The Transforming of a theme park ride into a full-length feature film is a bold move that doesn't always prove to be successful. Whereas Disney created a billion dollar film franchise out of the Pirates Of The Caribbean ride at Disneyland, there's also The Haunted Mansion with Eddie Murphy which experienced less thrilling results. Thankfully, Disney's Jungle Cruise leans towards Pirates in being a fun-filled piece of popcorn entertainment which captures the spirit of the ride it glamorizes. It helps that the film has fantastic chemistry between Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt elevating it, along with a likable supporting performance from Jack Whitehall.
Based on the popular theme park attraction, Jungle Cruise's plot takes place in the early 1900's with the story centering around an intrepid female researcher (Emily Blunt) recruiting her bother (Jack Whitehall) and traveling to South America, where she enlists an Amazon captain (Dwayne Johnson) on a rickety boat to travel through the jungle in search for an ancient tree, whose petals can cure all diseases. The plot for Jungle Cruise is almost identical to Anacondas: The Hunt For The Black Orchid, except Cruise's execution of the plot is more family-friendly while bearing strong similarities to other adventure-themed films such as The African Queen, Indiana Jones, Romancing The Stone, and 1999's The Mummy. Although Jungle Cruise's execution is nothing groundbreaking for the genre, it proves successful in delivering an all-around thrilling experience for audiences, despite often struggling to create an identity of its own.
Much of the films power in entertaining is largely due to the dynamic chemistry of its main trio. Both Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt prove to be a terrific duo with them showcasing strong chemistry which makes them the new ideal adventure team in a spirit similar to Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn in The African Queen. Johnson makes for or a strong leading man in his role as Frank Wolff, a noble yet cynical steamboat Captain who reluctantly agrees to guide Blunt and Whitehall's characters on their quest to find the Tears of the Moon Tree. Johnson brings much charisma to his role with Blunt matching him as the virtuous Dr. Lily Houghton. She gives her character a vibe that feels adventurous and independent with her character feeling reminiscent of Rachel Weisz's Evie from the popular Mummy series. Jack Whitehall gives a fun supporting performance as Lily's younger brother MacGregor with him providing a fitting third wheel to Johnson and Blunt. Edgar Ramirez turns in an effective performance as immortal Spanish conquistador Aquirre, who seeks the Tree's power to save his ill daughter. Other notable performances include Jesse Plemons as deranged German royal Prince Joachim, and Paul Giamatti as an irritable harbormaster Nilo Nemolato. The performances delivered by the cast do much in adding to the films level of entertainment with the chemistry between Johnson and Blunt being a core reason why the story is so enjoyable to watch.
The directing by Jaume Collet-Serra is commendable in giving the film a vibrant background with it's set and costume design, giving audiences the illusion that they're with these characters. The cinematography does a stunning job of capturing the exotic appearance of the jungle along with giving London a different look during the summer in comparison to the usual foggy and winter setting most films showcase it as being. It also gives the film a style that feels like a throwback to the classic Golden Age Of Hollywood. Composer James Newton Howard is no stranger when it comes to scoring adventure films with Jungle Cruise having him once again delivering a musical piece that's effective in adding to the sheer excitement of the story along with blending Latin and Metallica elements. Although the film boasts a running time of 127 minutes, the pacing keeps everything steadily moving with the story mixing key action-sequences with quieter moments that help flesh out the main characters. In terms of the films overall visual appearance, Serra does a solid job of transforming the theme park ride into live-action film mode in a way that makes it feel real and enchanting. If his goal was making audiences believe that they're in the jungle while forgetting about the real world for a few hours, then he succeeds fairly well in doing so.
Along with directing, both Serra and the writers incorporate themes into the script including gender, class, discrimination against the Amazonian natives, and unequal treatment of women. They manage to weave all of these elements together in a way that makes them feel organic and never comes across as being preachy. The scripts main issues that come into play are its familiar beats to other adventure films such as The African Queen or The Mummy with the film bearing a strong resemblance to the latter. Numerous subplots often feel lifted from the latter such as the stories main character serving as a guide for the female love interest and her goofy brother, which mirrors that of the characters from The Mummy. These similarities don't make the writing poor, but rather feel a bit padded with how it leans on previous adventure stories for comfort. The heart of the film lies within the back and forth bantering between Blunt and Johnson's characters with fun bits such as her referring to him as "Skippy." Aguirre as an antagonist for the story is serviceable, though his characters backstory regarding wanting to save his ill daughter, isn't developed enough for audiences to fully empathize with him. The revelation of Johnson's character once being partners with Aguirre before him becoming immortal, also feels like contrived backstory rather than being naturally introduced. The script for Jungle Cruise has a fairly decent story-structure to it that feels well-rounded with the audience finding themselves connected with the main trio. Despite the films desire to pay homage to classic jungle/adventure type stories, it's main fault is relying too much on what's already been done rather than exercising creativity.
Although scenarios feel familiar and character tropes are reminiscent of past action-adventure classics, Jungle Cruise still manages to create its own experience for audiences that manages to be reasonably decent. The film has enough visual flare to appease audiences with Johnson and Blunt making waves with their charming chemistry. It may not be as crafty as the films it owes its existence to, but there's enough action and laughs provided here to make for an enjoyable experience which the whole family can enjoy. For those looking for an entertaining sea adventure with heart, Disney's Jungle Cruise is a voyage worth taking.
Final Verdict: See It
Images Courtesy Of Disney
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