THE JUNGLE BOOK: Bearly Coherent

Director: Jon Favreau
Writer: Justin Marks
Cast: Neel Sethi, Ben Kingsley, Bill Murray, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Christopher Walken, Giancarlo Esposito, Scarlett Johansson
Runtime: 106 mins.
2016

The Jungle Book amounts to a mediocre but entertaining film. It's so entertaining, in fact, that it successfully distracts its audience from its own flaccid plot. The film exists first and foremost as a piece of spectacle, and within that realm it accomplishes exactly what it set out to do. What you've probably heard concerning the visuals is true; they move beyond impressive and into immersive. From the very first moment it's as if you've stumbled into the jungle and are hanging out right alongside Mowgli (Neel Sethi). Not for a moment did the seams show enough to divorce me from Favreau's lush jungle environment, which is shocking when you learn that the entirety of the movie was filmed in an LA soundstage. This is so vividly a living, breathing world. Spending a couple of hours there is a blast.

The impulse to focus on the setting produces some iconic work, but the screenplay is barely enough to prop it up. The result is a tonal mishmash that is trying so hard to please everybody that it fails to achieve a distinct identity of its own. I counted three warring movies existing within Favreau's Jungle Book, any one of which would have been excellent on its own. Three movies that sapped strength from each other, and interrupted each other at inopportune moments. Here is my window into The Jungle Books that could have been.

ZOOTOPIA: Prey v Predator: Dawn of Justice

Directors: Byron Howard, Rich Moore, Jared Bush (co-director)
Writers: Byron Howard, Jared Bush, Rich Moore, Josie Trinidad, Jim Reardon, Phil Johnston, Jennifer Lee
Cast: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, Jenny Slate, J. K. Simmons, Nate Torrence
2016

Zootopia is structured around its message. Without the message, it becomes yet another run-of-the-mill, albeit impeccably crafted, Disney movie about anthropomorphic animals who learn to be themselves. With the message, it's a refreshingly smart and political mystery that has a lot to teach a lot of people. Unfortunately, I'm not fully on board with how the movie handles the message. Thankfully, I'm mostly on board with it!

The story begins simply enough, with small town rabbit Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) setting out to prove herself at the Police Academy. No bunny has ever joined the police force, you see, on account of their diminutive stature. Judy proves that it can be done, even in the face of harsh adversity from the academy, and gentle adversity from her parents. She graduates and receives assignment in Zootopia, a bustling metropolis with lush biomes for every kind of mammal. Centuries ago predator and prey were locked in an eternal battle for survival, but Zootopia was where they first banded together and decided to become one healthy community.

Except, Judy finds, the community is not all that healthy. Predators may not eat prey anymore, but there is still plenty of discrimination and corruption at the heart of the city. After dealing with the condescending Chief Bogo (Idris Elba) and a friendly fox named Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) who turns out to be a con artist, Officer Judy Hopps has just about reached rock bottom with her optimism. But when some predators start disappearing, and others begin to revert back to their rabid predatorial instinct, Judy needs the help of Nick to unravel the mystery at the heart of the city.

FROZEN: Ice Queens Aren't So Frigid

In ice, no one can hear you scream.

Directors: Jennifer Lee, Chris Buck
Writer: Jennifer Lee
Cast: Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff, Josh Gad
Runtime: 102 mins.
2013

Disney's Frozen has a lot going for it.  The visuals are stunning.  The soundtrack has its moments.  The characters are strong and well-written.  The humor hits the mark with pleasing consistency.  The pace is usually brisk.  The cast is spot on.  It's also just damned fun to watch.

The movie has another thing going for it though.  It strives to be a contemporary feminist version of the well-established Disney Princess paradigm.  In one sense, this branding of Frozen as a feminist film leads to a lot of bickering that distracts from the movie itself (some examples in a minute).  In another sense, the movie begs to be viewed and reviewed as a subversive step forward for women's issues in Hollywood--it's written into the film's DNA.  So that's how I'm going to review it.