Film Reviews

The Jungle Book 2

• Rating:
• Director:
• Starring: Haley Joel Osment
• Details: US / 72 mins / (G).

Better late than never, or so the saying goes. Yet in the case of The Jungle Book 2, you have to question it. A full 36 years after the release of the original and Disney gets around to making a sequel. One wonders why they bothered at this late stage, as the Jungle Book - the last movie that Walt Disney personally oversaw - remains one of the defining animated fables. That the sequel is merely watchable, without ever threatening anything more is a little galling, considering the source.
Here, Mowgli (Osment) is living with his adoptive family in a village beside the jungle. Although his new family are decent sorts, Mowgli misses his life in the wild, and in particular, his friend Baloo the bear (Goodman). His jungle mate isn't feeling too hot either and is desperate for the company of Mowgli. So much so, that he decides to go to the village to "rescue" him. Baloo isn't the only one who wants to find Mowgli - tiger Shere Khan (Jay) would like to find the "man club" but for very different reasons.
Basically a shameless rehashing of the best moments (and songs) of the original, The Jungle Book 2 doesn't really add anything to the first movie, and certainly is limited in comparison when it comes to the charm stakes. Admittedly, I'm hardly the targeted demographic, and the kids will probably enjoy it, but don't expect to remember much of The Jungle Book 2 afterwards.

Review by Garreth Murphy