Jumanji: The Next Level

This review may contain spoilers!

If you want a fun way to round out 2019, this action-comedy is just the thing. I would give Jumanji: The Next Level a 7.5/10.

Jumanji: The Next Level sees Bethany, Martha and Fridge return to the world of Jumanji in order to save a missing Spencer. The catch? Spencer's grandfather and his elderly friend are in tow, taking up two of the more useful avatars in the game. This film has a 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' mentality that really does work surprisingly well. The world of Jumanji feels so much more expansive, with incredible new locations, perils, villains and character avatars. You're excited to get lost with the main cast and see what dangers or mysteries they can get entangled in, which is everything a film like Jumanji should be doing. I could feel myself being drawn in because I started counting out how many lives characters had before they gave us the visual cue, or I was getting frustrated at characters who weren't using their character to the full potential and in those high adrenaline action pieces my energy levels were right up. This Jumanji film pushes itself as nothing other than an experience, and one well worth going through. I really enjoyed seeing how character dynamics played out; a lot of the roles were presented very differently by the cast as they were inhabited by different 'players. Sometimes when a film goes the body swap route it's not for the better but this film found a nice safe zone where this aspect enhanced the narrative. The cinematography is really impressive, setting up nice wides to show off amazing set pieces and effects but also swinging into motion for those more turbulent fast-paced moments. The special effects are fantastic and really come as a stroke above the first film, a lot of the CGI creatures like the hyenas or mandrills are terrifying.

Karen Gillan, who played Ruby Roundhouse, is really interesting as more of the lead this time around; Gillan is tasked with guiding and controlling how scenes play out a lot and she constantly shows just how up to the task she is. Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, Alex Wolff and Ser'Darius Blain, who played Bethany Walker, Martha Kaply, Spencer Gilpin and Anthony 'Fridge' Johnson respectively, are a diverse friendship group that function really well in terms of their chemistry together; Iseman in particular stands out for her no holds barred approach to the adventure in how she finds her own way into the game. Dwayne Johnson, who played Dr Smolder Bravestone, looks like he's found a comedic outlet he is really enjoying in this film; Johnson's take on Devito's role is really fun because he comes across as this really entertaining, witless loose cannon. Jack Black, who played Professor Sheldon 'Shelly' Oberon, has to handle a number of characters in this film and finds the fun in each of them; yet the film is not complete until Black and the role of Bethany get to reunite and steal the show in the last act. Danny Devito, who played Edward 'Eddie' Gilpin, is this smart-mouthed bitter grandparent who comes across as an interesting new addition to the film; Devito goes through a big change in this film and develops his role's outlook on the world nicely. Kevin Hart, who played Franklin 'Mouse' Finbar, does a very good take on Glover's insightful yet slow-talking role; Hart has a few more emotional scenes than he got in the first film which really hold your attention. Dania Ramirez, who played Flame, has some hilarious scenes as this lovestruck NPC, Ramirez really leans into the melodramatic passionate love which make for some fun scenes between her and Johnson. Rhys Darby, who played Nigel Billingsley, is one of the best people this film has at dealing heavy amounts of exposition; Darby really sets the scene well and invites you into the world of Jumanji. Nick Jonas, who played Jefferson 'Seaplane' McDonough, is a very charismatic audience favourite the moment he appears back onscreen; Jonas' appearance as a father in this sequel means you really feel the gravity of the dangerous situations he puts himself into. Danny Glover, who played Milo Walker, is a very kindly, compassionate role that plays well against Devito; the two have an interesting friendship that has some very heated moments in their scenes together.

However, the best performance came from Awkwafina, who played Ming Fleetfoot. As a newcomer to a big blockbuster action-comedy series it's not always the easiest to make your mark, but to outshine some of the seasoned performers in this was no small feat. Awkwafina is responsible for playing two player roles in the film: Spencer and Eddie. As Spencer you got a lot of that more reserved, unsure of self persona that makes this role a bit of an outsider. Awkwafina did a good job of showing how outside of the group Spencer was feeling, how lost in himself he was. Yet when the roles changed around and Eddie was who Awkwafina was playing you really got to see her acting chops. She had all of Devito's physical mannerisms down to perfection and did an incredible job with his accent. Her role had a level of comedy that was extremely natural and didn't push the envelope too much. Awkwafina is a really versatile actress with a lot of excellent projects worth looking forward to on the horizon.

Jumanji: The Next Level is a fun filled ride that doesn't drive itself to do much different from the first film. The entire Jumanji adventure is split up into a structure that feels almost identical to the first film in execution. There is enough new content to satisfy but the bare bones of the piece is extremely repetitive to watch. There is also an aspect to the film that relies heavily on an animal character playing a main role and the film banked too much on it. A main character loses their voice as a result and as a result their last scene of the film isn't one that has the impact it should. I think more than anything the film loses itself on it's driving motivation, Spencer's feelings of disconnect and inferiority. By the end of the film Spencer's issues are wrapped up extremely easily and you don't really believe he learned his lesson even though the film is telling you he has. The score for the film doesn't do a lot that feels different from the last film and even the soundtrack doesn't really take any new risks.

Rory McCann, who played Jurgen The Brutal, suffers from what both Jumanji films have suffered from: an inability to construct an interesting video game antagonist; the blank indifference of these villainous roles grates against the significance of them squaring off against the heroes.