to use them in a circus performance;

Miscellaneous Immorality:
Light miscellaneous content includes some disrespect toward elders and authority figures, one example of lying, and elements of animal mistreatment and abuse.

More Detail:

THE WOLF AND THE LION begins as a young lady named Alma is preparing for a piano exam that could guarantee her a spot in the Los Angeles Philharmonic. However, she has to unexpectedly return home due to the recent passing of her grandfather. Her parents have already died, and her grandfather was the only family that she had left.

Upon returning home, Alma is greeted by her godfather Joe, who takes her to her childhood house in a remote forest. While she’s out in the woods exploring her old stomping grounds, she runs into two men tracking a local wolf. She happens to find this wolf trapped in a net and sets her free, while condemning the men trying to capture her and instructing them to leave the private property.

A short time later, Alma stumbles upon a small plane crash that was transporting a baby lion cub to a nearby performing circus. While examining the damage, the baby lion cub quite literally falls into her arms, and she takes it back home with her. However, when she returns with the cub, the wolf that she previously set free enters her house unexpectedly carrying her own baby as well and dropping it off for Alma. Not knowing what to do, she calls Joe who instructs her to call the animal control services.

However, when she learns that the baby lion cub was meant for the circus, and knowing how strongly against this her grandfather was, she decides not to call. Instead, she keeps the two baby cubs and take care of them herself.

The animals quickly grow to full size. Although Alma feels totally comfortable with them, Joe’s uneasy about the situation. Also, there are people searching for the two animals. However, the two animals are Alma’s best friends, and she refuses to let them be taken into captivity.

One day, while on a nature walk, Alma trips and falls, hitting her head on a rock and passing out. When Joe is unable to contact her via their walkie-talkies that they always use for communication, he goes out searching for her. However, when he discovers Alma’s dire situation, he’s forced to call emergency services, who take her to the hospital but also take the animals.

When Alma wakes and learns that they have been taken, she leaves the hospital in search of her fur babies. However, little does she know that the law enforcement has contacted the circus who has taken the lion away and the tracker has taken the wolf into captivity as well.

Unhappily for the captors, the wolf and the lion have a natural bond after growing up together and will do whatever it takes to be together. Not long after its capture, the wolf escapes captivity and goes in search of the lion. When this happens, the tracker’s forced to go to Alma for help and tells her that he has placed a tracker on the wolf that could help them locate him. Alma knows in her heart that the wolf is searching for his brother, and they soon discover that the lion has escaped from the circus as well. Alma teams up with this tracker, who’s had a change of heart, to find the animals before anyone else does.

THE WOLF AND THE LION sends a clear message from the writer and director regarding their passion for the conservation of nature, the environment, and the freedom of habitat for animals. Even though it’s not a first attempt for the moviemakers, it does feel a bit like novice writing, novice writing and overall novice moviemaking. Although the story is cute, it’s not quite enough to keep the viewer’s full attention. The stakes aren’t very high, and the movie’s attempt to create drama feels forced. The scenery is beautiful and the animals endearing, despite the movie’s failure to create strong empathy.

THE WOLF AND THE LION follows a primarily environmental worldview concerning the preservation of nature, condemning circuses and other organizations that capture and enslave animals in their unnatural habitat. There are some moral elements with the good overcoming the bad. However, THE WOLF AND THE LION contains a few obscenities and profanities, including a GD profanity. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older pre-adolescent children.

Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.


Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.