Movie,Review

The Jungle Book 2016 Review

posted on : April 13, 2016 posted by : Stnkrbug 0 Comment

When I was younger, The Jungle Book was one of my favorite Disney movies since I love animals so much. I was fascinated by the colorful jungle in the movie, and all of the interesting characters who made the movie fun. When I found out they made a live action version of the animated movie, I was ecstatic. I re-watched the animated one and brushed up on the book in order to be ready for the new one. My friend, Joycie, actually won tickets to go see an early showing of the movie, and she brought me with her! It was so cool to see the movie early, and I thought I would do a review of it (with no spoilers!) since I love the original one so much.

The 3D was definitely worth it.
I usually don’t like seeing movies in 3D since it’s a lot more expensive, and never seems to be worth it; however, I’m so glad I got to see this movie in 3D! Everything was so realistic that I actually felt like I was there in the movie, it was so cool! It also honestly felt like you were moving, like on a ride in Disneyland. The whole experience was so immersive and it’s made me want to see more movies in 3D if they are as good as that one. Maybe 3D is just generally better when the movie is live action rather than animated.

The graphics were amazing.

I couldn’t believe how real all of the animals looked – it seriously looked like they used actual animals to film the movie. The scenery was also really incredible and felt like you were right there in the forest with Mowgli. It’s really amazing how real they can make movies look anymore! The movie as a whole was just generally beautiful because due to the gorgeous graphics – they couldn’t have done it any better, in my opinion! I also can’t explain enough how adorable the wolf cubs were.

They couldn’t have had a better cast.
I’ve always been a big Bill Murray fan, so I may be a little biased, but the whole cast was so great. The little boy Neel Sethi made such a wonderful Mowgli, I’m sure he’s going to turn out to be a really great actor! I was also so glad to see that Lupita Nyong’o voiced Raksha – I absolutely love her as an actress, and she’s just as good at voice acting. I honestly can’t say enough good things about the cast, and I’m really glad that they didn’t lose the magic of the original Jungle Book, they definitely added to it.

There was a much fuller explanation of the backstory to the movie.
In the original storyline, we only really know that Shere Khan hates humans because he was burned by them, but we don’t know who burned him, why, or how. There is a much better explanation in the movie, and we find out the actually circumstances behind the incident. The film also explains, through Kaa, how Mowgli actually got to the jungle, and why he was left there. I really liked how they did this, and incorporated into the current events, rather than just have a sudden flashback sometime during the movie. The explanation was very naturally added to the story line, and it added so much to the movie as a whole by creating much higher stakes.

The songs from the original movie were incorporated perfectly.
I was slightly worried about how they would fit in the iconic songs like “Bare Necessities” and “I Wanna Be Like You,” but they did it so well. The characters didn’t randomly break out into song, but rather casually sang the songs as any other person would while they’re doing something. I also loved the monkey scene when King Louis sang “I Wanna Be Like You,” even though it was more of a “choreographed” version of it, in that he kind of broke out into song. It was cohesive with the scene, however, and lightened up the mood a bit, which was good since there were a lot of children in the audience.

It was a more serious adaptation, but still had a lot of comic relief.
Throughout the movie, there were many characters who provided comic relief to the dark feeling of the movie. The live action version is definitely more serious, so it was good that there were scenes that got the whole audience laughing. I’m really glad that the movie was a bit more mature than the original one, but still had the magic and displayed Mowgli’s careless, happy, and giving attitude.

The end scene during the credits.
I am definitely a sucker for cute little scenes during ending credits, and The Jungle Book did not disappoint! I won’t spoil what it was, but I would stick around for the credits if you like seeing little extras. There is nothing at the very end of the credits, but the beginning is super cute.
Overall, I was so impressed with the new Jungle Book, and it wasn’t a let down at all. I was worried it was going to lose the magic of the first film, but if anything, they added a whole lot to it. It’s definitely worth seeing in the theater, and I can’t wait to buy it once it comes out on DVD!
Have you seen the new Jungle Book?

Thank you so much for reading, and have a great day! 🙂

About The Author

Stnkrbug

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