Kevin Hart, Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black Photo credit: Hiram Garcia
The whole gang is back for more.
Co-written and directed by Jake Kasdan, Jumanji: The Next Level brings the gang back together, but this time the game shifts.
The players return to Jumanji to rescue one of their own. They discover that nothing is as they expect. The players will face brave parts unknown and unexplored, from the arid deserts to the snowy mountains, in order to escape the world’s most dangerous game.
Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg co-wrote the screenplay with Kasdan. All three worked on Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle with Kasdan directing.
The cast includes Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Awkwafina, Ser’Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, Alex Wolff, Danny Glover, and Danny DeVito.
Directed by Tim Burton, live-action Dumbo looks like one of the best movies for the whole family this year. I am sure the box office will be pleased. The screenplay is by Ehren Kruger, who wrote all those Transformer movies. I find that ironic because Dumbo is nothing like a Transformer.
I am glad the original theme song is part of the live-action movie. The cartoon movie is a classic with an extraordinary message about overcoming your handicap and succeeding. During the movie trailer, I never saw the mouse. But Pink Elephants on Parade is in the movie. The tiny clip in the trailer looks like the show will be fun to watch.
The movie stars Eva Green, Colin Farrell, and Michael Keaton. I am not sure who the kid actors are, but I look forward to learning more about them.
I wonder if the blackbirds will be in the movie as well. I love that scene, even though it doesn’t fit in with the PC standards of today. They are so funny with lines like, “I’ve seen a housefly. I’ve seen a horsefly. But, I have never seen an elephant fly.”
The second trailer is even better. Burton created a movie for kids to watch. By watching the second trailer, it appears the story becomes somewhat altered. A dad and other adults were not in the original Disney version. But, the adults seem to have a purpose in the movie, which makes it okay. The theme song is the same.
With that, there is a trailer. My YouTube account has a note that says it’s blocked worldwide. It might not play for you. I am sorry, but I had to write about this movie because Dumbo is one of my favorite Disney movies.
Blu-ray, DVD, and streaming are available for those who want to watch the movie again or haven’t seen it yet. The film is excellent for kids who want to see it repeatedly.
The featurette “Soaring to New Heights” offers quite a bit of information about the remake of Dumbo. I thought I saw a mouse in this video, and I am curious if the mouse plays an essential role in this new version. I sense that Danny Devito’s character fills that part of the story where the mouse encourages Dumbo to fly or the kids do.
Watching Tim Burton talk about Dumbo is impressive. He is so animated and a complete genius. Burton almost says something about working with Disney and stops. I wonder what he wanted to say about Disney.
The following movie clips show Dumbo flying, sinister DeVito and Keaton, and the kids, Farrell and Green.
The interview with Farrell shows him upbeat and excited about the movie and working with Burton.
Green talks about how she overcame the fear of heights to play the flying traipse artist. She talks about what it is like working with Burton and Keaton.
Michael Keaton tells it like it is in this interview with spoilers.
The featurette is magical, and I can’t wait to see the movie.
Dumbo is a magical story about a unique elephant who loses his mother. He must overcome the obstacles in life to be with his mother and succeed as himself. The next featurette expresses the brilliance of Burton and his magical world.
The next featurette arrives several days before the movie’s release in the US with all the interviews and footage combined.
