So Disney have been in the news recently. They broke some actors contracts regarding films given an exclusive theatrical release, but instead they end up on Disney+ also via Premier Access in which subscribers have to pay a fee to watch it or what till it becomes free to everyone. Yeah, it's not great, but given the state of the world at the moment, some of us prefer to watch these things at home over the cinema. But not me, as I feel the cinemas need support now more than ever, and you know some films are better been seen on a big screen than a small one. So for a long time now, Disney have made films based on their theme park attractions. While the majority have not been very successful, I guess they just wanted to cash in on the success the Pirates of the Caribbean films have had, despite the mixed to negative reception that the later films of that particular series have received. So here we are with their latest one; a ride that I have seen in action, but of the couple of times I went to a Disney theme park, I haven't been on. Originally, it was a ride Walt Disney wanted to make to show people the jungle during a time where getting to a real jungle wasn't easy. As time went on, the ride got updated with its storyline and things with the biggest change (at least from my point of view) being the removal of culturally sensitive material, which makes sense given the changing world we now live in. So this film that has a Rock with a Blunt should be interesting. Let's cruise in the jungle and take a look:
In 1916, one Dr. Lily Houghton (played by Emily Blunt) and her brother MacGregor (played by Jack Whitehall) learn of the medical possibilities of a legendary tree said to contain the mythical Tears of the Moon. They attempt to gain approval from the Royal Society, but ultimately get rejected which forces Lily to find an arrowhead that can lead them to the tree which she steals under the nose of Prince Joachim (played by Jesse Plemons), a German royal who wants the Tears of the Moon to help in the war happening at the time. Lily and MacGregor arrive in Brazil, where they seek out a skipper to take them to the tree. At first, they seek out Nilo Nemolato (played by Paul Giamatti) who owns boats, but wind up with the untrustworthy (at least at first) Frank Wolff (played by Dwayne Johnson) who agrees to take them to the tree. But little do they know that a certain curse resides in the river that may put a halt to their voyage and may have a connection to Frank's past.
While not an entirely perfect film, it does enough to give us a decent film with good performances and very true to the actual ride (even having a scene that feels like the ride with animatronics and everything). I must admit, the middle part did make me nearly fall asleep, but overall it's a decent flick that does feel a bit similar to other films such as The African Queen, but with a bit of light humour and adventure. Probably not one many will remember, but it is what it is. 7/10
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