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JUMANJI WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE – Review by Susan Granger

Susan Granger 0 Comments ,
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Jake Kasdan strikes gold again with this continuation of the family-friendly fantasy he introduced in Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017), in which four teenagers get sucked into playing a mysterious video game in which they ‘become’ intrepid explorers.

It’s now a year later, and Spencer (Alex Wolff) is coming home from college in New York to visit his family and friends over winter break. Feeling anxious and awkward, he once again turns to the magical game, hoping to assume to confident persona of Dr. Smoulder Bravestone (Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson).

But the game has a new twist. Suddenly, Spencer’s grouchy Grandpa Eddie (Danny DeVito) becomes muscle-bound Bravestone and Eddie’s estranged pal/ former business partner Milo (Danny Glover) turns into genial “Mouse” Finbar (Kevin Hart), the zoologist

Spencer’s friends also assume their avatars. While Martha (Morgan Turner) again plays Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan), football star Fridge (Ser‘Darius Blain) becomes portly cartographer Prof. Shelly Oberon (Jack Black), while bubbly Bethany (Madison Iseman) is somehow left behind, temporarily.

They’re all searching for Spencer. Plus, there’s the pickpocket, Ming Fleetfoot (Awkwafina), who figures prominently, since the only way they all can escape Jumanji’s challenge this time is to recover a gem from the barbaric tyrant, Jurgen the Brutal (Rory McCann).

Does the inventive plot by Jeff Pinkner, Scott Rosenberg and director Jake Kasdan sound confusing? It is, at times, but it’s also great fun watching these actors playing against type and trying to imitate one another. And, yes, Colin Hanks and Nick Jonas reprise their previous roles in cameos.

Plus there’s lots of FX action, including an attack by hundreds of angry, fast-running ostriches and an escape on spinning, suspended rope bridges while they’re being pursued by ferocious mandrills.

On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 20, Jumanji: The Next Level is a perilous, body-swapping 7 – and stay through the credits

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Susan Granger

Susan Granger is a product of Hollywood. Her natural father, S. Sylvan Simon, was a director and producer at R.K.O., M.G.M. and Columbia Pictures; her adoptive father, Armand Deutsch, produced movies at M.G.M. As a child, Susan appeared in movies with Abbott & Costello, Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Margaret O'Brien and Lassie. She attended Mills College in California, studying journalism with Pierre Salinger, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, Phi Beta Kappa, with highest honors in journalism. During her adult life, Susan has been on radio and television as an anchorwoman and movie/drama critic. Her newspaper reviews have been syndicated around the world, and she has appeared on American Movie Classics cable television. In addition, her celebrity interviews and articles have been published in REDBOOK, PLAYBOY, FAMILY CIRCLE, COSMOPOLITAN, WORKING WOMAN and THE NEW YORK TIMES, as well as in PARIS MATCH, ELLE, HELLO, CARIBBEAN WORLD, ISLAND LIFE, MACO DESTINATIONS, NEWS LIMITED NEWSPAPERS (Australia), UK DAILY MAIL, UK SUNDAY MIRROR, DS (France), LA REPUBBLICA (Italy), BUNTE (Germany), VIP TRAVELLER (Krisworld) and many other international publications through SSG Syndicate. Susan also lectures on the "Magic and Mythology of Hollywood" and "Don't Take It Personally: Conquering Criticism and other Survival Skills," originally published on tape by Dove Audio.