Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle

***Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle*** (also known and stylized on screen simply as ***Mowgli***) is a 2018 adventure drama web film directed by Andy Serkis with a screenplay by Callie Kloves, based on stories collected in *All the Mowgli Stories* by Rudyard Kipling.

## Plot

Human child Mowgli is raised by a wolf pack in the jungles of India. As he learns the often harsh rules of the jungle, under the tutelage of a bear named Baloo and a panther named Bagheera, Mowgli becomes accepted by the animals of the jungle as one of their own, but the fearsome tiger Shere Khan doesn't take a liking to him. But there may be greater dangers lurking in the jungle, as Mowgli comes face to face with his human origins.

## Why It's Great

1. Rather than being another remake of the classic Disney film, this movie is an actual adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's works, and aims to be closer to the source material than any other adaptation. Tabaqui and Messua have roles, Shere Khan has a limp, Mowgli does not have an easy time adjusting to humankind and ends up going back to the jungle, Baloo is a teacher, Bagheera used to live with humans, and Kaa is wise.
2. The special effects are incredible, almost on par with the 2016 version. The backgrounds look beautiful, and while the animals don't look realistic, it's an artistic choice.
3. The actors portraying the animals do a great job, as they fully embrace their more bestial personalities rather than simply sounding like they're recording from a studio. Cate Blanchett as Kaa has been especially lauded.
4. This film features without a doubt the darkest and most menacing version of Shere Khan since the 2016 version, courtesy of Benedict Cumberbatch's deep voice and being a ferocious threat to Mowgli even with a crippled forelimb.
5. Awesome score by Nitin Sawhney.
6. Bagheera's backstory is very touching.
7. It has nice messages of teamwork, friendship, and the idea that family is where you find or make it.
8. Despite not having appeared in the original story, Bhoot is still a cheerful and optimistic character who genuinely loves Mowgli, and his death is truly heart-wrenching.
9. This is by far the grittiest and most serious adaptation of *The Jungle Book* yet, which allows it to really stand out in comparison to other adaptations of the story.
10. Tabaqui, Shere Khan's lackey, makes an appearance after not having appeared in any adaptation of the story since the anime adaptation, and manages to be an entertaining antagonist in his own right.
11. The scene where Akela fights other members of his pack as Shere Khan again challenges him for Mowgli is very intense to watch.
12. The final battle between Mowgli and Shere Khan is epic and suspenseful.

## Bad Qualities

1. Since the movie uses performance capture to create the animals rather than making them fully animated, most of the CGI animal designs ended up with rather disturbing human-like qualities, such as human eyes rather than animal ones and vaguely humanoid facial structures.
2. A few mean-spirited moments.
	* Bagheera intentionally targeting Mowgli so that he fails his survival test comes off as unnecessarily harsh, especially since the wolf pack, under Akela's leadership, is easily able to protect Mowgli from Shere Khan, as Baloo points out in their fight scene.
	* Akela exiling Mowgli from the jungle. Even though it's understandable that he's upset about Mowgli breaking the Law of the Jungle by using man's weapon, he doesn't acknowledge that the boy saved his life.
	* Mowgli yelling at Bhoot and telling him that he "came out wrong" when the latter was just trying to cheer him up.
3. The ending is much more bittersweet than any of the Disney versions, which ended on an optimistic note. Shere Khan and Lockwood are defeated and Mowgli is no longer in danger, but Bhoot is gone without Mowgli ever getting the chance to reconcile with him, Akela dies from taking a bullet for Mowgli, and Mowgli loses his faith in humanity and leaves the Man-Village for good.
4. Andy Serkis' portrayal of Baloo as a strict, rough, and demanding drill sergeant-like figure is a *stark*contrast to the much more well-known Disney character, although he genuinely cares about Mowgli and is happy to see him succeed.
5. As mentioned, this film is much darker than any version of the story, even downright depressing at times. Bhoot's death scene is particularly traumatizing. It's also much more graphically violent than any previous adaptation of the book, and at times even the book itself.

## Reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 52% based on 93 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10.

## External Links

* ***Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle*** on IMDB
* ***Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle*** on Rotten Tomatoes