*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*
When Jumanji was first released in 1995, it received mixed reviews from critics, however, it was a success at the box office as it made over $262 million. While critics failed to be impressed by the film's computer-generated imagery and story, many praised the performance of Robin Williams who portrayed Alan Parrish, who got stuck in the board game, Jumanji, as a teenager and was released as an adult by two younger players, siblings Judy (Kirsten Dunst) and Peter (Bradley Pierce). It's one of the performances that the late actor is best remembered for. While I didn't like Jumanji as a child because I found it too scary, I enjoyed it more as an older viewer. When a sequel was announced to be released in 2017, I was surprised as I thought that Jumanji worked well as a stand-alone film and didn't need a follow-up. However, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle beat my expectations and I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. The sequel proved to be more successful than its predecessor as it was praised by critics and made almost a billion dollars at the box office. Because of its success, another instalment was released, however, does The Next Level match the quality of its predecessors?
Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle ended with the four main characters, Spencer (Alex Wolff), Fridge (Ser'Darius Blain), Martha (Morgan Turner) and Bethany (Madison Iseman), destroying Jumanji after completing their adventure in the video game. However, while Fridge, Martha and Bethany have moved on, Spencer returns to the world of Jumanji leading his friends to enter the video game in order to try and find him. Unfortunately, things go wrong and Spencer's grandfather, Eddie (Danny DeVito) and his friend, Milo (Danny Glover), end up in the game too and become stuck in the bodies of the characters of Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson) and Mouse Finbar (Kevin Hart), with Martha playing Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillian), however, Fridge is less than impressed when he realises he's Dr. Shelly Oberon (Jack Black).
The main highlight of Welcome To The Jungle was watching the main actors play against type, with Johnson, known for his heroic roles in action films, taking on the role of a socially awkward teenager. Gillian was impressive as the shy Martha who feels uncomfortable in her new athletic body and Hart was amusing as the popular guy who is annoyed at having lost the top two feet of his body. However, of the four, Black had the most difficult task: convincing viewers he's a teenage girl. When Bethany chooses Dr. Shelly Oberon, she assumes the character is female but is horrified when she realises she's in the body of a overweight, middle-aged man. Black succeeds and provides most of the film's humour with his accurate portrayal of a teenage girl. All four actors return, however, because the characters of Dr. Bravestone and Finbar have been taken over by elderly men, Johnson and Hart have to imitate DeVito and Glover. This is where most of the humour comes from as the pair spend most of the time arguing and forgetting that they're in a video game. Awkwafina, who recently impressed with her Golden Globe nominated performance in The Farewell, is a welcome addition to the cast as Ming, a character in the game, and Nick Jonas returns as Seaplane McDonough.
Viewers, who spend their spare time playing video games, will, most likely, enjoy what The Next Level has to offer as it feels like an accurate representation of a video game, including non-player characters, such as Nigel Billingsley (Rhys Darby), who provides the players with crucial information, fast-paced action sequences, over-the-top stunts and special effects. Trying to find Spencer in Jumanji proves to be difficult as the challenges are a lot harder, with Martha, Fridge, Eddie and Milo being chased by ostriches in a desert. Despite Milo being trapped in the body of a zoologist, he talks too slowly when he's providing information. Another memorable sequence occurs later in the film when all of the characters are being chased by mandrills.
While The Next Level doesn't offer anything new in terms of narrative and is predictable, most of the entertainment comes from the aforementioned adventure sequences and the humour. One of the weakest aspects of Welcome To The Jungle was the main villain, Van Pelt (Bobby Cannavale), who wasn't as menacing as the antagonist in Jumanji, who provided conflict for the players and tried to prevent them from completing the game. Unfortunately, while the main villain, Jurgen the Brutal (Rory McCann), is a small improvement over Van Pelt, I think he would have benefited from more screen time and more interaction with the players in order to make the game more difficult for them.
Like its predecessor, The Next Level accurately represents video games, with the characters having different strengths and weaknesses designed to help or prevent them from completing the game. Anyone who plays video games in their free time will understand each character's frustration with certain weaknesses, including Fridge who isn't impressed when he discovers that Oberon's weaknesses are sun, sand and heat, despite the game being set in the desert. However, some of the strengths prove to be useful, including Finbar's linguistics, which means he can communicate with animals.
At my local cinema, The Next Level was being shown in 3D/4DX. Whilst I didn't think the 3D was necessary as I found the glasses too uncomfortable and the screen being too dark, I enjoyed the 4DX which made me feel like I was part of the action on screen. For those unfamiliar with 4DX, it's a unique viewing experience that features stimulating effects like water, wind, scent and strobe lighting that are timed to enhance what’s happening on screen. While the 4DX is great for action-adventure films, it is expensive and only available at certain cinemas, however, it's well worth the price for those who want to feel part of the action on screen.
Those who liked Welcome To The Jungle will, almost certainly, enjoy what The Next Level has to offer as it provides viewers with much of the same, including amusing performances from its cast and fast-paced adventure sequences.
7/10
While The Next Level doesn't offer anything new in terms of narrative and is predictable, most of the entertainment comes from the aforementioned adventure sequences and the humour. One of the weakest aspects of Welcome To The Jungle was the main villain, Van Pelt (Bobby Cannavale), who wasn't as menacing as the antagonist in Jumanji, who provided conflict for the players and tried to prevent them from completing the game. Unfortunately, while the main villain, Jurgen the Brutal (Rory McCann), is a small improvement over Van Pelt, I think he would have benefited from more screen time and more interaction with the players in order to make the game more difficult for them.
Like its predecessor, The Next Level accurately represents video games, with the characters having different strengths and weaknesses designed to help or prevent them from completing the game. Anyone who plays video games in their free time will understand each character's frustration with certain weaknesses, including Fridge who isn't impressed when he discovers that Oberon's weaknesses are sun, sand and heat, despite the game being set in the desert. However, some of the strengths prove to be useful, including Finbar's linguistics, which means he can communicate with animals.
At my local cinema, The Next Level was being shown in 3D/4DX. Whilst I didn't think the 3D was necessary as I found the glasses too uncomfortable and the screen being too dark, I enjoyed the 4DX which made me feel like I was part of the action on screen. For those unfamiliar with 4DX, it's a unique viewing experience that features stimulating effects like water, wind, scent and strobe lighting that are timed to enhance what’s happening on screen. While the 4DX is great for action-adventure films, it is expensive and only available at certain cinemas, however, it's well worth the price for those who want to feel part of the action on screen.
Those who liked Welcome To The Jungle will, almost certainly, enjoy what The Next Level has to offer as it provides viewers with much of the same, including amusing performances from its cast and fast-paced adventure sequences.
7/10
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