Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Bobby Cannavale

Direction: Jake Kasdan

Producer: Matt Tolmach, William Teitler

Writer: Chris McKenna

Genre: Action/ Comedy

Duration:119 Mins*

Jumanji- Welcome to the Jungle is not what you think it is. Yes, it’s an action adventure movie but underneath its exterior is a movie that deals with real teenage high school issues and life lessons. It’s probably the best video game movie ever and it’s not really based off of one. People who grew up watching Jumanji (like myself) sorely missed Robin William’s charm in this one but thankfully the movie kept me pretty entertained all throughout. It’s a good reboot to the franchise, not the best but pretty darn entertaining. Rock once again proves he’s “franchise steroid” indeed.

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This time around the movie is not about a board game coming to life but kids entering a video game as an avatar or “player”. Like any video game there are rules- you have three lives, each character has certain abilities and weaknesses and there are levels. From the get go this adventure was quite a joy ride. Jack Black and Kevin Hart are hilarious from start to finish. Even the Rock doesn’t shy away from his signature smoldering and one-liners. The best thing is, the movie self-aware and knows when not to take itself too seriously. Karen Gillian is hands-down a total badass. First Nebula (from Guardians of the Galaxy) and now this, she might well be the next strong female lead Hollywood needs.

As I mentioned earlier this movie is not about the video game. It’s about the kids that go through a transformation in their personality after they play the game (more like survive the game). It’s a tried and tested formula, but in this case it really worked. A jock that really doesn’t care about his childhood friend learns to be a better person. The nerd learns to let go of his fears and face the world head on, the upper-class snobby teenager who learns to be less pricy and the loner who learns to open up. While in the game all of them face obstacles that eventually lead to some kind of change. This movie is full of action and laugh out loud funny moments but the heart of the story is more, sensitive. This is because the avatars each character get in the game are the complete opposite of who they are in real life. We in real life also aspire to certain things, certain people we want to be and this movie has a strong message about why it’s not about what body or ability you have but it’s who you are on the inside that matters.

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Overall I had a jolly good time at the cinema. All the characters are very funny in their own right and the action is respectable. The movie doesn’t give us anything new but well if it isn’t broke why fix it! The formula works and the characters are lovable. The change in the personality of the kids was something quite interesting and I highly recommend this movie if you just want to kick back and enjoy the humor.