Review—"Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle"

I'm usually skeptical about remakes and sequels that look like nothing more than attempts to cash in on nostalgia for the original movie. Most of the time, these attempts are forgettable and disappear without a trace (this year's unnecessary and unwanted remake of "Flatliners" comes to mind). So when I first saw the trailers for "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle," I didn't expect much in terms of quality, and I certainly didn't plan to see it.

The classics never leave us.

In life, you experience the things you planned to do, and then you experience the unexpected. Once I saw the reviews for this updated version of "Jumanji," I became curious enough to check it out for myself. What I discovered was not just a worthy successor to Robin Williams' classic original but a fun holiday movie that can easily stand on its own merits. This movie is a part of the universe created by the first, and that connection informs the entire film.

Upon reflection, my one-line review would read, "21st-Century Breakfast Club kids get sucked into a Jumanji video game." We have four types instead of five this time: the nerd (Spencer); the jock (Fridge); the princess (Bethany); the basket case (Martha, although she's really more of a girl nerd). They all get detention on the same day, and instead of smoking weed and baring their souls to each other, they find an old video game console, hook it up, and find themselves transported into the jungles of Jumanji.

Welcome to the Jungle

The chemistry among the four lead actors is one of the strongest parts of the movie's appeal. The fun of the movie is in the big above-the-title stars playing videogame characters inhabited by these teens but going completely opposite to their personalities. Spencer becomes Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, fearless and strong. Fridge transforms into Kevin Hart, completely distressed that he's two feet shorter than he was before. They play two childhood friends who grew apart in high school, and their real-life history informs their avatars' relationship.

The girls steal the show, of course. Timid, shy, mousy brainiac Martha becomes Ruby Roundhouse (the gorgeous Karen Gillan), "killer of men" with her amazing martial arts and "dance fighting" skills; her funniest moment is when she tries to use her beauty to flirt, with hilarious results. The best transformation, however, is vapid phone-addicted Bethany becoming Jack Black, "a middle-aged fat guy." Black kills his performance as a teenage girl who discovers that life exists outside social media, not to mention three hilarious bits about what it's like to have a penis instead of a vagina.

Not just a pretty face...

The plot is familiar to "Jumanji" fans...finish the game to get back home. But this time, the stakes are much higher than what Robin Williams and his cohorts faced. Like other video games, the players have limited lives, and if they lose all their lives in the game, they die in real life as well. This conceit elevates the movie from mere child's play and makes a profound and poignant statement about how we come of age as adolescents to realize that we really only have one chance at this life—it's not like a video game, or a football game, or social media—it's the real thing, with real consequences and an inevitable end for each of us.

This discovery and acceptance is transformative for the real-life teens who inhabit their game avatars, as they embrace their own shortcomings as well as discover the inner strength that lies deeper within each of them. I won't spoil any of the events that lead to the conclusion except to say that the results are intensely emotionally satisfying.

I've made no secret of my love for the latest Star Wars film, "The Last Jedi," which I've seen twice so far and plan to blog about again soon. However, the experience of watching "The Last Jedi" is intense and at times exhausting. Watching "Jumanji" was an hour and 45 minutes of pure fun, filled with excitement and laughs throughout. This time, I'm planning to see it again with intention and anticipation.