Movie Review: The Jungle Book

By Bryan Hultgren

Jon Farverau's live action  adaption of the Disney classic is a  combination of a visual spectacle, wonderful characters, and a wonderful story that makes one of the year's best films.

About two years ago, I read that Disney was planning to adapt The Jungle Book to the big screen for a live action film.  However, after the disappointment of the most recent live action films, I paid no attention to it.  Even with a very good director in Jon Farverau (director of Iron Man and Elf) and an all star cast, I was not looking forward to this film and considered skipping it.  However, that all changed after I saw the first official teaser that premiered in September, as I was completely blown away from what I saw and what they were going for. After watching the film, I can honestly say that this film tops the original Disney animated classic and is, in my opinion, the definitive Jungle Book for me personally.

The story essentially follows the animated classic from 1967 with a few minor changes.  A young boy named Mowgli (played by Neel Sethi) is abandoned in the jungle as an infant, where he is found by the panther, Bagheera (voiced by Ben Kingsley).  Bagheera takes Mowgli to a pack of wolves, who take him in and raise him as one of their own for 10 years.  Mowgli's life is soon put in danger by the man-hating, bengal tiger, Shere Khan (voiced by Idris Elba), who vows to kill the "man-cub", as he is scarred by man's fire.  Mowgli is forced to leave the pack with Bagheera, as they set out to the "Man Village" to return Mowlgi to his own kind.  Along his journey, Mowlgi meets many different characters such as the care-free, spirited bear, Baloo (voiced by Bill Murray), the hypnotic, man-eating python, Kaa (voiced by Scarlett Johansson), and the charming, but vicious gigantopithecus, King Louie (voiced by Christopher Walken).

Though I still cherish the original classic, one of the biggest problems I had with it was the story as it was told very episodic and wasn't very coherent.  However, despite being familiar, this story actually adds onto the legend from the original Kipling books and creates a brand new world for these characters to live in.  All of the characters are more fleshed out, more of the relationships are dove into more, and there is more action in the story than in the original animated film.  It also does really good handling dramatic scenes, as there is more conflict and depth added into these characters that make them even more real and three dimensional.  However, under the brilliant directing of Farverau, it still gives off the warm feeling of joy and fun that the original animated film was so good at delivering and still feel familiar, though clearly different.

Bill Murray as Baloo and Neel Sethi as Mowgli in The Jungle Book

In terms of acting, all of the actors are on point and all give stellar performances.  Most praise has to go to Neel Sethi who had the most difficult task of acting against a blue/green screen, had no other human actors on set to interact with, and working with models, he still gives a great performance as the Mowgli, carrying the film on his back and make the experience very believable.  He brought a great charisma to the role, as well as take many cues from the animated film, but still make it his own character.

The other characters are well portrayed in the film as well.  Bill Murray's Baloo, though not on the level of the Ed Harris version, was incredibly entertaining and was the most uplifting spirit of the film and a treat to enjoy.  Ben Kingsley, however, far out passed the original Bagheera from the 1967 film.  Though stubborn and pretty strict, Kingsley brings more heart and wisdom to the character that was missing from the original, making the character more likable.  In terms of entertainment, Christopher Walken's King Louie steals the show with his incredible charm and wit, but still remains viscous and furious, commanding the best scene of the film when he appears.  However, the stand-out character of the film is Idris Elba's Shere Kahn, who was absolutely terrifying.  Already terrifying from the physical performance and appearance, Elba enhances the character with a chilling voice and dark personality, stealing every scene he was in and make him a posing challenge for Mowgli.

Idris Elba as Shere Kahn in The Jungle Book

The special effects in this film are nothing less than absolutely breath-taking.  While most people are turned off from 3D tickets and premium seating, people will be willing to pay to see the experience this film provides.  The world Favreau has created is beautiful, with lush visuals, rousing onscreen action, and inspired recreations of classic hand drawn scenes, all of which are heightened by a quality 3D presentation and superior sound.  The physical appearence and movements of the animals are done with extremely close detail, so much so that I constantly have to remind myself that this is all computers.  In a world where CGI is exploited to the complete maximum, this film recognizes CGI as a tool and instead uses it to enhance the experience, rather than make it the experience.

Overall, The Jungle Book is magnificent – honoring its literary and animated roots with thrilling action, groundbreaking effects, and heart-warming drama. The characters are well-portrayed and entertaining, the story is well paced and engaging, and is made even better with ground-breaking visuals. While it’s still too early to claim that all of Disney’s planned live-action reimaginings will payoff, The Jungle Book makes a compelling case for adapting certain Walt Disney Animated Classics.  

Left to Right: Bagheera (Ben Kingsley), Baloo (Bill Murray), Mowgli (Neel Sethi), and Raksha (Lupita N'yongo)