A multi-million-dollar summer blockbuster adventure film starring some pretty bankable actors based on a Walt Disney theme park ride. Sound familiar? Yes, “Jungle Cruise” will receive endless comparisons to “Pirates of the Caribbean,” but judging it as its own thing, it’s easy to recommend “Cruise” as a fun, lightweight popcorn flick: nothing more, nothing less.
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (“The Shallows,” “The Commuter”) and written by Michael Green (“Logan,” “Blade Runner 2049”), Glenn Ficarra (“I Love You Phillip Morris,” “Crazy, Stupid, Love”), and John Requa (“I Love You Phillip Morris,” “Crazy, Stupid, Love”), from a story by Ficarra, Requa, John Norville (“Tin Cup”), and Josh Goldstein (“Sweet Valley High,” “American Dreams”), “Jungle Cruise” sees Dwayne Johnson (“Fast Five,” “The Scorpion King”) leading Emily Blunt (“Mary Poppins Returns,” “Edge of Tomorrow”) and Jack Whitehall (“Bad Education,” “Fresh Meat”) down a jungle river in the Amazon in search of a mystical healing tree.
Take that plot, throw in some action sequences, a mystical McGuffin, some cheesy villains, and a boatload (pun entirely intended) of CGI, and you’ve got what very well might be one of the most unoriginal adventure films in a very long time. Its not bad, by any means, but its so clear that the film doesn’t have a single original bone or story beat in its body. Have you ever seen “Romancing the Stone”? “Raiders of the Lost Ark”? “Treasure of the Sierra Madre”? Any film that involved Ray Harryhausen? Then you’ll know, virtually beat for beat, how this entire adventure will go.
That’s not to say its unenjoyable, and the reason it does end up being such a charming blast is because of those actors captaining this ship. Johnson continues his streak of being nearly effortlessly likable. A big teddy bear of a man with arms as big as tree trunks, his skipper Frank is a cynical, shrewd con artist of a captain who’s not above a bad pun or a clever moneymaking scheme.
Blunt’s Lily might be a bit too naïve for her own good, but she’s still a wonderfully headstrong and smart scientist who can hold her own alongside the adventurous escapades and big personalities being thrown her way. Most surprisingly, Whitehall keeps what could’ve easily been a one note joke character consistently likable and even gives him an arc in his own way.
Meanwhile Jesse Plemmons (“Game Night,” “Fargo (2015)”) and Paul Giamatti (“Sideways,” “Billions”) are making absolute meals of the scenery, CGI or not. Plemmons plays Prince Joachim, a German aristocrat determined to find the mystical tree and Giamatti plays what can only be described as a cross between an Italian mob boss and Colonel Sanders as Nilo Nemolato, a competitor and loan shark to Frank. Both are having the times of their lives, and, despite Giamatti only being on screen for a limited time, both are a highlight.
Visually, the film is shot fairly typically. Nothing is going to blow your socks off in terms of visuals or shots, but its all serviceable. Some of the more fantastical antagonists, such as one infested with bees and with snakes wrapping around their skeleton like muscles represent a surprising level of visual ingenuity. Its one of the few places where Collet-Serra’s background in horror films shines through, as these antagonists are truly unsettling and wonderfully designed.
However, these excellent designs make the lackluster greenscreen work stand out even more. For about half the film, everything looks fine and average. Yet there are a handful of scenes that really look bad, far worse than a film with this budget should allow. Nothing here has to be perfect, but the shoddy execution of some of these scenes, one of which is meant to be a big emotional moment, really weakens the entire affair.
Like most of these big budget popcorn flicks, what ends up really saving the film is not just the charming actors, but the little surprises. Frank’s cons show up throughout in very amusing ways that serve to spice up the adventure, and Veronica Falcón (“Queen of the South”, “Perry Mason”) appears for a short while in the middle of the film as Trader Sam and is an instant comedic highlight, bleeding charisma to rival Johnson. Even the jabs at the misogynistic nature of early 1900s English society and the overt way Lily tries to combat them come of as lighthearted instead of meanspirited.
“Jungle Cruise” is lightweight popcorn fare, plain and simple. It’s commanded by some wonderfully charming performances, some fun surprises, and great antagonistic designs. It might not have an original beat in its plot and have some shoddy green screen, but as a simple, fun adventure movie, it’s easy to recommend as a fun, meandering trip down the river. 3/5
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