Familiar but fun
Film Critic Jason Evans makes it his business to tell you
everything you need to know about movies in less time than it takes to reheat
last night’s leftovers. His reviews are exactly 100 words (not 99, not 101).
Here is his 100 word review of Jungle Cruise.
The Premise: There is a legend that somewhere, hidden deep
in the Amazon jungle, is the Tree of Life. The flowers from the Tree will heal
any injury or disease. Scientist Dr. Lilly Houghton (Emily Blunt) believes the legends
are real so she takes her brother MacGregor (Jack Whitehall) to Brazil to
search for it. She hires a local riverboat captain Frank Wolff (Dwayne “The
Rock” Johnson) to take them on their journey. But, Lilly isn’t the only believer
searching for the Tree. A German Prince (Jesse Plemons) is also in hot pursuit.
The 100 Words: This film really wants to be another Pirates
of the Caribbean -- with some Tarzan and Indiana Jones mixed in -- but it all
just feels too obvious and derivative to reach the heights of those classics.
The story is propelled along by some nice action set pieces, but whenever it feels
like a moment of true tension or mystery is coming the story undercuts it with
humor… humor that often falls flat. Blunt and Johnson are charismatic but
Plemmons is a cartoonish villain who never feels menacing or interesting. This
is a classic “fine but forgettable” kind of film.
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