Jumanji is an adventure movie that first came out in 1995 and instantly became a family favorite. Actors such as Robin Williams, Bonnie Hunt, Kirsten Dunst and Johnathan Hyde carried us through a deep and fantastic story that will forever stay in our hearts. Sadly I feel that the new movie coming out in 2017 - Jumanji: Into the Jungle - will fall way short of any such effect. Although not a complete loss, the sequel fails to capture the wonder and depth that made the original a timeless classic. In this article, I break down the good the bad and the ugly of the new trailer (you can watch it here).

The Good

While I find myself being disappointed by the direction they are taking with the new installment, there were some things that I liked. That being said, most of the things that I found myself enjoying had almost nothing to do with it being a part of the Jumanji story. In other words, I would much prefer to see this movie as a stand-alone adventure flick that has no connection to its predecessor. The first aspect that I liked is the cast, mainly - Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart and Jack Black. These three actors each have their own very distinct comedic style and to see them together on the big screen excites me. I found myself laughing at the jokes and getting pulled into the dynamic between their characters. The second aspect was the fact that they decided to take an innovative approach to the original story. While I don't agree with the direction, I can appreciate the attempt to make something new and different. We see this in ways like how the board game is now a video game and that the players get taken into Jumanji (as opposed to Jumanji coming out into the real world). The Third would have to be the overarching atmosphere of humor and lightness. In a Jumanji movie I think this is a very bad idea, but as a stand alone movie, with the actors they picked, I think will be very enjoyable to experience.

The Bad

The core problem with what I am seeing so far of this movie is that they drew drastically away from the things that made Jumanji the movie that it is. It's so far in fact that the original could be considered an Adventure/Drama while the new one looks to be an Action/Comedy. They start us off with a cheesy high school theme, introducing stereotypical student characters wrapped in a demeanor of superficiality. In other words, they are desperately trying to appeal to millennials and Generation Z-ers, perhaps they believe that the name Jumanji is enough to pull in the older generations. While I like the innovation associated with making the board game into a video game I also think that it does not work well. As a kid watching the movie, Jumanji was supposed to be terrifying: the drums, the design of the board, the pieces, its dustiness, that black orb in the middle, etc. In fact, the entire first movie practically centered around the physicality of the board game itself. A video game simulation is not scary or mysterious, it's just... cheesy.

The Ugly

After watching this trailer a few times there was a feeling that kept coming up, one that I just couldn't ignore and in my mind, it referenced another movie - The Mummy with Tom Cruise. Recently this film came out and it flopped big time, it is projected that Universal will lose around $95 million from it. The YouTube comments on the trailer echoed this sentiment and while many can feel the similarity I will attempt to explain what is happening. The reason that movies such as Jumanji and the first two Mummy movies did so well comes back to how we classify the movies. While I would categorize these older titles as Adventure/Dramas, the new takes fit snugly into Action and Action/Comedy. In Jumanji we see real cinematic value: the maturation of the tension was gripping, the environment was mysterious and seductive, the characters were relatable and human. Movies like this do so well because they touch upon who we are as deeply emotional beings. We see the film deal with themes such as mortality, the passage of time, the conflicting relationship between father and son, mental health, fear in the face of terror, human fragility, selfishness and selflessness, and ultimately the overcoming of challenges. It appears to me that in the sequel, they reversed all these important characteristics. We see highly stereotypical and unrealistic characters, cheesy action sequences, overdone CGI, overbearing humor, weak character development and superficial value generation. The first film guided you through a dramatic captivating adventure that livened your imagination and touched deep into your heart. Jumanji: Into the Jungle will annoyingly prod you through cliche action scenes, one-dimensional character growth, and frivolous plot development, and although you may have a few good laughs, in the end, you'll find yourself feeling empty and begging for the original.