Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)

I don’t usually care for throwaway entertainment, especially in film. I see movies as a way to tell a story or make a point and not just a medium of entertainment. That’s why I was not very excited to see Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. I didn’t really have much nostalgia for the original, and the trailers for this film depicted it as a big, bombastic action movie with lots of quippy dialogue.

And…that’s exactly what I got. Jumanji is exactly what you’d think it is, except that it is one of the best examples of popcorn entertainment I’ve seen in the past few years. It’s not particularly inventive with the way it tells its story, but it does a good job of being disposable while leaving a very pleasant aftertaste.

The best part of the film is, quite surprisingly, the performances. Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black all play against type, and they do such a good job. If you’ve ever wondered what those three would act like if they were nerdy, mildly unattractive teenagers (Johnson and Gillan) or an over-the-top basic white girl (Black) stuck in their respective bodies, Jumanji will answer that question. The writing does them a lot of favors as well because it keeps the gimmick up to provide a lot of actual comedy for them to exploit. Kevin Hart does his usual schtick without really playing against type, which was a little disappointing even though it was completely expected.

I also appreciated the way Jumanji reinforces the fact that its characters are in a video game. It recognizes the mechanics of video games and plays into them quite well, and the illusion rarely goes away. The way the film uses strengths, weaknesses, lives, and non-player characters all work very well and provide some good comedy. I’m probably over-analyzing this portion of the film, but I wish they had made the additional scenes with the villain cutscenes for the main characters in some way: it would have kept the gimmick up more effectively and kept everything consistent.

Jumanji is the disposable action comedy you probably think it is, but it is a really good example of the genre. It is a great way to sit back, relax, and get sucked into another world with very little weight or depth. As fluffy and undemanding as it is, it does provide good, funny entertainment in a way I didn’t expect it to, making it a decent way to spend your time and money.

My recommendation: It’s worth seeing, and if you do it’s good in a theater.

My grade: 60/100

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