Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

Chris Van Allsburg's book Jumanji is best known for its 1995 film version. The book had a sequel, Zathura, which had its own movie in 2005. The film now has a sequel of its own, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. The end result is a surprisingly fun year-end blockbuster.

It's a normal day in detention. Spencer got caught writing homework essays for his jock ex-friend, Fridge. Bethany is a stuck up valley girl and Martha is socially awkward. They were supposed to prepare old magazines for recycling. But they get distracted when Fridge uncovers an Atari-ish console and the Jumanji video game. They start it up for a lark, but they get sucked up into the game's world.

In this world, Spencer is brawny Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson), Fridge is "Mouse" Finbar (Kevin Hart), Martha is the stunning Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan) and Bethany is the smart guy, Prof. Sheldon Oberon (Jack Black). They have to return a MacGuffin Jewel to a big Panther Statue to beat the game. They'll return to reality if they win. But it's game over for them if they use up their three lives. The evil hunter Van Pelt (Bobby Cannavale) wants to stop their progress. They'll have to join forces to beat him and their personal problems.

The screenplay was written by five people including director Jake Kasdan. It's a strong action/comedy story that keeps our attention for 119 minutes. It's a nice movie realization of a video game narrative and its quirks like NPCs with limited dialogue. Their personal problems lead to both fun and serious moments. Their deaths are as brutal as a PG-13 rating allows. We believe the stakes when the cast is down to their last lives. It's more than a mere video game story.

It helps that the main characters are likable. Both sets of actors playing our heroes are great. The game cast gets the mannerisms of their real life counterparts down perfectly. They cohesively play their characters which makes the body-changing bits believable. Martha/Ruby had the best story as she learns to be self-confidant. Bethany/Oberon was obnoxious at first, but not that much, which makes her redemption work. Fridge/Mouse and Spencer/Bravestone had great chemistry and their reconciliation was nice. Cannavale made for a formidable villain as Van Pelt. Nick Jonas also made an impression as Jefferson Seaplane, another Jumanji victim who joins their group.

There's much to like about Jumanji's design. The best aspect is Gyula Pados's cinematography, which has many grand scenery shots of Hawaii. It's some of the best filming of the Islands in an action movie since Jurassic Park. Editors Mark Helfrich and Steve Edwards set the pace nicely for the film's action and comedy scenes. Henry Jackman's score was good as was the sound design. The visual effects realize a fine display of animals and Jumanji's powers.

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle stands on its own feet with pride. It's distinct from its predecessor and its borrowed story beats aren't a detriment. The main heroes are clearly having fun as their real/digital characters. It's easy to forget that they're two separate casts playing the same characters. The ending is perfectly dramedic. It's a nice way to end this year and prepare for 2018.

Please don't let the world end next year...