| Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Directed by | Andy Serkis |
| Screenplay by | Callie Kloves |
| Based on | All the Mowgli Stories byRudyard Kipling |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Michael Seresin |
| Edited by |
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| Music by | Nitin Sawhney |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Netflix |
Release dates |
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Running time | 104 minutes |
| Countries |
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| Language | English |
Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (also known and stylized on screen simply asMowgli) is a 2018adventuredrama film directed byAndy Serkis with a screenplay by Callie Kloves, based on stories collected inAll the Mowgli Stories byRudyard Kipling. The film starsRohan Chand,Matthew Rhys, andFreida Pinto, along with voice andmotion-capture performances fromChristian Bale,Cate Blanchett,Benedict Cumberbatch,Naomie Harris, and Serkis. In the film, an orphaned human boy who was raised by wolves, sets out on a journey to find a human village while evadingShere Khan.
Talks of a newJungle Book film fromWarner Bros. Pictures began in 2012 and various directors, includingSteve Kloves,Ron Howard, andAlejandro González Iñárritu, were approached before Serkis was confirmed in March 2014. Much of the cast signed on that August andprincipal photography began in March 2015. Filming took place inSouth Africa and atWarner Bros. Studios inLeavesden, England.
Originally scheduled to be released in October 2016 by Warner Bros. Pictures, the film was delayed numerous times to work on the visual effects and to create space between itself and the April 2016 release ofWalt Disney Pictures'slive-action adaptation ofThe Jungle Book. In July 2018, Warner Bros. Pictures sold the rights for the film toNetflix.
The film was released inselect theaters on 29 November, followed by its subsequent digital Netflix release on 7 December of the same year. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the cast, visual effects, and Serkis's direction, but many compared it unfavorably to the Disney film and criticized the uneven tone, calling it a "messy—if ambitious—misfire".[2]
In the jungles ofIndia, the giganticIndian python seerKaa watches asShere Khan, a sadisticBengal tiger, breaks "jungle law" by killing a family of humans. Theblack pantherBagheera finds a surviving infant boy and takes him to Nisha and Vihaan's family ofIndian wolves, but the child is spotted by Shere Khan'sstriped hyena lackeyTabaqui.
The "man-cub" is brought before the wolf council, where Bagheera strong-armsBaloo, aHimalayan brown bear, into serving as his fellow guardian. Shere Khan arrives to kill the child, butAkela, leader of the wolves, declares that the boy is under the pack's protection. Shere Khan warns that when Akela misses his prey, he will return to kill the boy.
The child, now known asMowgli, is adopted by Nisha and raised with the wolves. Years pass, and Mowgli encounters Shere Khan, who has antagonized the nearby "man-village" by killing their cattle. Mowgli falls into a tiger trap set by the villagers, but is saved by anIndian elephant missing half atusk.
Bagheera reveals to Mowgli that he is human, but Mowgli is determined to complete "the Running" – the trial to earn full membership in the pack. Bagheera urges Mowgli to leave the jungle for the village, where he will be safe from Shere Khan; watching the village from afar, Mowgli learns of the existence offire.
During the Running as Bagheera chases the young wolves to prove their skill, Mowgli uses his ability to climb and run upright to gain the lead. Desperate to keep him safe, Bagheera unfairly foils Mowgli. After stating to Mowgli that he let his guard down, an enraged Baloo confronts Bagheera for his actions. After running off, Mowgli is kidnapped by theBandar-log tribe of monkeys and brought to Shere Khan. Baloo and Bagheera arrive to save him. They are overwhelmed by the monkeys and Mowgli is rescued by Kaa. Having failed the Running, an angry Mowgli rejects the friendship of the albino wolf cub Bhoot. He goes to visits Kaa who believes he can restore harmony to the jungle.
While hunting, the aging Akela fails to bring down awater buffalo, leading Shere Khan to remind the pack they must now challenge him for the role of leader. As the wolves fight, Mowgli steals a burning branch from the village and repels Shere Khan and the challengers, but shames Akela who regrettably advises him to leave. A feral Mowgli is captured by the villagers andJohn Lockwood, a Britishhunter. A visiting Bagheera tells Mowgli that he must stay with the villagers and gain their trust as he once did to escape captivity himself.
Mowgli comes to enjoy life in the village, cared for by the kindlyMessua and learning hunting skills from Lockwood, who is tracking Shere Khan. Mowgli's wolf-sibling Gray Brother informs him that Shere Khan has driven away the wolves loyal to Akela and continues to kill cattle, endangering all the jungle's animals, but Mowgli refuses to help.
While the villagers celebrateHoli, Mowgli learns that it was Lockwood who shot off the elephant's tusk and discovers his hunting trophies, including the head of Bhoot. Returning the tusk to the elephant, Mowgli offers him the hunter in exchange for ridding the jungle of Shere Khan.
Mowgli meets with Baloo, Bagheera, and the wolf pack, who refuse to go against jungle law to help him defeat Shere Khan. Undeterred, he lures Shere Khan to the edge of the village where the tiger is surrounded by the elephant herd. Lockwood shoots at Shere Khan, but wounds Mowgli instead and Akela sacrifices himself to save the boy while Lockwood is killed by the charging elephant and Tabaqui flees.
The other animals come to Mowgli's aid, forcing Shere Khan to retreat and the dying Akela names Mowgli as his successor. With Messua and the village watching, Mowgli returns to the jungle and slays the mortally wounded Shere Khan. Kaa narrates that with Shere Khan and Lockwood gone, Mowgli has given the animals a voice and brought peace to the jungle.
A number of writers, directors, and producers were connected with the film during its development. By April 2012,Warner Bros. Pictures was developing the film withSteve Kloves in talks to write, direct, and produce it.[3] By December 2013 Kloves was attached to produce andAlejandro González Iñárritu was in talks to direct, from a screenplay by Kloves's daughter Callie.[4] Iñárritu left the project in the following month due to scheduling conflicts withBirdman andThe Revenant.[5][6] By February 2014,Ron Howard was in talks to direct, withBrian Grazer as producer through theirImagine Entertainment company.[6] The next monthAndy Serkis was hired to direct and produce the film with collaboratorJonathan Cavendish ofThe Imaginarium, and Serkis was also cast in the role ofBaloo.[7] Production designer Gary Freeman, editorMark Sanger, and costume designerAlexandra Byrne were hired.[8]
In August 2014,Benedict Cumberbatch joined the film to voice the villain role ofShere Khan.[9]Christian Bale,Cate Blanchett,Naomie Harris,Tom Hollander,Eddie Marsan,Peter Mullan, andRohan Chand were announced during that month.[10]Jack Reynor was added to the cast in March 2015 as Mowgli's Brother Wolf,[8] followed byMatthew Rhys in the role of John Lockwood in April.[11]Freida Pinto was cast as Mowgli's adoptive mother.[12][13]
Principal photography began on 9 March 2015.[8] It was filmed inDurban,South Africa and atWarner Bros. Studios, Leavesden inEngland.[14]
The film, originally titledJungle Book: Origins, was initially set for an October 2016 release byWarner Bros.[1] Warner Bros. later shifted the date to October 2017, allowing more time for further work on the visual effects.[15] In April 2016, just before the wide release of Disney'sThe Jungle Book, the film's release date was moved to 19 October 2018.[16] The working title of the film wasMowgli: Tales from the Jungle Book,[17] which was later changed toMowgli.[18] Serkis stated that the film is "darker" and more "serious" in tone than previousJungle Book adaptations, thus closer to that of Kipling's original works.[19][20] The first trailer and a behind-the-scenes featurette premiered on 21 May 2018.[21][22]
By July 2018,Netflix purchased the worldwide distribution rights of the film from Warner Bros., who originally set the film for a 2019 release date, including a theatrical 3D release.[23] At the time of the announcement,Deadline Hollywood described the film as "over-baked and over-budget" and said it allowed Warner Bros. to avoid "Pan-like box office bomb headlines" and saved them millions of dollars for not needing to promote the film.[24] Speaking of the move, Serkis commented:
"I'm really excited about Netflix forMowgli. Now, we avoid comparisons to the other movie and it's a relief not to have the pressure. I've seen the 3D version, and it's exceptional, a different view from the 2D version, really lush and with great depth, and there will be some kind of theatrical component for that. What excites me most is the forward thinking at Netflix in how to present this, and the message of the movie. They understand this is a darker telling that doesn't fit it into a four quadrant slot. It's really not meant for young kids, though I think it's possible that 10 or above can watch it. It was always meant to be PG-13, and this allows us to go deeper, with darker themes, to be scary and frightening in moments. The violence between animals is not gratuitous, but it's definitely there. This way of going allows us to get the film out without compromise".[23]
The title was changed toMowgli: Legend of the Jungle, and the film had limited theatrical release on 29 November 2018, followed by its subsequent streaming release on 7 December.[25] The film had its world premiere inMumbai on 25 November of the same year, the first time a Hollywood film premiered in India.[26]
Onreview aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 52% based on 107 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle brings impressive special effects to bear on the darker side of its classic source material, but loses track of the story's heart along the way".[27] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[28]
Kate Erbland ofIndieWire gave the film a "C+" and wrote: "Too dark for kids, too tame for adults. Stunning effects, occasionally wretched motion-capture. The technology may be there, but that doesn't mean it's been used to its full, feeling powers. It's a coming-of-age story unable to push forward in all the ways that really matter".[29] Similarly,The Atlantic's reviewer David Sims claimed the film suffers from weak visual effects and bland story.[30]
Matt Zoller Seitz ofRogerEbert.com awardedMowgli two stars, criticizing the film's motion capture effects and comparing the film unfavorably to Favreau'sThe Jungle Book.[31] Olly Richards ofEmpire gave the film 2/5 stars, writing that "for all his ambition, Serkis can't find the right tone for Mowgli and it becomes a very confused beast, neither fun enough for all ages to enjoy nor complex enough to be the visceral, grown-up thriller he nudges at".[32]The Observer's reviewer Wendy Ide awarded the film 3/5 stars, praising the film's visual and technical effects but opining that there was too much trauma and animal violence to attract family audiences.[33]
David Fear ofRolling Stone gave the film 3/5 stars, describingMowgli as "a harsher, darker, more CGI-heavy look at 'The Jungle Book'". While criticizing the film's CGI effects, Fear praised Christian Bale, Andy Serkis, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Cate Blanchett for their voicework as Bagheera, Baloo, Shere Khan, and Kaa.[34] Michael Sullivan ofThe Washington Post awarded the film 4/5 stars, praising Andy Serkis for combining motion capture animation with live action footage while cautioning parents not to watch it with their kids due to its adult themes and violence.[35] Additionally, Robert Abele of theLos Angeles Times praisedMowgli for incorporating the darker and more mature elements of Kipling'sThe Jungle Book, also favorably comparing the film toDisney's two family friendlyJungle Book iterations and describingMowgli as "the movie equivalent of a whiskey chaser after a sugary shake".[36]
Rohan Naahar of theHindustan Times awardedMowgli 4/5 stars, praising Serkis for delivering "a nuanced, visually dazzling update of theJungle Book for Netflix". While praising the film for its technical effects and mature themes, Naahar expressed disappointment with the under-representation of Indians in the main cast apart fromFreida Pinto.[37]Collider's Matt Goldberg described the film as a "blood-soak" version of theJungle Book, and criticized the film's level of violence and unsatisfactory CGI effects, giving the film a D rating.[38]
