The Jungle Book is an absolute triumph.
This is as grand as massive modern Hollywood family blockbusters like this should be, but rarely are.
The most striking thing about this latest big-screen take on Rudyard Kipling's classic children's book is the special effects. Using state-of-the-art digital artistry, Disney has raised the bar -- creating stunning, photo-realistic animal characters that are truly memorable.
Helping bring those characters to life is a remarkable voice cast, with standout performances by Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Ben Kingsley and Idris Elba.
Anchoring them all is the film's one non-digital entity -- Neel Sethi as Mowgli. His performance is occasionally stiff, but he's cute, charming and endearing enough to drive the story well.
And what a story it is. The timeless themes of unity and the power of the pack are as universal and meaningful as always, held up with a classic storybook grandeur.
Director Jon Favreau deftly skips between drama and humour, interspersed with fantastically composed action. The results had me swept up in it all in a way that doesn't normally happen with children's films.
If you can, see it in IMAX 3D to maximise the spectacle.
Four-and-a-half stars.
The Jungle Book:: Director: Jon Favreau:: Starring: Neel Sethi, Scarlett Johansson, Bill Murray, Idris Elba, Ben Kingsley, Lupita Nyong'o, Giancarlo Esposito, Christopher Walken:: Rating: PG - Violence & scary scenes:: Running Time: 106 minutes:: Release Date: April 21, 2016
Newshub.
