Director: Andy Serkis
Genre: Drama, Adventure
Runtime: 105 Minutes
Main Cast: Rohan Chand, Christian Bale, Benedict Cumberbatch, Cate Blanchett, Andy Serkis, Freida Pinto, Naomie Harris, Peter Mullan, Eddie Marsan
Plot: We all know this plot by now, right? Mowgli is a human child, raised by wolves, hunted down by the mean tiger Shere Khan, struggling with his own identity.
My Thoughts: It feels like years ago now that both Disney and Andy Serkis announced they were both doing a live-action Jungle Book movie…in the same year. What was up with that? At least as time went on they sorted the scheduling out a little better, although I’d completely forgotten about Serkis’ version until I got a notification on my Netflix account. Whoops!
Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle is much darker than both Disney versions, and that’s both its greatest strength and weakness. It stands out from the crowd, but I’m not sure who the target audience is here. It’s way too dark for the young ones, and do us grown-ups really need to watch another retelling of the same story?
I think the movie got better as it went on, the start was quite dull. Also, kudos goes to both Rohan Chand for playing an excellent Mowgli, and to Benedict Cumberbatch for being the perfect Shere Khan without really having to do anything. My bottom line here is if you never see Mowgli, you’re not missing out on anything, although there are much worse ways to spend your time, too.
Best Bit: Baby Mowgli is just the cutest little thing in the entire movie. However, my Mum brain wouldn’t switch off and I started to think about how on Earth those wolves actually raised him. How do you warm up a bottle of formula in the jungle?!
Worst Bit: I haven’t looked this up but I’m guessing because this is Andy Serkis’ movie, motion capture was used for the animals. I’m not saying it was bad quality at all, but it just made the animals look a bit off, somehow. Shere Khan in particular…his face was all kinds of weird?
Fun Trivia: The original Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling is actually an anthology of separate tales, with Mowgli’s story being just one of them. This is one of the few adaptations that reflects this, being titled simply Mowgli instead of The Jungle Book.
My Rating: 3 out of 5 elephant tusks…and you better keep them hidden too because let me tell you right now – elephants hold a mean grudge!
Often Off Topic 
Serkis choosing to give the animals more human features with mo cap was a huge mistake, IMO. I bet that also played a big part in WB dumping it on Netflix, it could never compete with Disney’s version.
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I know it’s what he does best but it really didn’t work for me here!
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Oh good you watched it! Yep, the Mo Cap was a tad horror-creepy. Sorry Andy Serkis! (I still love him tho) But I do like that the story has a more realistic approach to Mowgli, that is, he gets thrown around and falls over a lot, and he undergoes a much deeper identity crisis than we ever got to see in the Disney version. Now, bring on the other Disney live action stuff!
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I agree completely, I think that’s why I got into it more as the movie went on. It shows us that darker side to the story and how Mowgli grows up!
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I heard someone else also say that the animals looked strange–I think I’ll wait for this to come to PPV!
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There’s just something not quite right about them! Definitely worth a watch though.
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