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The Jungle Book (2016)
The Jungle Book (2016)
2016 | Action, Family
Disney’s animated take on Rudyard Kipling’s classic The Jungle Book is a timeless classic. My mother is even fond of telling me about the Jungle Book theme I had in my room as an infant. So it was with great interest that we covered the new live-action film version which continues a successful tradition for Disney of adapting their animated classics into live-action features. For those not familiar with the story it involves a young boy named Mowgli (Neel Sethi), who was found alone in the jungle by a panther named Bagheera (Ben Kingsley), Mowgli is put in the care of a Wolfpack under the custody of Raksha (Lupita Nyong”o), who raised him as one of her own in the ways of the pack.

Mowgli grew and thrived under this arrangement and was loved and accepted by those in his group. Unfortunately Mowgli eventually draws the attention of a tiger named Shere Khan (Idris Elba), who has a deep disliking and fear of humans and what they’re capable of and thus demands that Mowgli be turned over to him so he removed the human threat from the jungle. Unwilling to let Mowgli be killed, Bagheeera agrees to take the boy to the Human Village where he will have the protection and guidance of his people going forward.

As they embark on a journey filled with sights, sounds, splendor, and danger, they meet all sorts of new characters along the way. From the lovable Baloo (Bill Murray), to the dangerous Kaa (Scarlett Johansson), their adventure is anything but boring especially with Shere Khan constantly lurking and new dangers and surprises around every corner.

Director Jon Favreau keeps the film in line with the source material and offers a lavish and fun production that while heavy on CGI imagery never overshadows the focus being on the characters as they are what propel the story even though the jungle itself very much is a central character to the story. There is action and adventure and parent should be warned that there are a few parts that may be a bit too intense for younger viewers. That being said, the film is just an absolute delight from beginning to end and moves at a brisk enough pace that never drags. There are a couple of musical numbers included which thankfully do not undermine some of the more action intense sequences of the film which had been ramped up considerably from their animated version counterparts.

There’s been talk that a sequel is early in the planning stages and I for one would definitely love to see more adventures especially since it’s reported that the same team that brought this to the screen would be involved in the sequel. The cast is incredibly strong and supports one another very well and what makes this film so great is that like many of the Disney classics it has the broad generational appeal that will allow adults to really enjoy the film rather than feel that they’re simply along to keep the kids happy.
Disney has announced that they would plan to do several live-action adaptations of their animated classics and based on their recent track record of success, in doing so I can’t wait to see what they have next as “The Jungle Book” is an absolute delight that is not to be missed.

http://sknr.net/2016/04/14/the-jungle-book/
  
Aladdin (2019)
Aladdin (2019)
2019 | Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Musical
The story (0 more)
The pacing in songs (1 more)
Jafar, just not malevolent
Not great, not terrible
So Aladdin came in for some possibly unjustified criticism when the trailers dropped and Will Smith was introduced as Genie, that though seriously is not the worst of the film.

The animated movie Jafar is evil, cunning and has the air of malevolence with every word he utters, in the live action, he's well, not, throughout the film he comes across weak, so that air just isn't there.

That though sad to say is not the worst, Jasmine and Aladdin, just no chemistry making the more romantic scenes more than a little painful to watch.

While kids will watch it and love the colorful genie, the parents will be fondly remembering the animated movie.
  
Ice Age (2002)
Ice Age (2002)
2002 | Animation, Comedy, Family
7
7.1 (41 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Animated films, I feel, do snow a lot better than the majority of live-action movies. Why? Well it’s much easier to render snow when you’re creating a film that is solely CGI, you don’t need to worry too much about realism or shooting on location.

Ice Age remains one of the all-time greats of the genre, and in my opinion, it’s a little underrated. It’s spawned numerous decent quality sequels and has a cracking cast and a light, witty script that’s perfect for adults and children alike to enjoy. The snow is part and parcel of the movie, so that’s why it avalanches its way to number four in this list. Get it, avalanches? I’m on a roll.

https://moviemetropolis.net/2018/02/28/best-snow-movies-top-5/
  
Maleficent (2014)
Maleficent (2014)
2014 | Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Great cast (3 more)
Great twists
Great story
Great special effects
Great take on the iconic Disney villain
This was a fun movie. A great take on the sleeping beauty with good twists.

They manage to give this iconic Disney villain many different layers and was played brilliantly by Angelina Jolie. The story was great and I enjoyed seeing the backstory of Maleficent. It gives so much weight to the sleeping beauty story we all know and you have more understanding and sympathy for the villain.

All parts of the cast were great and the CGi/special effects were great. It had to be since this movie is practically all special effects. The music was great and this is by far 1 of my favourite live action adaptations of a Disney movie so far.
  
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Saskia (283 KP) Sep 20, 2018

Fun fact: Angelina Jolies daughter played the 3 yr old aurora because she was the only child that wasn't scared of Jolie in her full makeup for maleficent. All the other children they bought in cried. Xx

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Kevin Wilson (179 KP) Sep 20, 2018

Yeah I did hear that from the person I was watching it with haha it made sense when she just clung to her ?

The Lion King (2019)
The Lion King (2019)
2019 | Adventure, Animation, Family
A beautiful trip filled with nostalgia
Criticising this update of The Lion King because of its similarities to the 1994 original is doing a real disservice to the time, money and effort that has gone into getting this behemoth of a film to the big-screen. Jon Favreau delivered a unique take on The Jungle Book and while the result is slightly less successful here, The Lion King is a technical marvel that shows what incredible special effects look like today.

Those emotional moments may not hit as hard as they used to, but this is a treat for the eyes and the ears and another satisfying, if cautious, win for Disney’s ‘live-action’ remakes.

Read more at: https://moviemetropolis.net/2019/07/19/the-lion-king-review-a-technical-marvel/
  
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