“Jumanji: The Next Level” Movie Review

    Every December, especially around Christmas, the multiplex tends to be fairly crowded with a slew of new releases.  One could say it’s a bit of a jungle out there in the theaters, so another Jumanji movie seems like a no brainer.  I finally got a chance to catch “Jumanji: The Next Level” and I can finally give you my take on the film.

    The film takes place a few years after the events of “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle”.  Spencer, Martha, Fridge, and Bethany are now separated from each other and going to different colleges.  The group decide to get together but Spencer is reluctant to meet back up with them because he feels insecure and inadequate now.  Unbeknownst to the rest of the group, Spencer patches the Jumanji video game together and returns to the game in an effort to regain his confidence.  Unfortunately, Spencer becomes trapped in the game again and it’s up to his friends to rescue him by returning to Jumanji.

    Let me start off by saying that I enjoyed this film quite a bit.  The film has it’s flaws, but it is hilarious at times and makes for some great escapism.  The main flaw of the film isn’t with it’s humor, it’s in the movie’s lack of an original story.  Despite a great deal of terrific new gags, the film is essentially more of the same plot overall with little new to offer aside from it’s humor.  Thankfully, it very much delivers in that department.

    “Jumanji: The Next Level” is the fourth overall film in the franchise following “Jumanji”, “Zathura: A Space Adventure” (which was the official book sequel but more of a spin-off in regards to the adaptation) and “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle”.  I sort of hope the inevitable next film in the franchise takes the story in a different direction with more ties to the first film (and possibly Zathura).

    The core cast of “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” all return including Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillian, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Nick Jonas, Alex Wolff, Morgan Turner, Ser’Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, and Colin Hanks.  They are joined by new cast members Awkwafina, Danny Glover, and Danny DeVito who all add a lot of humor and heart to this film.

    One of the funnier gimmicks of the film is that the youngsters of the film end up in different avatars this time around except for Martha (Morgan Turner) who once again becomes Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillian).  Fridge (Ser’Darius Blain) is now in the avatar of Sheldon Oberon (Jack Black) and Bethany initially gets left out of the game completely.  Spencer’s grandfather Eddie (Danny DeVito) isn’t so lucky and gets sucked into the game and becomes Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson) while his friend Milo (Danny Glover) is now in the avatar of Frank Finbar (Kevin Hart).

    Dwayne Johnson does a great job channeling Danny DeVito and is given more to work with in this sequel.  Kevin Hart also sounded and acted identical to Danny Glover which was often hilarious.  I really enjoyed Awkwafina in this film as well.  The only actor to get the raw end of the deal was Jack Black because the gifted comedian isn’t given as many funny lines due to his character now being Fridge’s avatar.

    This installment of the popular franchise doesn’t take us to new places or advance the story much but it is still very fun.  When it comes to monkey business, no franchise excels at it quite like “Jumanji”.

Grade: B

“Dumbo” (2019) Movie Review

    Disney Pictures has been starting to turn it’s classic animated film library into live action movies for a few years now.  “Alice in Wonderland” was the first of the trend in 2014 and has been followed with the likes of “The Jungle Book”, “Maleficent”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “Cinderella”, “Christopher Robin”, and “Alice Through the Looking Glass”.  The latest remake Disney has unveiled is “Dumbo” which is the classic tale of a young elephant trying to find his place in the world.  My girlfriend and I had wanted to see this movie for a few weeks now but we finally got to see it this week.

    The film follows a WW1 veteran and his children as they work in a traveling circus.  Holt, the father who lost his arm in the war, was once a trick rider for the circus but is now tasked with taking care of the newly purchased elephants Mrs. Jumbo and her new baby.  The baby elephant was born with giant ears and the owner of the circus considers the baby to be a freak of nature.  Holt is assigned with hiding the newborn elephant’s ears during his first performance but his ears end up becoming exposed anyway leading the audience to turn hostile on the poor baby elephant.  Mrs. Jumbo goes into a rage in defense of her son and ends up being sold off because she is deemed dangerous.  The baby elephant is given the name Dumbo shortly after he is separated from his mother.  Dumbo isn’t like other elephants though as Holt’s children later find out.  Dumbo’s large ears allow him to fly!  Following this revelation, Holt’s children hatch a plan to reunite Dumbo with his mother.

    The film received decidedly mixed reviews from critics who seemed to mainly complain that the film “lacked heart” compared to the original Disney classic.  Now, everyone is entitled to their opinion but I have to respectfully disagree with those critics.  I thought the film showed a lot of heart and in some ways is a better kid’s movie than the original.  The moral of “Dumbo” remains in tact in both incarnations of the film but the live action remake also dumps the racist subtexts the original had.

    The film succeeds largely due to it’s cast.  Colin Farrell gives a solid performance as Holt.  Michael Keaton plays against type as the antagonist of the story.  Danny DeVito shines as the owner of the traveling circus.  It was fun seeing Keaton and DeVito together again in a mini “Batman Returns” reunion.  Speaking of “Batman Returns”, “Dumbo” was also directed by Tim Burton.  Burton’s visual flair and his love for Art Deco style actually plays into “Dumbo” very well.

    At it’s core, “Dumbo” is a sometimes cute and sometimes heartbreaking movie that pulls all the right heartstrings.  The movie teaches us the value of being different.  I really enjoyed the movie and cgi used to create Dumbo was top notch.  This is a movie you can take the kids to see and not have to worry what you are exposing your children to.  It is also a movie you can see as an adult and feel like a kid again and I personally feel like that is important sometimes as well.

Grade: B

“Smallfoot” Movie Review

    In case it wasn’t completely obvious, I am a pretty big movie nerd.  So, being the big film buff I am, my girlfriend and I try to see as many films in the theater as possible.  I don’t know how or why she puts up with me, but she does thankfully.  Naturally when her birthday rolled around, she got to pick the movie she wanted to see and I was extremely happy she picked “Smallfoot” because I was excited to see that movie as well.  (Special note, today is our year and a half anniversary.  I feel like the luckiest guy in the world).

    I was excited to see “Smallfoot” because I generally like animated films.  While there are some that don’t work, most of them have a little more to offer than your avarage live action fair.  Plus the trailer for the film looked interesting and cute.  I guess now you are wondering if the movie worked or if it disappointed me.  Well, breath a sigh of relief because the movie was entertaining.

    The thing “Smallfoot” has going for it most is it’s interesting premise.  It basically takes the premise of “Harry and the Hendersons” and flips the script.  It is fun seeing a Yeti encounter from the prospective of the Yeti.  So the plot is super cute and simple.  It also provides a good moral lesson for children on the importance of being honest no matter what.

    The voice cast was fun with standout voice work provided by Channing Tatum, Common, and Danny DeVito.  Channing Tatum in particular gave a sincere and pure performance as the lead character Migo.  DeVito provided a good chunk of the laughs as Migo’s father.

    The film’s humor was designed mainly for kids.  Now, this is true with most animated films, some films like “Shrek” manage to cleaverly include adult themed  jokes that would go over most children’s heads to provide some extra entertainment for the adults watching the films.  Is that needed to make a film good? Absolutely not, it does seem to help make an animated film stand the test of time however.  I would be interested to see if the strong premise alone can help this film stand the test of time.  One other thing to note is the characters occasionally break into singing (this happens around three times in the movie) and while the songs are cute, it happens just enough to give it a slight musical vibe.  I didn’t mind it in the film, but I know that isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.

    So overall I came out of the movie with a smile on my face which is the important thing.  It provided me a joyful sense of escapism and while I may not remember it well in a few months, I do know I will remember having a good time seeing it with my beautiful girlfriend.

Grade: B