Review of The Jungle Book (2016) by Tornadocreator — 19 Apr 2016

I went into this not sure what to expect but found it to be a pleasant surprise. This re-imagining of the classic story, while actually closer to the book, manages to set a tone quickly and keep everything fun and lively all the way through. The child actor playing Mowgli was exceptional and really held this film together, while certain nods and small bits where attention to detail was particularly high, made me feel shockingly engrossed. There where some unfortunate concessions. In order to make this kid friendly the film glosses over anything that would be realistically gruesome, but the jungle still feels threatening at least. The casting of Scarlet Johansson as the snake Kaa was an interesting choice, and I can see why the song "Trust in me" was relegated to playing over the credits as it would have slowed the pace of the film and left younger children bored. Hopefully a directors cut will put in a scene where the song is placed into the film itself. The slightly selfish nature of Baloo works really well, and makes him oddly more endearing and funny.

Ultimately this is a great family film and one I recommend whole-heartedly. It was great fun and, while the CGI can be a little distracting at times, it's rarely a big problem. Even adults should enjoy this.