Is there anything in the animal kingdom cuter than a kitten? Not likely. But make that kitten a bit bigger — even deadly — and you have not just an adorable animal, but a grand narrative. It’s what makes “African Cats” so irresistible. The latest documentary from Disneynature teaches and entertains in an engaging way that appeals both to children and their parents. Of course, all the filmmakers really had to do was point their lenses at the playful cubs and they had a hit on their hands. Add a cool narration by the incomparable Samuel L. Jackson, though, and you have something really special.
“African Cats” was filmed on Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve and follows the travails of two families struggling to survive there. Fang is the leader of a pride of lions, the only male to a group of lionesses and their cubs. He has to protect not just them, but himself — some bad dudes from the other side of the tracks (OK, river) really want to muscle him out and take over his polygamous family. Or at least the females in it. Should they succeed, they’ll likely kill or drive out those cute cubs to make room for their own genes to propagate.
