Jumanji (1995)

Revisiting Joe Johnston’s coolly-reviewed but financially successful 1995 action-adventure Jumanji, my wife commented that upon the tragic passing of Robin Williams, one can’t help but look at his face and see some kind of inner turmoil. Although much more of a comedic genius and force of nature rather than a sad clown, it’s clear that the humanity behind many of the characters he portrayed shines through in the form of both humor and sorrow. I was struck by the restraint in his performance and his realization of a lost youth is very affecting even as CG beasties destroy the small town around him. Still, one only has to watch a behind-the-scenes featurette to see that while Williams restrained himself on-camera, he was lightning-fast as always with a quip or a super specific pop culture reference to lighten the mood. Due to his godlike status as a comedian, at least before he really began to regularly churn out poor films, many people tend to forget that he was a talented, versatile actor capable of outstanding dramatic interpretations. Famously, only he and a young Christopher Reeve were accepted into the prestigious acting program at Juilliard amongst a bevy of other applicants. While the Jake Kasdan-directed Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2019) was respectfully a direct sequel to the ‘95 original, I was taken aback at how well this mid-90's effort holds up. It’s fast on its feet and provides just enough drama to give the characters depth. Not a ton, but enough. 

Director and Oscar-winning visual effects artist Joe Johnston’s America has often been a place I’d like to visit, possibly even live in. The aura his worlds give off are practically golden in hue and the small New England town-vibe is strong as Alan Parrish (Adam Hann-Byrd, Little Man Tate), son of shoe tycoon Samuel Parrish (Jonathan Hyde, Ri¢hie Ri¢h), rides his bike through town and is greeted by the various residents.

Unfortunately, being a sweet but pampered child, he quickly becomes the target of that old stand-by, the town bullies, who are a bunch of pricks who’ve got nothing better to do. It’s 1969, douchebags! Lie about your age and go to Vietnam if you want to hurt people so bad! Pricks. While hiding out in his dad’s factory, we meet Carl Bentley (David Alan Grier, In Living Color, but people often forget a three-time Tony nominee as well), who has invented a pretty snazzy pair of sneakers, which Alan immediately fucks up by leaving on a conveyor belt. 

While obvious, over-played, and standard operating procedure for most family films, the theme of fathers, sons, and courage is central to the film’s plot. Mr. Parrish ends up sending his poor son to his doom as he encourages the boy to stand up for himself, which would be fine if there weren’t an army of cronies to back the little shit up who believes Alan is moving in on his girl. Let’s face it, he’s got a point. If Alan had gotten to grow up a rich kid through the 1970’s, he’d’ve spent his days getting coked out of his mind and attending endless Eyes Wide Shut orgies by night. Getting the crap kicked out of him, including a bloody lip, a carry-over from Johnston’s Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, leads him to hear the beating of drums from a local construction site. You see, exactly 100 years ago, a pair of young boys buried the deadly board game in an overly dramatic fashion. When one asks the other what may happen if the game is once again discovered, this kid gets his big Oscar-moment and states: “Then may God have mercy on his soul.” Bum bum BUM! By the way, the fact that the game is found exactly 100 years later has exactly nothing to do with the plot.

Although the beating of the drums could be from the concussion Alan just suffered, he’s still intrigued by this weird little game he found in a treasure chest. A minor editing observation: the film cleverly cuts to a wide shot since he does spend an awful lot of time uncovering the chest while workers would presumably be milling about. It’s made clear he’s relatively alone. Absconding with the game, which has a wonderfully detailed cover, he heads home and promptly has a heated argument with his father about attending a posh boarding school. A very young Patricia Clarkson (Oscar-nominee, Pieces of April, The Green Mile, that Lonely Island Mother’s Day video) tries to smooth things over, but they have to go do wealthy society stuff. Sarah, the girl whose friendship with Alan resulted in his smackdown, shows up and she’s played by Broadway veteran and Tony nominee Laura Bell Bundy, who not only originated a role in Hairspray and Legally Blonde as Elle Woods, but she's the original Tina in the outstanding Off-Broadway musical Ruthless!. Screw Britney Spears. She always gets mentioned as being a part of that production. She was Bundy’s understudy, damnit! The two play the game and we get a minor effect that fascinated me as a child. It’s so simple, but the idea that the pieces simply move by themselves and can’t be removed from the board captivated me. What can I say? I’d’ve appreciated that when I played Chutes and Ladders. The reason I enjoy Johnston’s work is that his family films don’t tend to sugarcoat traumatic events. Alan is sucked into the game and Sarah is chased by giant African bats. 

Jumping ahead 26 years, Broadway star and Tony winner Bebe Neuwirth (Chicago) and her recently orphaned niece and nephew Judy (Kirsten Dunst, Interview with the Vampire, Drop Dead Gorgeous) and Peter (Bradley Pierce, Beauty and the Beast) have now moved into the Parrish house, which has fallen into disrepair as the town has also crumbled. It’s a dark, almost Back to the Future-style take on the idea that one event could alter the future of an entire community, in this case the fictional town of Brantford, New Hampshire. The formerly idyllic little hamlet is now filled with homeless people and what remains of the Parrish shoe factory after Samuel sank every dime he had into finding his lost son. Rumors abound that the old man murdered his son and “chopped him up into little pieces;” hiding the body somewhere in the once grand old house. This bit of history comes courtesy of a mouthy exterminator (James Handy, The Verdict) who gets called in since a single bat was still hanging around the attic some 26 years later. The game is discovered in an attic that really should’ve been cleared out prior to the new family moving in. This has always been a gripe of mine. Why in the world would all of this junk not be removed beforehand? That’s never made any sense to me. Some old paint cans, maybe a bit of spare carpeting? Sure. But a vast array of junk from the late 60’s? Come on!

Kirsten Dunst had just come off her career-making turn in Interview with the Vampire, so her talent was undeniable and she’d successfully transition into adult roles, gaining worldwide fame thanks to Spider-Man but also snatching back some much-deserved respectability for her award-winning turn in Lars Von Trier’s apocalyptic Melancholia. One particular scene that’s always stayed with me is her gleefully evil tactic of giving the realtor some phony description of her parents' glamorous life and untimely end. Her little giggle after feigning tears and exiting the room aren’t a major part of the plot, but it at least establishes her as an excellent liar; a skill she does utilize later. There’s a bit of an inconsistency to her and Peter’s overall demeanor. While I don’t think they should mope around like sad sacks even though their parents have only been dead for about a year, the fact that Peter isn’t talking to anyone but does talk to Judy only makes it odder that he talks at all. And Judy appears to be fairly well-adjusted, just a bit depressed.

After their aunt leaves, they play the game and to quote Doctor Emmett Brown, they “see some serious shit.” Giant mosquitos and monkeys appear. My daughter’s not a fan of bugs and these little flying bloodsuckers are pretty well-rendered. The CG monkeys however...look, they’d been working on the film since around ‘92, when Jurassic Park was nearing completion. They saw what was possible and Jumanji did represent a few significant steps forward...but these monkeys look pretty bad. I tend to be forgiving, but considering how many appearances they make, the effects on these simians was either deemed A-OK or else they just said “fuck it, this is the best we can do.” Monkeys are horribly dangerous creatures and they set off to destroy the town. What’s worse is that it’s very likely that the one and only Frank Welker gave freaky voice to these little fuckers, so it’s doubly scary. Author and illustrator Chris Val Allsburg’s short book was always a favorite of mine growing up, particularly for the pictures. The movie maintains the anarchic sense of destruction but ups the ante and widens the scope of the damage the game can inflict. In some ways, the film’s structure mirrors that of Gremlins.

Fortunately for Judy and Peter, a specific roll of the dice brings Alan, now played by Williams, back from the jungle. It also brings along a fearsome lion, whose CGI body isn’t particularly convincing but the practical effects shots of it aren’t too shabby. 

Ironically, this may still not be the hairiest Robin Williams has ever been in a role, considering the comedian often commented on how apelike his body hair tended to get. His realization and guilt regarding both his father and the downfall of the town play out quite well and after trading in his jungle garb from a thankfully non-meth addicted, non-masturbating homeless man for some modern duds, he agrees to finish the game.

There's a wild scene in which one mosquito first stabs through the roof of a car and then through the windshield. Upon realizing that the game can’t continue without Sarah (now played by the great Bonnie Hunt, Jerry Maguire, The Green Mile, many Pixar films), they track her down. She’s fortunately still in the same house (that’s convenient) and is working as a phony psychic named Madame Serena. While not as big of a star as Williams, she plays off him quite well and her hysterics and fit about having to play the game which essentially ruined her life are very funny. Spending two grand on therapy doesn’t seem like that big of a sacrifice, but maybe that was 1970’s money, I guess. The film is smart enough to slow things down and address the elephant (not the real one yet) in the room: that everyone believes she’s crazy because she was the only one who knew the truth about Alan’s disappearance. One can imagine how difficult and ostracized she must have felt growing up. Games are supposed to be fun, but in the case of Jumanji, it’s a genuinely dangerous and arguably evil piece of entertainment with dire consequences for anyone who dares to engage. 

There are some contrivances here and there in order to pad the runtime, most egregious of which is having a puppet/CG pelican steal the game for a little while, but the film works well due to the genuine chemistry between the four leads. Behind-the-scenes footage appears as though the four had a fun time and enjoyed each other’s company and that comes through on screen. Carnivorous vines snake through the house and an impressive, almost Audrey II-like plant nearly eats Peter.

With Alan’s role, he unleashes a deadly hunter named Van Pelt, who’s read “The Most Dangerous Game” one too many times. He shows up in classic tan safari gear and proceeds to try and blow Alan’s head off. Van Pelt is played once again by Jonathan Hyde, in a dual role. Although Hyde worked steadily until around 2018, the mid-90's was a very busy time for him. As a kid growing up in the 90’s, Macauley Culkin was a big deal, so although Ri¢hie Ri¢h isn’t a particularly great film, Hyde was memorable in it, and this film’s success cemented his reputation as the go-to guy for upper class snobs.

After Van Pelt discharges the last of his vintage bullets, a disturbingly accurate and typically American scene follows as he heads into a gun store and purchases a heavy-duty bit of weaponry by bribing a clerk played by Nanclus from Star Trek VI, Darryl Henriques. While it’s made clear that Van Pelt has no interest in gunning down Sarah or the children, imagine a situation in which this movie tries to sell us on a 'white hunter, black heart’ dude stalking pre-pubescent kids. Ah...say what you will about the 90’s, but there’s still a little carry-over from the wild west show that was 80’s kids movies. Seriously, though. With an unlucky dice roll, this dude could be trying to shoot Little Man Tate or even stop Bring it On from ever happening. Fucker.

I tend to be very forgiving when it comes to the shortcomings of a movie. It’s hard work and as far this film goes, they were in the doldrums of early CGI. What’s really disheartening though is that for the stampede sequence, the filmmakers really did smash through a book shelf and built a blue screen rhinoceros. All of that practical work is unfortunately mired by the seriously rough digital rhinos and elephants. They’re not as bad as the monkeys (who laugh their asses off at a TV showing The Wizard of Oz), but the bland color palette and artifacting made me think I was watching an early Tomb Raider walkthrough. However, the mayhem these animals cause in the small town is pretty amazing. I had forgotten about all of the looting that goes down. Van Pelt snags the game while Alan is arrested by Carl, who’s now a cop since Samuel fired him for the conveyor belt snafu. So basically, Alan ruined Carl’s life. Meanwhile, we get an amusingly anarchic, if a bit ridiculous sequence in the discount store Sir Sav-A-Lot, which I assume is located across the street from the S-Mart. It’s ironic that I’d complain about all of the silly, Home Alone-style antics that go on in the store since so many fantastical things are going on already, but those happen because of the game. Peter setting up an elaborate canoe launcher with air tanks and bar bells seems a little over-the-top. 

Carl lets Alan go and he joins up with Sarah and the kids back at the house, which has now been overrun by jungle vines. At this point, besides some cutaways to the running gag of Carl’s squad car getting continually demolished (much like Goofy’s car in A Goofy Movie, released the same year), it’s just dangerous set piece after set piece. A monsoon comes down and a decent practical effect crocodile tries to eat Mork from Ork. Alan sinks into the floor after it becomes quicksand, Judy gets poisoned by dart-shooting plants, and some cartoonishly large spiders attack. The set design is impressive here, particularly when the entire house splits down the middle. Van Pelt returns and while Alan secretly rolls the dice to move his piece, he finds the courage to stand up to him.

There's one odd moment earlier regarding the hunter. He acknowledges that Alan rolled the dice, therefore he is the one to be killed. So, a person who lives inside the jungle of the game knows he’s in the game? Wouldn’t he be happy to escape the jungle and start a new life in the outside world? More importantly, what would happen if Alan was killed? I’ve also wondered what would have happened if Sarah had died or Judy and/or Peter failed to roll a 5 or an 8 to free Alan. These are all legitimate questions that essentially have to be ignored for the movie to work. Regardless, Alan wins the game and Van Pelt and all of the animals are sucked back through a sinkhole vortex. Alan and Sarah hug each other and...

Whoa. We’re back in 1969. This fucking game can actually alter the space-time continuum. Everything’s fine, except that Alan and Sarah still have all of their memories intact. Wouldn’t his dad and everyone else who lived over the last 26 years also remember? Ah, never mind. Samuel returns and we get a sweet scene of reconciliation between father and son. He even saves Carl’s job, because those Air Jordans ain’t gonna build themselves. The game gets tossed in the river and Alan and Sarah share a kiss. Another time jump, and everything is fabulous at the Parrish house. It’s Christmas, Sarah’s pregnant, Carl is leading a sing-a-long, and Alan is dressed up as Santa while talking to his still-living dad. There’s a feeling of wonder and magic when Judy and Peter arrive with their still-living parents. It’s one of my favorite scenes and it’s so sweet that Alan and Sarah want so badly to embrace Judy and Peter and tell them everything, but since everything got reset, all they can do is shower them with gifts. The best moment comes when the Parrish’s freak as the parents mention a skiing trip they’re planning. While I’m sure Alan and Sarah come off as super asshole bosses for forcing an employee to cancel a getaway, it’s for the greater good. I’d like to think that way down the line, Alan and Sarah tell Judy and Peter about their alternate timeline adventure, and the two kids smile and slowly back out of the room, yanking out a football-sized cell phone to call for help. 

Van Allsburg’s screenplay treatment led him to receive a story credit, but obviously his lovely original piece needed to be expanded. While Jim Strain’s claim to fame is writing 1991’s Bingo, one of many early 90’s dog movies that isn’t Beethoven, and Greg Taylor adapted Harriet the Spy and wrote the sweet and sadly forgotten Prancer, the real star writer here is Jonathan Hensleigh. With credits that include Armageddon and Die Hard with a Vengeance, he was a big deal in the 90’s. When he transitioned into directing, he unfortunately got shafted. Legend has it that his screenplay for what would end up being 2004’s The Punisher was very impressive, but his budget was severely cut and the film ended up being an absolute disaster. A limp, near-parody of what should be a pretty easy story to tell. Until Jon Bernthal showed up in the second season of Daredevil to be a fucking badass, Dolph Lundgren’s Ozploitation version of The Punisher was the best we could get. Punisher: War Zone was a step-up, but still not enough to redeem the character. Hensleigh would fare better when he wrote and directed Kill the Irishman, an imperfect but intermittently entertaining mob movie. The writing in Jumanji is predictable and not terribly complex, but its heart is in the right place and there’s still some real charm to be found here. 

Jumanji holds up surprisingly well despite the shoddy CGI, and that’s thanks to lovely performances, an exciting score by James Horner, crisp cinematography by Thomas Ackerman, who tends to shoot light comedic fare like Back to School and Rat Race but also surprisingly Beetlejuice, and Joe Johnston’s sure-handed direction. It’s a testament to the filmmaker’s work that my daughter was absolutely captivated and not at all bothered by the darker aspects of the story. It’s a great example of solid family entertainment with a bit of an edge.