Jungle Cruise (2021) Review

THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

When we search for treasure, we definitely do not expect the obstacles that come our way. Whatever the case, the memories sure would be recollected for the best if not worst.


PLOT


Based on the Disney Parks attraction, 2021’s Jungle Cruise takes place in 1916 London and follows botanist Lily Houghton who seeks to be part of Royal Society. She and her brother McGregor both share the goal in wanting to revolutionize medicine that would aid the British war effort. They take matters into their serious when stealing an arrowhead that may come from the mythical tree meant to cure any illness & lift any curse, Tears of the Moon. When Lily steals it, she evades Prince Joachim who in turn wants it for Germany’s sake to find the tree as well. The Houghtons reach Brazil and hire skipper Frank Wolff to guide them down the Amazon. Besides recognizing the arrowhead, he mostly goes to avoid repaying his loan to harbormaster Nilo Nemolato, as well as escape the wrath of Joachim who catches up via submarine. As they travel, Frank shares he did used to try looking for the tree but stopped searching for a long time ago. They then get picked up by the Puka Michuna who work for his contrived jungle cruise posing as cannibals. The tribal chief Trader Sam (Verónica Falcón) is able to translate the markings on the arrowhead that the tree will be found at La Luna Rota and it will only bloom under a blood moon. In the meanwhile, Joachim finds the cave full of immortal conquistadors led by Don Lope de Aguirre who have been cursed to never leave the Amazon River after trying to take the tree’s power to cure his ill daughter. His curse came as a result of slaying a chief at the time that refused to tell where the tree is. Joachim reanimates them all with the deal to give them flowers that’ll cure them all in exchange of finding the arrowhead first. They attack the tribe in hopes to get it, but get pulled back into the river before they can take it from Lily. During the commotion, Frank reveals himself to be a former conquistador, Francisco Lopez de Heredia. He went against Aguirre long ago after seeing his brutality and after years of endless fighting, he was able to trap them in the cave Joachim found them in. Unable to find the tree himself, he’s remained tied to the river and has kept his cover as a tour guide all these years. Eventually, he and the Houghtons reach La Luna Rota where a temple contains the Tears of the Moon. However, they do converge with Joachim and Aguirre. Deducing the arrowhead to be a locket containing a red gem, she puts two pieces into the bark’s carving which blooms the tree under the given time of Blood Moon. As all fight for it, Joachim gets crushed by a falling rock and Frank petrifies himself as well as Aguirre and his forces in order protect Lily. Rather than take it for herself, she uses the flower to save him and they consummate their relationship with a kiss. With Blood Moon’s last beam blooming another flower, she’s able to take that back home for research. After Frank sells his business to Nilo, he returns with the Houghtons to Britain where Lily becomes a University of Cambridge professor and rejects Royal Scoiety’s invitation. The film ends with Frank exploring London with her as he learns how to drive a car.


THOUGHTS


Considering there is a vast different quality of past adaptations of Disney Parks Attractions, when you compare Tomorrowland to Pirates of the Caribbean or Haunted Mansion. Off of that, it’s a given to say Walt Disney Pcitures was not sure of how Jungle Cruise would turn out. Sadly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was one of the many movies that didn’t make the most money in theaters and thrived on streaming, Disney+ Premier Access in this case. Putting aside the side hustle, it’s not as bad one would worry. In a general sense, I think director Jaime Collet-Serra is able to make a fun adventure film for families to see together as it’s nowhere near intense compared to Pirates or 1999’s The Mummy, yet enough to keep you guessing how it’s gonna play out. The visual effects do work on creative aspects like how the conquistadors are Amazon mummies or how there’s a pet jaguar named Proxima on Frank’s boat the whole time, a lot of my praise goes to the production/costume design that made the whole experience so authentic. All of this make each chase scene compelling to watch. James Newton Howard even gives a good score to embrace such excitement in can be to course through the jungle. Looking back, I think this film is fine on its own when not comparing it to what’s done before because this is an adventure flick that says wherever you go, always be resourceful and adapt however you can because the world doesn’t abide by your rules and thinking outside the box will help defy your expectations. With a solid cast, the message pays off very well. From the get go, it’s easy to enjoy Dwayne Johnson for being the ideal cynical yet noble protagonist he usually plays and Frank is no exception since he’s many lifetimes to know some decisions are not worth moving forward even if you know they’re possible. He was aware of this when it came to his feud with Aguirre because he saw the chief’s perspective that using the tree’s  flower could backfire if he continued to use mode after saving his daughter. He saw the long run that it could’ve been worse, thus the need to betray him the way he did. Despite doing the right thing, he had the right to be eager to be free of a curse he didn’t deserve and was lucky to have gotten that opportunity after a long wait. Was he a little two faced about the arrowhead with Lily? Yes because he didn’t want her to know his secret. But once he did, he showed how protective he’ll be to those he cares for. Édgar Ramirez was indeed his polar opposite because as Aguirre, his determination to save his daughter at the time only led to desperation where he was willing to break past morals for the greater good, but it only made him worse than past enemies he ever faced. His decision to kill the than chief was dead-on extremism, thus becoming cursed with his mean in the same vein of Davy Jones, who merges with the Amazon much like how the latter does with the ocean. Had he understood how others felt of his ambition, he could’ve found an alternative. Sadly, his corruption killed him as it did his daughter. Jesse Plemons is arguably the true villain as Joachim because he was straight up greedy and he basically picked up the pieces, conveniently expecting others to do the dirty work. Luckily, he finds out the hard way some things do not belong even after being found. Unexpectedly, Frank found love when he was looking for freedom. Emily Blunt was awesome as Lily because she is far more free spirited & driven compared to other people she tries to be part of. Since most women in her generation weren’t as adventurous as her, she wanted to break the mold and prove her worth with Royal Society by finding what was thought to be unreachable. She and Frank ending up hitting it off because they relate to the feeling of excitement that comes from having an adventure and they respect each others’ strengths. Off of that, I wouldn’t mind seeing them have more adventures together. Jack Whitehall was also a standout to me as McGregor because apart from being a prissy aristocrat, he is loyal to his sister, as she chose to have his back after their family neglected him for his homosexuality. The fact even Frank thought it isn’t a big deal warmed my heart. He also reminded me of Jonathan from The Mummy due to how dynamically unsuited he is from his sister so if we do ever get a sequel in the future, it’d be less fun without him. This movie is overall fine, but then there were things that bothered me upon rewatching. For starters I did laugh when McGregor actually said ‘pause for dramatic effect’ during his presentation, but it’s totally on Lily for leaving it on the cue card if he wasn’t supposed to say that. And while it is understandable Frank is nostalgic with his boat, but if he owes Nilo money, he should’ve sold his business sooner for another boat to remain with the river. He was in luck to see where Nilo took the keys, but he could’ve done it at night if he doesn’t want to get caught, especially since it’s too easy for him to break into his office. Also, how was Proxima sure when to intervene for Frank’s escape? He was talking to Lily for a while, so he was waiting in the bushes way too long to know when. It then feels for half assed for mercenaries to bet on her asking about a birdcage they intends to trap her in before Frank makes the save. Joachim even tops that shitty plan with betting on looking for the arrowhead should he have to destroy Frank’s boat with the Houghtons in it. It’s even impressive neither sibling noticed Proxima on the boat until after a day which is crazy because a jaguar sounds hard to miss. Moving on, it is kinda out of pocket for the Puka Michuna to knock out the Houghtons with darts yet they never actually wanted to hurt anyone. The second they saw Frank, they should’ve just let them be. Since the conquistadors have a network from their curses, why don’t they use that to follow the protagonists rather than rely on Joachim? They have enough power to not listen to him in the long run. Hell, McGregor could’ve just sat out canoeing and hang with the tribe to avoid capture since Lily didn’t need him at that point. Other than that, Jungle Cruise is still a solid adventure flick for letting loose in its variety of thrills & excitement you expect from the genre. If you’re a Disney fanatic that always had a soft spot for the titular attraction, check this out when you can.