The Jungle Book (2016) Review!!

Synopsis – An orphan boy is raised in the jungle with the help of a pack of wolves, a bear, and a black panther.

My Take – Here comes another film which is ready to successfully pull our nostalgic strings. Nostalgia is a powerful thing, and makers all around have used the original story line to create many productions, which have been adored by many, be it the various animation or theater or movie interpretations, notably Disney‘s own 1967 version (which I grew up watching as a kid in the 90s) and an upcoming live action adaption from WB directed by Andy Serkis. Bravo! Disney Bravo! What a magnificent way to reintroduce this jungle adventure to a new generation of kids while equally satisfying the adults as well. Disney are definitely doing an amazing job transitioning their iconic animated movies to live screen adaptations, first with Maleficent, Cinderella and now this. The next installment in the growing list of Disney live action remakes that have so far turned out to be relatively alright at best. This is by far the best of the bunch as it gives us something that adopts a slightly more serious and modern tone but still sticks to some of the qualities that made the Disney Classic so beloved. Going into the film, the most impressive aspect that i was looking forward to the most was seeing, or hearing the fantastic cast in action. Having Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Scarlet Johansson, and Christopher Walken cast as the characters we love is enough to get me looking forward to the film. Some fit more than others but overall, the talent paid off. Even though it is a ‘live action’ adaptation, only like 5% of the film at the most is real, the rest is all done through some of the most impressive CGI i have ever seen. The new rendition takes the expectation and rises beyond with emotionally engaging and larger-than-life characters, which is no small feat considering it relies on sole child actor Neel Sethi while the rest of the veteran cast lend their voices for the animal kingdom. That is a testament to director Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Chef) to pull young Neil Sethi‘s ability to act. Based on Rudyard Kipling‘s novel of the same name, the story follows young orphaned Mowgli (Neel Sethi), who as a toddler was found in the jungle by the black panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley) and raised by a pack of wolves led by Akela (Giancarlo Eposito) and Raksha (Lupita Nyong’o) who nurtures him as if he was hers, aptly referring Mowgli as her “man-cub”.

When the fearsome tiger Shere Khan (Idris Elba) learns of Mowgli’s existence, he threatens his life, emphasizing that a man-cub becomes a man; and man is forbidden to co-exist with the animals. Fearing for the safety of the pack, Mowgli decides to leave his family and is escorted by Bagheera to return him to the “man-village.” Across the jungle’s increasingly inhospitable terrain, Mowgli encounters the hypnotizing python Kaa (Scarlett Johansson), the honey-obsessed bear Baloo (Bill Murray) and the overgrown orangutan King Louie (Christoper Walken) who wants to possess the “red flower” (us humans call it ‘fire’) to advance himself to the top spot of the jungle’s evolutionary ladder. Its up to Bagheera & Baloo to make sure Mowgli reaches the village safe and sound. The overall plot of the film stays very faithful to the original film with changes here and there that are both better and worse, but it’s what you expect from these adaptations. But whats extremely fascinating is that, the whole environment in the film is CGI. The animals are also CGI & yet, they look extremely lifelike. The forest the movie is set in, looks breathtaking. Director Jon Favreau & the rest of the crew, have maintained the soul of the 1967 animated movie of the same name. As wiki says, director Jon Favreau was encouraged by Walt Disney Studios to take advantage of the film’s setting and story as an opportunity to use the latest advancements in photo-realistic rendering, computer- generated imagery and motion capture technologies. So they created the whole Jungle on the green screen right down to the moss and weeds. And believe me, it’s even better than in ‘Avatar’. The story stays almost true to the book, altering slightly to accommodate the running time as well as budget. As the lead, we get enough insights into Mowgli when he’s defending his failure in a race to Bagheera, when he’s proud of using his man tricks, when he tries to negotiate his right of choosing his own ‘people’, when he is afraid of Shere Khan, when he iterates the law of the Jungle and finally when he faces his fears. As the other major roles, both Bagheera and Baloo get ample screen time and their chemistry with Mowgli and with each other livens up the screen. The film did delve into some humorous exchanges between the characters especially with Mowgli and Baloo, and it helped to lighten the mood at times which helped me stay interested. My complaint are the two secondary antagonists, Kaa and King Louie. I feel both of these characters were underutilized in favor of the overarching plot, which makes me question why they were there in the first place. Kaa’s only role in the film is to exposit why Mowgli was in the Jungle in the first place, and King Louie’s role is to tell Mowgli that the Alpha Wolf of his pack was killed by Shere Khan, prompting the climax. Given the size and scale of both of these characters being larger-than-life (Seriously, both of these characters are impossibly huge), it’s weird how little they serve in the overall story.

With an excellent voice cast, the film presents a colorful array of memorable characters. In terms of the characters, i thought the film captured their personalities and attitudes almost perfectly. Bill Murray as Baloo was perfect, he was just as fun and entertaining to watch as his animated counterpart, and completely stole all scenes he was in. Bill Murray as the manipulative sloth bear Baloo is a crowd favorite as he blurs the line of being annoying and adorable. Idris Elba as Shere Khan is chillingly formidable with his guttural threats. Idris Elba is menacing and a real force to be reckoned with in this film, you feel that he is the most feared tiger in the jungle. Sir Ben Kingsley was also the best fit for Bagheera as he nailed the very wise and intelligent personality, and was just a really cool character. In his first feature appearance, Neel Sethi as young Mowgli is tasked to sell the wonder and hold the humanity of this tale. Considering that he is basically working with puppets and green screen for the entire film, he makes everything believable – the beauty and danger of the jungle, his kinetic and charismatic performance and his on screen connection with the animals. Of course, this will not be successful without Jon Favreau‘s direction. My personal favorite scene is infant Mowgli’s and Bagheera’s first encounter where he innocently and fearlessly touches Bagheera’s face. This sends a powerful message that a child is born with an innate sense of morality; this act being done out of kindness. Christopher Walken as King Louie was overall pretty good, I didn’t mind hearing his voice as the famous Orangutang/Gigantopithecus. There are some issues with his scene like I mentioned above, but oh well. Scarlet Johansson is underutilized. But she maximizes her short sequence in providing the film’s backstory and delivering a magnetic voice in python Kaa. Giancarlo Eposito‘s Akela and Lupita Nyong’o‘s Raksha supplies the fierce patriarch and protective maternal vibe that each of their character wolves need. This is one of the most satisfying movies I have seen this year. There is something here for everyone, from the kids to the adults. Whatever degree of skepticism you have for Jon Favreau‘s film – the latest remake under Disney’s ‘turn an animated classic into a live action’ sub-genre, I say, you will be amazed From splendid sound design to flabbergasting CGI wizardry, director Favreau, with cinematographer Bill Pope, deftly crafts this spectacle not only to dazzle viewers but also to enhance its dramatic agenda. On the whole, ‘The Jungle Book’ is a delightful watch due to Favreau‘s direction, the topnotch visual effects and the excellent vocal and live-action performances.