Review of The Jungle Book (2016) by Josh K — 17 Jul 2016

Disney arrives with a truly visionary and amazing film this 2016, this time a live action retelling of the classic Rudyard Kipling story, which they first adapted in 1967 as an animated film, though this film is more of an inspiration, going in its own direction, with a slightly darker spin and approach.

The film follows Mowgli, who seeks out a journey, aided by various animals, while the threatening and evil tiger Shere Khan attempts to kill him.

The film is a visual wonder and great treat, with a terrific cast. Newcomer Neel Sethi depicts Mowgli and is the only human actor in the film, since many of the actors are computer generated creations. Sethi does an amazing job, since as an actor, he has nothing to work with. He wonderfully commands the screen, making you believe in his journey, while remarkably depicting Mowgli as a strong-minded and strong-willed child. Throughout the entire film, he is able to command the film, while he also has great chemistry with the actors voicing the animals. He's not only believable, but delivers a performance of realism and believability. In all honesty, he truly deserves a nomination for Best Actor for managing to work with absolutely nothing on the film. The voice cast is impeccable and brilliantly picked. Ben Kingsley voices Bagheera as a general, with a true sense of command and knowledge, while he also shows compassion for Mowgli. Bill Murray is wonderful as Baloo, bringing the right amount comedy, while also appearing serious in scenes. Christopher Walken is terrific as King Louie, who is given a slightly larger appearance, as a secondary villain. Walken is menacing when he needs to be and friendly at other times. Scarlett Johansson is exceptional as Kaa, depicting the character with a more serious approach, instead of a comedic foil, which the animated film had done. The real standout in the voice cast, though, is Idris Elba, who voices Shere Khan. Elba is absolutely magnificent in the role, appearing splendidly evil, while allowing the character to be highly menacing, even off screen. Elba, as Shere Khan, has got to be one of the greatest Disney villains, since Jeremy Irons as Scar in The Lion King, Keith David as Dr. Facilier in The Princess and the Frog and Richard White as Gaston in Beauty and the Beast. Lupita Nyong'o and Giancarlo Esposito are also perfectly cast as the wolves that watch over Mowgli.

Jon Favreau masterfully directs this film, crafting a film that is not only original, but also full of magic and wonder. Favreau, who is probably mostly well-known to this generation for bringing Iron Man to life, is an amazing choice for this film and also seems like the best choice to deliver a new tale of The Jungle Book. Favreau crafts a film with real heart and relatable characters, successfully having us follow a young child on journey of self-discovery, while encountering danger at every turn. With the help of Favreau, as well as screenwriter Justin Marks, you not only relate with Mowgli, but also the countless characters he encounters on his journey. Marks, especially, manages to craft an original film as screenwriter that feels like something for a whole new generation. Bill Pope's cinematography is astounding, wonderfully switching color for every scene and location that Mowgli encounters. At times light, other times stark and dark, the lighting and camera angles are perfectly developed and handled, while this film also works well in 3D, primarily IMAX 3D. Watching it in 3D you feel like you are part of the film and action, while seeing it on a giant screen like IMAX further adds to the action and adventure in the Indian jungle and landscape. John Debney's score has a mystical feel to it, at times incorporating elements of the score from the 1967 film in a smart and genius manner. The songs The Bare Necessities, Trust In Me and I Wan'na Be Like You are interwoven brilliantly into the plot. While the film mainly relies on speaking, instead of singing, elements of the songs appear in speech, while the songs appear in full through the end credits. This approach perfectly goes along with the film, since switching to a musical for a short amount of time would seem awkward and out of style for a film that is approached in a more serious and darker manner.

The real treat of this film are the visual effects, which brilliantly and realistically bring the animals. While watching the film, I never thought that the animals were CGI, since they appear so life like, which one of the film's many successes. This is similar to Life of Pi, where the animals, mainly the tiger, were CGI, but in a very realistic approach. The animals in this film walk and sit like actual animals, proving that visual effects are constantly evolving and changing. I do believe that this will gain the film an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, which it truly deserves.

The end result is a film full of magic, while also proving that Disney can still deliver films of originality, with real heart, magic and wonder. While not a direct remake of the 1967 film, and in my opinion very superior, the film is more of a love letter, while also acting as a film for a whole new generation of film goers. Bravo! Bravo indeed!