Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)

I saw the original Jumanji in its entirety only about 2 years ago. It was enjoyable but I didn't love it so I didn't care much for Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. But then I read good things about and decided to give it a try. And you know what, it wasn't half bad.

About 20 years after the first film, four different teenagers, a geek (Alex Wolff), a sports jock (Ser'Darius Blain), a popular girl (Madison Iseman) and a shy girl (Morgan Turner), are sent to detention where they discover an old video game console and decide to play with it. When they plug the system in they are sucked into the world of Jumanji, where they become the avatars they chose and must work together to complete the game and escape from it.

Thursday Movie Picks: Video/Arcade/Board Game Movies

Hello there and welcome to Thursday Movie Picks, a weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves where each Thursday we, the people participating, have to pick three films that fit the week's theme. 

This week's theme is games and it was so exhausting. For some reason, my brain suggested me it was movies based on games, and I picked three films. I wrote the entire post. I check for any mistakes and I realise the entire post is a mistake. So I had to start (almost) all over, I was too lazy to think and picked the first three films that came to my mind. Please don't tell me my brain was right.

The Wizard (1989)

A kid an his autistic brother run away from home and hitch cross country to compete in the ultima video game championship. This one is tremendously awful. It's not even a film, it's like a very long commercial for Nintendo. The only good thing about it is the villain played by Will Seltzer. Yep, this film has a villain. 

Jumanji (1995)

After being trapped in a jungle board game for 26 years, Alan is freed by two children but so is a herd of creatures, so Alan must save his town from destruction. Not as exhilarating as I thought it would be considering Robin Williams stars in it, it still is a quite enjoyable fantasy adventure film with some laughs. I'm not sure kids would laugh though.

Ouija (2014)

After the death of a friend, a group of teenagers awaken the dark powers of an ancient spirit board and must confront their fears. This has to be one of the worst horrors ever made. It is dull, stupid, and extremely clichéd. Actually now that I think about it, it's a real horror.

Clue (1985)

Genre

Comedy | Mystery

Director

Jonathan Lynn

Country

USA

Cast

Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, Lesley Ann Warren, Colleen Camp, Lee Ving, Bill Henderson, Jane Wiedlin, Jeffrey Kramer, Kellye Nakahara, Howard Hesseman, Leslie Hoffman

Storyline

Six guests are invited to a stranger's house and must cooperate with the butler (Tim Curry) and the maid (Colleen Camp) to solve a mystery murder.

Opinion

The classic board game comes to life in Jonathan Lynn's "Clue", a lovely and hilarious blend of comedy and mystery elevated by a great cast.

The film has the same dynamism of the board games, with characters that come to life and start a game that involves and cleverly deceives the viewer with a series of clues that makes it difficult and quite exciting unmask the culprit.

It does have its flaws though. Like the script that is not actually that great. Even though there is some smooth and witty dialogue, memorable lines and lines funny enough to make you almost fall of the chair, the 3 different endings spoil the film. It is indeed a very original concept, but 2 out of the 3 endings are quite absurd and don't make lot of sense.

Avoiding to spoil anything, I'll jump to the funniest moment, the scene where Wadsworth, the butler, is running around the house while repeating the events that happened throughout the film at an insane pace.

Anyway what makes this film great is the cast. Tim Curry is excellent in the role of Wadsworth the butler, bringing so much energy into the film, and steals the show. I can't imagine anyone else to play the role. Madeline Kahn is hilarious as Mrs. White as she gives an hysterical, in a dramatic way, performance. Eileen Brennan plays Mrs. Peacock to perfection, and the others, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, Lesley Ann Warren, does a great job as well.

Absolutely a must-see, especially for Tim Curry's fans. 

Jumanji (1995)

Genre

Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy

Director

Joe Johnston

Country

USA

Cast

Robin Williams, Bonnie Hunt, Kirsten Dunst, Bradley Pierce, David Alan Grier, Jonathan Hyde, Bebe Neuwirth, Malcolm Stewart, Annabel Kershaw, Patricia Clarkson, Adam Hann-Byrd, Laura Bell Bundy

Storyline

After being trapped in a jungle board game for 26 years, Alan Parrish (Robin Williams) is finally freed by two children, Judy (Kirsten Dunst) and Peter (Bradley Pierce), but so is a herd of creatures of the jungle. Now, Alan must try to save his hometown from destruction.

Opinion

When I was a kid, I never had a chance to watch this film properly. I've seen some scenes here and there while zapping, but nothing more. A few days ago I've finally got my hands on it and decided to watch it, but unfortunately, it let me down a little.

Jumanji is a fantasy comic adventure starring one of the greatest comedians ever born, yet it fails in being exhilarating. I had some laughs, but, to be honest, if I were a kid I think I would have found it a bit terrifying, certainly not funny. However, it is a good film.

The idea of the magical board game is very intriguing and ingenious, and that makes the story very engaging. Time flies by, and you just "jump" into this adventure and feel like one of the characters of the film. I have complained about the poorness of laughs, but the thrills kind of bring balance to the film, and the result is still entertaining.

Today, 20 years later, the computer-enhanced special effects are no big deal, but they were back at '95 - well I guess so, I was too little to remember. Anyway, as said before the story is the most important thing here, not the special effects.

The acting is quite good. Needless to say is that Robin Williams is perfect for the role of Alan Parrish.

Ouija (2014)

Genre

Horror

Director

Stiles White

Country

USA

Cast

Olivia Cooke, Ana Coto, Daren Kagasoff, Douglas Smith, Bianca A. Santos, Matthew Settle, Lin Shaye, Shelley Henning, Vivis Colombetti, Robyn Lively, Sierra Heuermann, Claudia Katz, Afra Sophia, Clair Beale, Izzie Galanti, Sunny May Allison

Storyline

After the death of their friend Debbie (Shelley Henning) that committed suicide, a group of friends, Laine (Olivia Cooke), Sarah (Ana Coto) Trevor (Daren Kagasoff), Isabelle (Bianca A. Santos) and Pete (Douglas Smith), must confront their most terrifying fears when they awaken the dark powers of an ancient spirit board.

Opinion

If by horror you mean a dull, never ending torture for all the five senses, Ouija is one of the best horrors ever made. If not, we are in big troubles. 

Stating that not much can be expected from a supernatural horror film based on a Hasbro child's board game, this film somehow managed to be even worse than expected. The film is tedious, predictable, lifeless, suspenseless, tensionless, slow and not scary, nothing more than another awful teen "scary" movie that will soon fall to the wayside.

Even though I previously said the film is not scary, you may jump a few times: director Stiles White makes that happen by keeping things quiet and then, all of a sudden, making some noise. 

The story is stupid, full of the same old supernatural clichés, such as evil and vengeful spirits. The extremely linear and predictable plot takes the interest away from the viewer since the very beginning. Neither the final turn, typical of these films, manages to raise the level of the film. The dialogue is cheesy and makes you cringe. There is no character development, and as the characters die, the viewer is bored and detached.

However, there is something good about it. In fact, the makeup and special effects are very well-made, but if on one hand it gives the film some points, on the other hand it loses them all because they show there was the chance to do much better.

The acting is awful. Remember the dog from The Lazarus Effect? Well, it was a better actor than all these young people put together. Olivia Cooke not only looks a little alike Jessica Alba, but she has also inherited her bad acting. In fact, they have the same, limited range of facial expressions. Douglas Smith also deserves a mention. He gets pushed from behind so hard into a mirror that it shatters, and he is not even shaken up. Now, if that's not awful acting, I don't really know what that is. Also, he should have had some sleep, because he looks more dead than when he actually dies. Ana Coto, Daren Kagasoff, and Bianca A. Santos are also mono-expressive. In the film for about 5 minutes, Lin Shaye is the most convincing.