STARS POPULATE THIS ‘JUNGLE’
‘THE JUNGLE BOOK’ TRAILER REVIEW BY METRO CREW
In this retelling of the classic children’s tale, young Mowgli is happy to live among the pack of wolves that raised him in the jungle. But when tiger Shere Khan (Idris Elba) decides that Mowgli is a threat, he has to leave his home, meeting a set of characters along the way. While we think this film has a certain appeal, we can’t help but be a little put off by the apparent all-voice-actors-must-be-super-famous philosophy. The Jungle Book opens in wide release April 15.
JAMES: There’s this trend where big-name actors are hired to do voiceovers for animated characters. You have these wild beasts that are voiced by actors whose voices alone are pretty bland. Bill Murray just sounds like Garfield. The snake could have been anyone but Scarlett Johansson. They could have utilized some really unique intonations, but they went with the faces instead.
CHRISTINA: But I feel like Bill Murray was meant to play a sleepy bear.
NICOLE: Bill Murray as Baloo = love. Only because Baloo is supposed to be kind of goofy.
JAIMIE: Honestly, though, the best thing is Bill Murray as Baloo. Bill Murray’s spirit animal is Baloo, I think.
PAIGE: Definitely agree that there’s a big difference between hiring people who know how to act with their voices and people who are just famous and have famous voices. Idris Elba is killin’ it as Shere Khan but that’s because he comes from the Liam Neeson school of “everything I touch becomes 820 percent more badass.” Scarlett Johansson definitely felt like the weak link here, like she was just talking like she would in any role.
CHRISTINA: I think this looks exciting — a lot of impressive-looking action scenes in an enchanting jungle setting, without the CGI being too over the top.
JAMES: I think kids will like this. It looks like a fun adventure. You’ve got these larger-than-life creatures, and this little kid, and he’s swinging around and riding them.
NICOLE: I’m wondering how crazy this kid felt having to talk to himself for practically the entire time of filming. Or maybe they played the voice actors in the background.
PAIGE: Something about this movie seems incredibly boring to me, like the super lush CG just makes it very unap-pealing, and not the charming story it was when it was an animated film. Disney just released a charming children’s tale starring a bunch of animals: Zootopia. And it was way better than this will be, guaranteed. Real talk: Everyone should skip this and just go back and rewatch Zootopia. That one has tigers, bears and panthers, too.
