Review of Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) by Theredsky — 29 Dec 2019

The original Jumanji from 1995 is dated but fun. The sequel from 2017 is not good but the 2019 sequel is slightly better than it. This film has basically the same plot as the original although it does differentiate in a few places but its repetitiveness leads the film to be predictable.

I was able to predict what was going to happen before each “level”. Since I felt it was predictable, I did get bored during some sequences. The film has a noticeable lack of tension due to its repetitiveness and predictability.

I knew the characters would be fine and make it out of each situation okay. The script is nothing too good either. It isn’t terrible but I felt it lacked a little bit of charm and caused some of the jokes to feel a little forced although a handful of jokes got a smile or chuckle out of me.

The video game characters played by Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, and Kevin Hart did a pretty good job. In the first film, they had to impersonate only one character but in this film they had to impersonate two or three and I felt they did a great job at that.

In the first film, I felt Jack Black was the only funny character but in this one Jack Black and Kevin Hart were the funniest ones. Gillan and Johnson were able to get a laugh out of me though in a couple of areas.

Unfortunately, the acting from the real life characters, besides Danny DeVito and Danny Glover, was not so great. They do not have any chemistry together and just felt awkward around each other. The action set pieces are new and unique in some areas but similar and repetitive in others.

They were entertaining yet a little boring at the same time. Some of the technical aspects are just okay. The music is bland and boring but the cinematography is serviceable. The visual effects were mostly below average in the first one but they were better here although very shotty in a few areas.

Overall, Jumanji: The Next Level is dumb popcorn fun with good acting and chemistry from the video game characters but its predictability, repetitveness, and lack of tension takes away from the film.