Friday, April 08, 2016

Jungle Book



Rating : 9 /10
Release Date : 8th April, 2016
Time : 105 minutes
Director : Jon Favreau; Writer : Justin Marks based on the book by Rudyard Kipling; Music : John Debney
Starring : Neel Sethi and (Voices of) Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong’o, Scarlett Johansson, Christopher Walken, Giancarlo Esposito; And a few sentences from Jon Favreau, Sam Raimi, Russell Peters, Sara Arrington




This is one of the best remakes I’ve seen of a classic, works for kids and adults alike !



The visuals are amazing, the twists in the story (takes quite a different path to the original film) make sense, are well thought through and add intrigue, keep you gripped. Neel Sethi is a revelation, ideal for the role (sweet face, until he shows the steel he’s made of) as are the myriad superstar voices (Scarlett’s Kaa is sweet death personified, oh so deliciously tingly and Walken dry staccato tone so perfectly suits King Louie). And the songs – aaaahhhhhhh….they’ve kept elements of the familiar tunes and added some edgy magic to it (especially loved the Indian touch in the soundtrack)! Don’t leave when the end-credits are on – that’s when you get to hear them properly – the video of Kaa’s ‘Trust In Me’ is so totally worth it…



I’m not going to go into the story as I don’t want to give anything away – most of you would be familiar with the broad outline anyways and those who aren’t probably don’t deserve to be forewarned



BTW – for once our censor board seems to have got it right, with a deserved U/A guidance – if you have a young child (under 8?), it can be a little scary, so be careful


You can put the 1967 Disney Classic feature film on mute and I’ll be effortlessly and gladly able to supply the soundtrack – it’s that big a personal favourite ! I had cringed when a remake was announced but every trailer released had helped whet my appetite. And finally, this refreshing retelling of the tale has simply bowled me over. Will be going again tomorrow, despite an extremely packed schedule, to watch it again

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Going by your reviews... (In your own words) ... It's spot- on :)

Anonymous said...

Frankly, it is scary ? Coz I'll be taking my kids on 20th...seven year olds...

Anonymous said...

In order to inculcate the habit of reading from an early age, we encourage students to read books under the 'Good Reader Scheme' and assign them points, whereby they are motivated to achieve Gold, Silver, Bronze certificate, if they achieve their target by the year end... Bagheera, Kaa, Baloo, Sher Khan.. all the characters are etched in my memory... Amazing timeless story book by Rudyard Kipling...and now to see this all new live-action epic adventure about Mowgli, a man-cub who has been raised by a family of wolves... Looking forward to this one.... Patience ...

Anonymous said...

'Extremely packed schedule' .... Off to, where to ? ...

Anonymous said...

The enthusiasm when you penned these reviews... Wish I get to see such a movie with you some day...

Anonymous said...

The poet Shakespeare has well said that there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamed of in our philosophy...

Anonymous said...

Have you also been to the backwaters of Kerala and to Bali and to Maldives too ?

Anonymous said...

Bundi (Rajasthan) ... The first glimpse of this quaint little town, located within what seems to be a jungle, is mind boggling... Vivid blue houses, decaying murals, ornate forts and palaces, faded frescoed walls, sprawling structures chiselled out of stones, step-well reservoirs, broken colourful tiles on the road... it was this town within a verdant jungle that inspired Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book... 🦁🐯🐾

Anonymous said...

To experience stillness...the absence of noise, the absence of other people, the absence of activity... To appreciate the concept of stillness as a force that burns our worries and leaves behind essence, ease and grace...

Anonymous said...

For what sleep and dreams offer us is increasingly hard to come by in our waking lives...

Anonymous said...

A gateway to the sacred and to life's mystery...