The family had been looking forward to watching the new Jungle Book film on TV this Christmas, and listening to them talking about it, I wondered why they loved it so much. I had never seen the earlier cartoon version, although I knew the songs from all the clips they show.
I only had a vague idea of the story. A baby brought up in the forest by wolves, befriended by a lovable old bear called Ballou. A different telling of Tarzan, I thought.
This version was not just a cartoon. They used real animals combined with CGI to create a magical story, and I was instantly enthralled. Although I personally hate technology in all its forms, as whenever I try to utilise it, everything usually goes pear shaped. But I can appreciate it when other people use it well, and this film is flawless.
Children (and adults) will love this film, and not just for the animals and scenery. This timeless story, with its ultimate message of peace and goodwill is a valuable one in today’s world.
Pity we can’t get all the world leaders to watch it too…
I loved the book when I was a kid — drew pictures of scenes from it, made friends act out bits of it, etc. Haven’t seen any of the film versions. And I don’t remember a message of peace and goodwill, either; it was more like a series of wild adventures ended by growing up and leaving the life of the jungle. I guess Disney put their spin on it and made it into a different thing altogether.
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I agree, the Jungle Book, word for word would not have gone down well as a 1960s cartoon. This went someway to putting more reality in.
(Talking of such things Enid Blyton wrote sometimes in the 1930s a book of short stories called The Hedgerow Tales, although the animals all talked to each, they did not wear clothes, and they did kill and eat each other, and it was written for children too! I read it first when I was 10 and still have a copy)
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Wow, hard to believe of E.B. I read a lot of her books when I was 10 or so, but not that one.
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I thought ‘Jungle Book’ was written by Kipling?
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It was, but Roger referred to a book by Enid Blyton that seemed somewhat grim, and I responded to that.
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Oh indeed. Nature in the raw, nothing sentimental and environmental commentary too, all back in the 1930s.
From the little I have read about her she did have a hard side to her character, and perhaps she tried this out as an experiment (or maybe her idea of an antidote to the more conventional children’s stories of the time)
Probably not a popular book with parents of then nor subsequent decades and so publishers let it fade away into dusty corners- I think it still turns up on Amazon (and probably E-bay)
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I’ll have to have a look for it, purely out of curiosity.
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My wife gave me the DVD as a Christmas present. Spellbinding mix of image, humour, loyalty courage and the grim.
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