THE JUNGLE BOOK

THE JUNGLE BOOK 

THE JUNGLE BOOK: B- or 3.0/5 

I found Disney's 3rd rendition of the classic Rudyard Kipling story to be as I did the other two. A fun, fairly entertaining tale that I enjoyed enough to watch all the way through but will most likely not have an interest in seeing again. 

I have to compliment the film on its visual effects, as they were quite good. It's amazing to me how far we've come in regards to computer animation.

I also enjoyed the voice work of Billy Murray, Ben Kingsley and Christopher Walken. It was also refreshing to hear a familiar voice, know that I knew who it was, but didn't quite recognize it, only to later look it up and find out it was Gary Shandling. When's the last time he's been in anything anyway?

My complaints about the film are as follows....

The film never established a clear audience. At times I felt like I was watching something for an older elementary audience. 9-12 year olds. Something along the lines of TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES. Other times I felt like I was watching an episode of BLUE'S CLUES. It was as if the film were being directed scene by scene by two or more different directors each with different visions of what they wanted the story to be.

And speaking of holes in the story, the motivation and reasoning behind Mowgli's interaction with King Louie didn't make a whole lot of sense either. He doesn't want to and he can't get the red flower. He's dead sent against it and in the very next scene he goes to get it for other reasons.

Overall I would call this movie nothing more than the exploitation of an originally well written classic, used to showcase the advancements of computer animation and visuals. The good voice work and a story that stands solid and firm without any real changes, saved this from a lower ranking.