Four high school students, Spencer (Alex Wolff), Fridge (Ser'Darius Blain), Bethany (Madison Iseman), and Martha (Morgan Turner), find an old video game called Jumanji. They decide to take a break and play the game. they select avatars, and are sucked into the game.
They land in the middle of the jungle as the avatars they selected. Spencer is afraid of everything, but in the game he is the muscle-bound explorer Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Johnson). Fridge is a star athlete, but in the game he is the short zoologist Franklin "Mouse" Finbar (Hart). Martha is pretty, popular, and obsessed with her phone, but in the game she is middle-aged cartographer Professor Sheldon Oberon (Black). Martha is a shy feminist, but in the game she is martial arts expert Ruby Roundhouse (Gillan). Their mission, according to NPC Nigel Billingsley (Darby), is to save Jumanji from Russel Van Pelt (Cannavale), who has the ability to control animals. Can they complete the mission and make it home safely?
In 1981, Chris van Allsburg wrote and illustrated the children's book "Jumanji." The book focused on a pair of siblings, Judy and Peter, who find the game and then play it at home. The book received numerous awards when it was first released and was popular enough for van Allsburg to write a sequel "Zathura."
In 1995 Joe Johnston directed the film adaptation of the book. The film starring Robin Williams and Bonnie Hunt and stuck close to the book. The film stayed close to the book, but added the characters of Alan and Sarah. This film is a sequel to the story, with brand new characters. It also flips the story, in 1995 the game came to the real world... this film takes the players to the game world.
The screenplay was written by Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Scott Rosenberg, and Jeff Pinkner is fun and action-packed. As a whole, it works and draws you into the action. There were only 2 moments that took me out of the film, and both were unnecessary moments featuring Jack Black's character... they were meant to be funny, but were crass and pointless.
The cast works well together and are all equally entertaining. Black is convincing as a teenage girl. Dwayne Johnson deftly walks the line between hero and terrified teen. Kevin Hart provides the one-liners and shouts frequently. Karen Gillan uses a convincing American accent and performs some intricate choreography for her dance fighting scenes. She has the most physical role in the film. Bobby Cannavale is dark and disturbing as Van Pelt (which is also the name of the villain from the original Jumanji film).
It is an entertaining action film and loves its predecessor. There are little moments scattered throughout the film for fans (the design of the statues, Seaplane's home, etc). It works as a whole, except for the 2 scenes I mentioned in the previous paragraph. It also enjoys the tropes of video games.
They are planning to make a sequel to this film, with Kasdan returning to direct. The four main actors (Black, Gillan, Hart, and Johnson) returning. The sequel, Jumanji: The Next Level was released in 2019.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017) 119 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for adventure action, suggestive content and some language
Director: Jake Kasdan
Starring: Dwayne Johnson as Dr. Smolder Bravestone
Kevin Hart as Franklin "Mouse" Finbar
Jack Black as Professor Sheldon Oberon
Karen Gillan as Ruby Roundhouse
Rhys Darby as Nigel Billingsley
Bobby Cannavale as Russel Van Pelt
Nick Jonas as Jefferson "Seaplane" McDonough
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