Writer: Karl Geurs
Director: Steve Trenbirth
Cast:John Goodman, Haley Joel Osment, Mae Whitman, Connor Funk, Bob Joles, Tony Jay, John Rhys-Davies, Jim Cummings
Rating: G
Studio: Disney
Release Date:June 17, 2008
Jungle Book 2 feels like an odd movie for me to review. When I think about why that is, it’s because Disney sequels usually don’t come out as good as they should, and certainly nowhere near their predecessors. Sure, there are a few Disney sequels that I have enjoyed, but for the most part I view them as a cheap way the studio to make more money. Kids generally enjoy them, but I have found that most kids will watch just about anything. I am not sure why it is, but if it’s got bright colors and music, most kids will be satisfied enough to watch whatever is on television no matter how bad it is.
This particular Disney venture falls somewhere in between completely horrible and decent. It’s not anything I am particularly interested in watching a second time on my own, but if a little one was nearby and liked it, I could sit through it without dire consequences. It certainly could have been better, and it definitely appears to have been made for more commercial reasons, I didn’t absolutely loathe it. I am more indifferent than anything.
Release Information:
DisneyToon Studios is the team responsible for most of the Disney sequels. The first outing for the studio was Return to Neverland, which was one of the few Disney sequels that I enjoyed. Jungle Book 2 was the second undertaking. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as exciting to me as the first venture, but the studio is continuing to produce sequels, so apparently someone likes them.
You can pick up Jungle Book 2 just about anywhere, as it was released on June 17, 2008. If you are unable to find it at stores, you can also pick it up on the Internet. Amazon is currently stocking it for just under $20, with the option of free shipping, permitting you spend at least $25.
The The Jungle Book 2 (Special Edition) Plot
The Jungle Book 2 picks up about five days after the old one leaves off. Mowgli (Haley Joel Osment) is in the village, but he’s having a hard time adjusting to life around men vs. animals. This is even harder for Mowgli, because his new father (John Rhys-Davies) prohibits the children from going into the jungle. It wouldn’t be the Jungle Book though if Mowgli listened, so as you can guess he does make some unapproved trips into the jungle. This leads his new little brother Ranjan (Connon Funk) and his new girl friend Shanti (Mae Whitman) to follow him even though they are nowhere near as familiar with the jungle as Mowgli is.
Mowgli runs into Baloo (John Goodman), the bear that was like a father to him. However, things aren’t like they used to be. Mowgli’s enemies, specifically Shere Khan (Tony Jay) and Kaa (Jim Cummings) are coming to look for him with revenge on their minds. Surprisingly (or not, as the case may be) this is about all I can say without giving things away. Like other Disney films there is music and dancing, bright colors, and mild action. However, I just don’t feel that it lives up to the Disney name.
The story is more or less a lot of the same, the plot is lacking, and it feels pointless to see a sequel that offers nothing new. The voice actors did a nice job, but they didn’t have a lot to work with. It seems funny that despite it being five days later, the studio did not attempt to find people that sounded remotely like the original actors. Mowgli sounds drastically different from one movie to the next, as does Shanti. In many cases, the characters are written in a more tired, boring way, as well. It makes the entire movie seem like a letdown. The musical numbers were mildly entertaining, but I am sure that most adults will easily find their minds wandering as they watch this. I know mine did.
Storyline/Plot: 
Replayability:
Acting: 
Directing:
Audio/Visual:
I would have thought that a Disney movie, sequel or not, would have had a better visual quality. It’s not that everything was bad about this. Instead, there was one major thing that was absolutely distracting. The anamorphic widescreen with an aspect ratio of 1.66:1 should have provided a nice looking picture quality. Instead there were lines of color interference that showed up more often than I would have liked. Had it been one or two lines I could have ignored them, but they were a regular occurrence. If you took out the lines the color and look of the picture was otherwise acceptable.
The audio offers a much more stable sound to it overall. The Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track is consistent and free of any real problems. The various sound channels are used to the fullest, rather than just keeping a monotone based sound that many audio presentations offer. While I am not sure what the original audio sounded like for this DVD, this was likely the best option out of the audio/video.
Visual:
Audio:
Bonus Features:
As with most Disney movies, things in the bonus area are filled to the brim. Sometimes it always seems like there are more bonuses for those movies that you just don’t care for, but either way, love it or hate it, you’ll find more than a few bonuses here to check out. Things begin with a fairly standard trailer section. The trailers included in this set are Sleeping Beauty – Platinum Edition, 101 Dalmatians II: Patch’s London Adventure, Wall- E, and The Sword in the Stone – 45th Anniversary Edition. There is also a trailers/sneak peek section with ads for The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Lip Synchin’ in the Rain, The Secret of the Magic Gourd, The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning, Tinker Bell, Phineas and Ferb, and The Nightmare Before Christmas: Collector’s Edition.
One of the main special features here is a game called, Mowgli’s Story Time Adventure Game. In the game Mowgli is able to re-tell the story by using shadow puppets. It becomes your job to press the arrows by using the buttons on the remote that go with the on-screen activities. The game ends up feeling pointless since you do not really win anything. Also, it’s not that exciting when you are spending the majority of the game looking at the arrows to make sure you hit the right buttons. The rest of the special features come from the previous DVD release and have been added again to this set for anyone that does not have the older DVD.
First up here is another game, Mowgli’s Jungle Ruins. Using your remote you get to navigate through a maze. Questions pop up randomly about animals. You have to get these questions right in order to keep the game moving. When you “win” you receive a small “Jungle Rhythm” clip. While this game is better than the first, again this is hardly anything spectacular.
The Deleted scenes area offers two deleted scenes that are introduced with explanations by Matt Walker and Sharon Morrill. The scenes are “I Got You Beat”, which is another version of “Jungle Rhythm”, the song that made it in the movie, and “Braver”. Three music videos are also included, although, with two of them coming straight from the film, they feel pointless, at best. The videos are for “W-I-L-D” and “Jungle Rhythm”. The third video is the Smash Mouth cover of “I Wanna Be Like You”, though unfortunately, the song comes heavily edited from the looks of it, which is too bad since it was a decent cover. You can opt to watch these videos with or without the lyrics on the screen.
The final area for these features is Backstage Disney. In this area you receive a synopsis of the movie that lasts for a few minutes. Then there is the lone featurette of the group, “The Legacy of the Jungle Book”. This includes the original cast and crew interviews about the original film and the making of a sequel. This tends to feel a little rushed, cut off, and at times promotional in nature.
While it’s true there are a lot of special features here, quantity does not equal quality.
Bonus Features:
Bottom Line:
I highly recommend all you Disney fans just go ahead and skip this because it really isn’t worth your time. If you have to watch it, do yourself a favor and just rent it. It will save you some money, because I doubt you will want to see it twice. The kids might like it, but I am guessing that you can even convince them to watch something else. If all else fails, just show them the original, its close enough to keep them happy and it will save you some money. In the end, it’s more entertaining anyhow.
Overall Rating:
Technorati Tags: Movie, DVD Review, Cartoon, Animated, Disney, Walt Disney, Home Video, Special Edition, Jungle Book 2, Sequel
Written by Ashtyn Evans - Visit Website
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Ashtyn lives in her home state of Michigan with her life partner, Dominick, her 14 year old son, and her baby, the Shih-Tzu, Oliver Twist. Ashtyn is in college, going for a degree in Psychology. She plans to get her Ph.D and work as a therapist in the field of human sexuality. Ashtyn is an experienced and talented chef. She also excels at writing and has worked as a professional writer for the past five years. Ashtyn enjoys spending time with her son and four year old nephew, watching movies, listening to music, and writing works of fiction.
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