Jumanji: The Next Level
JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL © 2019 Sony Pictures Digital Productions Inc. All rights reserved
Jake Kasdan’s Jumanji: The Next Level is a far cry from the original Robin Williams vehicle, tonally, visually, and thematically. What once was a rather pure and simple fantasy about a man trapped in a board game has now expanded into an action-packed, comedic, body-switching adventure. What results is a serviceable and moderately entertaining blockbuster supplemented by hilarious performances and likeable characters that elevate a by-the-numbers adventure plot.
Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan return as the video game avatars for their teenaged counterparts, who have now formed a strong group bond from their shared experiences in the previous Jumanji instalment (Jake Kasdan’s Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle). Spencer (Alex Wolff), Fridge (Ser’Darius Blain), Bethany (Madison Iseman) and Martha (Morgan Turner), are in this third instalment of the franchise, joined by Spencer’s grandpa Eddie (Danny DeVito), and his old friend and business partner Milo (Danny Glover) as they attempt to navigate the increasingly unpredictable Jumanji game and search for a way to escape the dangerous circumstances they repeatedly find themselves facing. Their video game avatars are joined by returning cast member Nick Jonas as Alex and newcomer Awkwafina as Ming, in their quest to conquer each new level and survive to get back to reality.
The cast has always been the most entertaining and endearing part of these modern Jumanji sequels, and they hardly disappoint here. Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Awkwafina, and Danny DeVito are particular standouts here, with all four displaying a swift and intuitive sense for balancing comedic and dramatic beats and playing their respective avatars with close attention to detail and effective use of different voices and accents to portray these real-world human characters. The Next Level builds upon Welcome To The Jungle by relying on the comedic talents of its leads and playing around with the body-switching humour aspect to a heightened, and borderline excessive degree. Though it remains consistently funny throughout, the film often pauses the plot to indulge in different humorous scenarios for the characters, and it can start to drag throughout the second act.
JUMANJI: THE NEXT LEVEL © 2019 Sony Pictures Digital Productions Inc. All rights reserved
This instalment focuses heavily on DeVito and Glover’s characters, which is a well-developed and unexpectedly moving relationship that works within the context of this self-contained story, but deprives the narrative of the main characters with it which initially started. All four of the teenaged main characters are sidelined to make room for the story of these two older men, which then, in turn, becomes sidelined to focus again on the four teenagers. As a result, the film suffers from a lack of focus in terms of character and story.
Much like the previous film, it places these colourful characters in an uninteresting, predictable, recycled adventure plot that only serves as a playground for these skilled comedic actors, and thus relies on them to carry the film to its conclusion. It hits familiar story beats and avoids taking any risks by opting for the safe and wholesome route to the finish line. As a comedy, it mostly succeeds, and the action is competently helmed without much in the way of style or technical craft. Jumanji: The Next Level is a safe, consistently funny, and surprisingly fun entry in the Jumanji franchise that leans on its talented cast to spin a dull adventure film template into a watchable and endlessly entertaining out-of-body experience.
Jumanji: The Next Level is released December 11th
