The Jungle Book (2016) review

As many of you know, Disney’s current schedule of upcoming live-action releases is almost entirely consisting of live-action remakes of their animated classics. These last few months in particular have seen the company announce numerous proposed films, including a new Winnie the Pooh, a new Mary Poppins film, and The Sword in the Stone, just to name a few. This of course is following the highly successful box-office runs of films like Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland and 2014’s Maleficent. However, this new practice of theirs has attracted a considerable amount of controversy amongst certain audiences for the same reasons that basically affect any announced remake, namely the question as to why one would attempt to remake a beloved film like the many animated classics that Disney has produced over the years. I, on the other hand, am a little more optimistic that a fair amount of these ‘Disney remakes’ are going to turn out fine. That mindset developed for me after I watched last year’s live-action version of Cinderella, which ended up being my #3 favorite film of 2015. Not only was the film full of gorgeous visuals but it was also big on heart and the end result was a film that both honored the original animated classic that inspired it while also doing enough to distinguish itself as its own entity. You could pretty much say that it is solely because of that film that I’m generally optimistic about these upcoming Disney remakes. Because if you ask me, if at least a few of these remakes happen to be as well-made as Cinderella by filmmakers who clearly show a lot of affection towards the original film, then that would mean that the fact that all of these remakes are getting announced is nowhere near as bad as some may claim.

Which brings us to the latest in this line of ‘Disney remakes’, The Jungle Book. It of course follows in the footsteps of the company’s 1967 animated adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s iconic novel of the same name. Unfortunately, that version is forever connected to a tragic point in the history of Disney Animation as it was the last Disney animated feature that Walt Disney himself produced prior to his death in 1966, just ten months before the film’s release. But even with the loss of the studio’s visionary leader, the original Jungle Book became an animated classic and served as a very fitting swan song for the man who was responsible for some of the most famous animated films/shorts of all-time. This new version is directed by Jon Favreau, who in the past gave us hits like the first two Iron Man films, the modern holiday classic Elf, and his most recent effort, the charming (and also hunger-inducing) indie flick Chef. And just like Kenneth Branagh last year with Cinderella, Favreau very much succeeds in regards to how his take on the classic story of the man-cub Mowgli both honors the original film that inspired it while also making its own mark in film history. The new Jungle Book is easily one of the best-looking films of the year, which is even more impressive considering the method in which the film was made. But those visuals are only the icing on the cake as this remake very much succeeds in capturing the heart of the original Disney flick without being a complete rehash of what came before.

The film of course follows the same general plot of both the original Kipling novel and the 1967 Disney animated version. In the middle of the Indian jungle, a young orphaned baby boy is found by the panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley). Realizing that he has no mother or father to look after him, Bagheera brings him to a wolf pack, which includes the boy’s ‘adoptive mother’ Raksha (Lupita Nyong’o) and the pack’s leader Akela (Giancarlo Esposito), who then proceed to raise the young man-cub, Mowgli (Neel Sethi), as one of their own. Mowgli’s peaceful life with the pack is soon threatened, however, when the vicious tiger Shere Khan (Idris Elba), who hates man after being threatened by them via man’s great asset, fire AKA what the animals refer to as ‘the red flower’, threatens to kill him and anyone who dares to protect him. Realizing that he is in danger, Bagheera and the wolf pack agree to have Mowgli brought to the nearby man-village so that he will be safe from Shere Khan’s wrath with his own kind. But while on the way to the man-village, Mowgli soon finds himself coming across all sorts of characters, from the laid-back bear Baloo (Bill Murray) to the devious and hypnotic snake Kaa (Scarlett Johansson) to the imposing ape King Louie (Christopher Walken), all while being simultaneously hunted by Shere Khan.

You want to know the most interesting thing about this film? It was shot entirely on a soundstage. Just like all of its animal characters, all of the jungle locales in the film are basically done entirely in CGI. And while some may argue that this would make the whole film ‘too artificial’ as a result, it actually does really work in regards to make everything look so photo-realistic even when knowing that most of it was created by computers. As for the film itself, it takes on a much darker tone compared to the original animated film, which does sort of make sense because the predator animals in this story could be considered as being more menacing in a live-action setting. However, it doesn’t get too dark to the point where it would completely draw younger audiences away. And aside from three new renditions of the songs ‘The Bare Necessities’, ‘I Wanna Be Like You’, and ‘Trust in Me’, the film avoids going the same musical route of its animated predecessor. All in all, this results in the film’s overall tone and plot being a generally equal mix of both the original animated film and Rudyard Kipling’s original novel. But of course this film is more than just pretty visuals, even though said visuals could very much make the film a worthwhile theater experience all on their own. At the end of the day, Favreau very much succeeds in capturing the heart of the original animated film in this new live-action setting. He does this through many things, including the multi-layered characters who are just as memorable as they were in the original animated film and the story’s strong themes of friendship and courage.  

As Mowgli, newcomer Neel Sethi is the only major live-action actor in the entire film. And considering that he had to go through the entire film shoot interacting with locations and characters that weren’t primarily added in until post-production, he definitely pulls off the act of managing to make it all seem natural quite well. At the same time, he also succeeds in making his Mowgli both likable and also very clever, the latter of which is represented by the many ‘inventions’ that he comes up with throughout the film. As for the animal characters, this film features a pitch-perfect voice cast as every actor/actress is an excellent fit for their respective roles. Bill Murray’s generally laid-back demeanor perfectly fits Baloo, who in this version is more sarcastic than his animated counterpart but is still a loyal friend to Mowgli through thick and thin. Ben Kingsley more than brings the right gravitas to the role of the noble panther Bagheera while Idris Elba provides one heck of an intimidation factor in the role of Shere Khan, who in this version gets a bit more backstory as to why he hates man. Some of the animal characters actually get more to do in this film compared to the animated film, particularly the wolf-pack and Mowgli’s ‘adoptive mother’ Raksha who, despite everyone telling her otherwise, very much treats Mowgli like her own son, resulting in a particularly emotional scene near the beginning when Mowgli decides to leave for the man-village. As for the characters of Kaa and King Louie, who each have one major scene in the film, Scarlett Johannsson’s alluring voice fits perfectly in the part of the hypnotizing snake while Christopher Walken’s wackier persona is fitting for King Louie. At the same time, however, this King Louie is considerably different than the one from the original film, as he is just as menacingly imposing as he is in size.

Now before I list my rating for this film, let me be clear about something first. While I’m about to give it a rating that’s ½ a star higher than my rating for the original Jungle Book, that doesn’t automatically mean that I view this new film as the ‘superior’ version, which is a claim that quite a few critics have been making these past few days. Just like with the new Cinderella, I view this new Jungle Book as a complement to the original film and not something that’s meant to ‘replace’ it. The original Jungle Book is still an undeniable classic (and one that, for the record, is far better than what Screen Junkies recently made it out to be) and this new version helps introduce the story of the man-cub Mowgli and his adventures in the jungle to a whole new generation. And it very much is an excellent new take on this classic story. From a technical perspective, it’s one of the most visually breathtaking films in recent memory which is saying a lot considering that the film is basically 95% CGI. But at its core lies the same heart that defined the original with a terrific cast bringing these classic characters to life. So yes… this isn’t the end of Disney’s live-action remakes. There are a lot more on the way, perhaps even a bit too many at this point. However, both this film and Cinderella are more than enough proof that they can be done and, more importantly, be done very, very well. So in short, contrary to what popular opinion may be, I am genuinely excited to see what Disney comes up with next in regards to re-imagining some of the classic films and stories that have defined many a childhood.   

Rating: 5/5!

The Walk (2015) review

In a way, this film sort of has a bit of a chip on its shoulder as it is a film released in the post-9/11 era that is based almost entirely around the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. But hopefully that doesn’t completely turn people away from this film because it actually focuses on a true story of the Twin Towers that was magnificent instead of tragic. When the towers were first built in 1973, the initial reaction towards them was generally negative amongst New Yorkers, many of whom referred to them as being ‘ugly’ and ‘oversized’. But on August 7^th, 1974, that all changed when French high-wire artist Philippe Petit ‘humanized’ the Towers by tightrope walking between them, situated at least 1,350 feet up in the air. This unique part of history had previously been explored in the 2008 documentary ‘Man on Wire’, which won the Oscar for Best Documentary that year. This year sees the release of a new adaptation of Petit’s story in the form of ‘The Walk’, directed by Robert Zemeckis, director of numerous film classics including ‘Forrest Gump’, ‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit’, and my all-time favorite film trilogy, ‘Back to the Future’. With ‘The Walk’, Zemeckis achieves a pure cinematic achievement by giving us a film that is not only visually stunning but also one that is full of heart that will hopefully inspire others to follow their dreams, however impossible they may seem.

As he narrates throughout the film while stationed on the torch of the Statue of Liberty, we are introduced to Philippe Petit (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who in 1973 was a juggler/wire-walker who performed daily in the streets of France having been inspired to become a performer after a trip to the circus when he was younger. One day, after a minor incident during a performance requires a trip to the dentist, he learns about the Twin Towers that are currently under construction in New York City from a magazine. Inspired to tight-rope across the towers before they are completed, Petit starts to train in the art of high-wire walking under former circus performer Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley) and begins to plan his coup to walk across the Twin Towers with the help of his girlfriend Annie (Charlotte Le Bon) and a few other ‘accomplices’ as well, including photographer Jean-Louis (Clement Sibomy) and algebra teacher Jeff (César Domboy). Once in New York, Petit comes across additional help as well in Barry Greenhouse (Steve Valentine), a life-insurance agent who works at the Towers, French speaking local New Yorker Jean-Pierre (James Badge Dale), a second photographer named Albert (Ben Schwartz), and stoner David (Benedict Samuel), who all help Petit as he undertakes the illegal operation of rigging his wire from the observation decks of what were, at the time, the tallest buildings in the world.

Obviously the biggest selling point of the film is the 20-minute sequence at the end in which Petit performs his famous high-wire act between the towers. Zemeckis has stated that he wanted the audience to get an idea of what the view was like for Petit on the high-wire instead of just looking at it from the audience’s usual perspective down below and he definitely succeeds in that regard. This was a film that was made for IMAX 3D, effectively making you feel like you’re on the high-wire along with Petit. Though with that said, it has been reported that some audiences ended up getting sick during this part when the film first premiered in New York. So if you’re scared of heights, this definitely isn’t your kind of film. But hopefully that doesn’t completely discourage some of you from seeing this film because the high-wire walk really is one of the best film moments of the year and even though you know what’s going to happen, you’re still on the edge of your seat throughout this entire sequence. The buildup to it is really great as well. Again, while we may know how everything turns out, it’s actually really fun to watch Petit and his team undertake their obviously illegal operation. We see how Petit comes across his ‘accomplices’, how he and his team figure out how to rig the wire to the towers, and see them overcome certain obstacles and issues. It’s all done at a brisk pace that makes the film compelling throughout.

One of Robert Zemeckis’ greatest strengths as a director is that he really knows how to find the heart and characters within an unbelievable story. And one of the reasons why this film works as well as it does is because while it is definitely a visually beautiful film, it also has a great amount of heart to it as well. It’s an awe-inspiring tale of the strength of the human spirit and how one man was able to make a seemingly impossible dream of his possible, which in turn can hopefully inspire others to make their own dreams a reality. A lot of this is due to Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s phenomenal lead performance as Petit. Not only does Levitt get the French accent down very well but he also exudes a ton of charisma, which is obviously a key thing for anyone who is a performer. Levitt is backed up by a very nice supporting cast of characters headlined by Ben Kingsley as Petit’s wise mentor Papa Rudy and Charlotte Le Bon as his lovingly supportive girlfriend Annie. But then there are a few other members of Petit’s band of accomplices that also stand out as well, particularly James Badge Dale as the French speaking New York native Jean-Pierre and César Domboy as Jeff, an algebra instructor who has to overcome a fear of heights in order to help Petit achieve his dream. While some of the members of the team are introduced perhaps just a bit too late into the film to get any real chance to stand out amongst their peers, namely the secondary photographer and the stoner, most of the other members of the group do at least get their own moments to shine during a film that ultimately belongs to Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  

I legitimately have no idea why this film isn’t doing so well at the box-office despite getting great reviews. Is it because of the ‘post-9/11’ thing or the fact that some people got sick watching this film’s climax? Whatever the reason is, I sincerely hope that this doesn’t become this year’s next ‘Tomorrowland’, especially when considering that both films wear their hearts on their sleeves and honor the dreamers of the world. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; we need more films like this that promote positive messages of hope and perseverance that will hopefully inspire future generations to dream big. Obviously the biggest aspect of the film is the scene in which Petit walks across the towers, a visually stunning sequence that makes the film an absolute must-see in IMAX as well as the best 3D film that I’ve seen this year. Hopefully 9/11 isn’t one of the reasons why this film isn’t doing so well commercially because even with all that happened on that day in mind, this film is actually a very touching tribute to the Twin Towers in how it honors a joyous moment in the history of the Towers that were originally built as a symbol of hope. I’d also like to point out that this film ends on a particularly poignant note that doesn’t actually bring up 9/11 but does clearly allude to it, resulting in a pretty darn powerful conclusion to what is easily one of my favorite films of this year.

Rating: 5/5!

Ender's Game (2013) review

When it was released in 1985, ‘Ender’s Game’ was a huge success, so much so that the United States Marine Corps, along with many other military organizations, have it listed on their recommended reading lists. But as far as getting a film adaptation for the story off the ground, that took a while because author Orson Scott Card believed that it was ‘unfilmable’. Something must have changed his mind over the last few years because now, in 2013, nearly 3 decades since the book was released, the film adaptation has finally hit theaters under the direction of Gavin Hood. I will admit that I went into this movie flying rather blind because I had not read the book. Also, I guess you can say I was rather nervous seeing how Hood’s last film was the god awful ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’. But as a whole, the film turned out quite good. Not only does Hood manage to redeem himself from his previous film, but it’s well-acted and while I can’t officially say whether it did a good job at representing its source material, the themes explored in the story are pretty thought-provoking.

In the year 2086, an alien race known as the Formics attempt to invade Earth. It was only through the efforts of commander Mazer Rackham (Ben Kingsley) that the invasion was thwarted, preventing the invaders from taking over the planet. But, with another invasion likely, the International Fleet begins to train young children in the hopes of finding the next candidate to lead the Fleet against the Formics. Andrew ‘Ender’ Wiggin (Asa Butterfield), the youngest of three children in his family, is chosen by Colonel Graff (Harrison Ford) and Major Anderson (Viola Davis) to join the cadets who are currently training at the elite ‘Battle School’. There, he is put to the test in a series of war-games and begins to not only gain the respect of his peers but prove to his superiors that he is the perfect candidate to lead the fight to save humanity.

From the perspective of someone who hasn’t read the book, it seems like this movie did a solid-enough job of staying faithful to the book. According to Scott Card, the main reason why he thought the book was ‘unfilmable’ was because ‘everything takes place in Ender’s head’. In that regard, some emotional resonance might be lost, but as a whole, the key themes of the book are still pretty relevant. The ideas that Card explores in this story are very interesting, like the effects of war not just on a whole society, but certain individuals as well. The ending in particular puts the main character of Ender in a situation that he doesn’t want to be in. For the sake of spoilers, I won’t give it away but it raises the question of whether or not one may view their actions as being the right thing to do. It’s quite a bold route that Card took and this translates well on the big screen.

As far as the film goes, Hood manages to move away from some of the problems that plagued his last film ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’. For the record, that film wasn’t entirely his fault (the material was sort of uninspired in the first place) but that film lacked proper direction. With this film, it has much better direction and the action scenes/visual effects are much better. The film also benefits from solid performances by the entire cast. In the lead role of Ender, Asa Butterfield carries the whole movie on his back and he does a great job at conveying Ender’s emotions. This kid is certainly up there amongst the better child actors working in Hollywood today. Harrison Ford is equally terrific in the role of Colonel Graff, giving a far more subdued performance than expected. As for the rest of the cast, they are excellent as well, but most of them (Viola Davis, Abigail Breslin, etc.) don’t exactly play big roles in the film.

I went into this film having not read the book, but now I’m very much intrigued to do so. Was this story ‘unfilmable’ like Orson Scott Card said? Well, that depends on how you look at it. Card mentioned that the main reason why the story would be hard to adapt because it mainly took place inside Ender’s head, so the writing may have lost some emotional resonance in the transition to film. But, compared to a film like ‘Cloud Atlas’, which went all over the place because of its multiple storylines, it seems like this story was rather easier to adapt to the big screen. The key ideas that are explored in this story are still there, and the ending in particular will leave you thinking. Casting is also quite excellent, with terrific performances all around, especially from Asa Butterfield and Harrison Ford. I’m not certain if this will lead the way for a new film series, mainly because the next entry in the series, ‘Speaker of the Dead’, takes place 3000 years after the events of ‘Ender’s Game’ with Ender being about 35 years old at that point. Will they try and do it right away and change it so that Butterfield can still play the role? We’ll just have to wait and see.

Rating: 4/5