🦁🌅 The Lion King - does nostalgia survive adulthood?

VIFF movie outing - public screening, optional short chat after.
Short summary
Some childhood movies get smaller when you grow up.
The Lion King does not, exactly.
It becomes stranger.
Yes, the songs still work. The spectacle still works. The opening still knows exactly what it is doing. But watching it as an adult brings out other things: family myth, grief, inheritance, exile, guilt, power, and the pressure of becoming who people say you are supposed to become.
This is not just “remember this movie?”
That would be too easy.
I want the adult version of the conversation: why this movie became so huge, what it actually teaches children, what feels different now, and whether the emotion survives when you are no longer the age it was made for.
A few questions already sitting in my head

• “What part still works on you, even if you resist it?”
• “Is Simba’s story about courage, guilt, destiny, or running from grief?”
• “Does the movie simplify power too much, or is that part of myth?”
• “Which song carries the most emotional weight now?”
• “What did this movie teach children about responsibility?”
• “Does nostalgia make the film better, or harder to see clearly?”

How the evening will go
We’ll meet at VIFF Centre before the screening, watch the film together, and whoever wants can stay for a short chat after.
This is a public VIFF screening, not a private Meetup event.
Please buy your own VIFF ticket while available.
Ticket note
Buy your VIFF ticket here:
https://viff.org/whats-on/the-lion-king/book/sY1jTLQU1u
When and where
🗓️ Date: Thursday, July 23rd, 2026
🕒 Time: 5:00 PM
📍 Location: VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre
1181 Seymour Street, Vancouver, BC
Runtime: 88 min
VIFF series: 90s, Baby!