Jumanji: The Next Level

Jumanji: The Next Level is the kind of contractually obligated sequel that happens when the previous movie makes over $900 million worldwide, and the returning cast and filmmakers are left with little ideas on where to go next.  Returning director and co-writer Jake Kasdan wants us to think he's shaking things up with this follow up by having different characters inhabiting the video game avatars from before.  But, all it leads to is a lot of wasted potential with its high concept premise that goes nowhere.

2017's Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was not exactly a favorite of mine, but I found things to admire, particularly that it was not afraid to strike out in its own direction from the 1995 original film that inspired it.  This time around, audiences are getting a complete rehash.  The cast is the same, and there are some welcome additions in Danny DeVito and Danny Glover as two elderly men who used to be best friends, but now are at odds with each other, and wind up getting sucked into the video game along with the young heroes from last time.  But the movie stops at this basic premise, and never bothers to build these characters, or take them anywhere interesting.  This is the kind of blockbuster where things like character and dialogue are a mere afterthought.  Kids might like this, because there is usually something always happening or chasing after the heroes.  Anyone wishing for something more will be left unfulfilled.  Aside from the very rare witty line delivered by returning stars Jack Black and Kevin Hart, the movie's on autopilot.

The movie can't even come up with a good excuse for the characters to enter the dangerous video game world again in the first place.  It has something to do with young Spencer (Alex Wolff) being upset with how his life living in New York as a college freshman isn't working out like he wanted, and that he's having troubles with his girlfriend, Martha (Morgan Turner).  For reasons not explained very well, he's held onto the Jumanji game in his basement the entire time, and reactivates it because he wants to escape from the troubles of his life, so naturally his friends have to enter the game again in order to find him.  When it comes to dreaming up a reason as to why these kids would even want to go back inside Jumanji, this ranks as about the lamest excuse you can think of.  Spencer's motivations for holding onto and going back into the game makes little sense, as does his reasoning.  It sounds like total desperation at the screenplay level, as if the team of writers were hoping to come up with a better reason, but never got around to it.

So, the kids are warped back into the game world, and this time Spencer's grandpa (DeVito) and his friend (Glover) get sucked in as well.  The characters again assume the form of video game avatars when they enter Jumanji, but aside from Martha being in the body of the sexy female avatar (Karen Gillan), everybody has been switched around.  The burly jock known as Fridge (Ser'Darius Blain) is now inhabiting the body of the overweight "map guy" (Jack Black).  Bethany (Madison Iseman) finds herself inhabiting a horse, which leads to fewer laughs than you would expect.  When the heroes eventually track down Spencer, they find him in the form of a female cat burglar named Ming (Awkafina).  Meanwhile, the DeVito and Glover characters are now portrayed by Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart, respectively.  Again, this is not as clever as you would hope.  Johnson attempts a very bad Jersey accent, but doesn't come close to imitating anything else about DeVito's on screen personality, which probably could have been very funny.  As for Hart, he essentially talks very slowly, trying to imitate Glover's very mannered way of speaking.  Again, it just doesn't work because it's simply an imitation, not a performance.

From there, Jumanji: The Next Level forgoes attempting to tell anything resembling a plot, and simply turns into a series of action set pieces.  Their quest is to retrieve a magical jewel that is currently in the possession of a villain named Jurgen the Brutal (Rory McCann), who is such a non-entity, the movie forgets to give him any motivation or reason for wanting to conquer the video game world.  Not that he winds up playing much of a part in the film, as the heroes are usually menaced by various jungle creatures, such as ravenous hippos, angry ostriches, and deadly monkeys.  Just like before, the movie doesn't bother to poke fun at any video game tropes or conventions that could have led to some welcome satire.  It just throws a bunch of special effects and nonsensical action.  Each action sequence serves as a standalone moment, not a complete whole.  The movie gives us nothing to care about and nothing to hold onto.  This is just a series of random events that eventually come to an end.

There are many great movies out right now that can make you think and feel something.  Don't throw your money away on something like this that tries to fool you into thinking something is happening, when it's really just handing out an uninspired retread of something that connected with audiences before.  Judging by the mid-credit scene, the studio hopes for the franchise to continue.  My wish will be that this Next Level is also the last one. 

0 comments